Universal Audio Pultec Passive EQ Collection

OverTone DSP
PTH-2A £12
This wallet-friendly Pultec is up with
the best of them in its painstaking
modelling of the EQP-1A. Low-shelf
boosts extend to +12dB at max, and
cuts go down to -18dB, extending
well into the midrange like the
original. The high boost and
attenuation controls offer more
dramatic gain changes. This one, as
all the others in this round-up, is
also modelling the ‘definitive’ Pultec
with 20Hz and attenuation selector.
In operation, PTH-2A brings the
musical cuts and boosts (even at
extreme settings) that the original
hardware is famous for, and
sweeping the frequency of the High
Boost is simply seamless, which is
helpful. You can also bypass the EQ,
leaving just the tube amp sauce in
the signal. An excellent, CPU-
friendly Pultec you can use again
and again in one project, unlike an
original hardware version!
www.overtonedsp.co.uk
VERDICT 8.9
Acustica Audio
Purple P-1 €119
One big Pultec feature is the
‘low-end trick’. As the two low
shelves and high bands rest at
slightly different frequencies (and
low attenuation is broader than low
boost), you can boost and cut at
once, for a boost with a dip straight
after. This is present in all the
Pultecs here, but, built on Acustica’s
Core9 technology, this emulation
goes further than the original
EQP-1A by offering an Input Trim
control, which controls both a rise in
level before the EQ circuit and a
compensatory reduction in level after
it, making your processing a little
grittier when raised – useful for
adding ‘tube drive’ to a classic
setup. Purple’s GUI isn’t seamless,
with some clicks when moving
parameters, but these are minimal.
www.acusticaudio.com
VERDICT 8.7
Software Pultec
Emulations
We gather together a mere six versions of this
frequently-emulated EQ to compare and contrast,
while bringing you some Pultec history along the way
Universal Audio Pultec
Passive EQ Collection
£229
First created in 1951 by Ollie Summerland and Gene Shenk, the
original Pulse Techniques Program Equalizer EQP-1A, or more simply,
‘Pultec’, used overbuilt transformers and tube amplifiers to bring its
boosts and cuts together, resulting in an EQ with one of the most
sought-after sounds, even in the digital age.
Running as a UAD 2.0 plugin for owners of the requisite hardware,
Universal Audio’s emulation models the ‘definitive’ Pultec, which added
a 20Hz setting to the 30, 60 and 100 options for its two low shelves,
plus a separate frequency selector and on/off switch for the high-shelf
attenuation filter.
The sound, response and tone are near-as-dammit recreations of the
original unit, and its highly-prized tone, for a fraction of the price of the
hardware. Alongside the EQP-1A emulation, you also get UA’s MEQ-5
Mid-Range Equalizer and HLF-3C Low/High cut filters. All three are true
timepieces, bringing that famous Pultec sound to as many instances as
your UAD hardware can support.
www.uaudio.com
VERDICT 9.3
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FMU335.rev_roundup.indd 90 08/08/2018 16:00