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MT 10MM British EQ demystied

58 | April 2014 MAGAZINE
Minute
Master
British EQ
demystified
N
ames such as Neve, Helios and Trident are as
familiar to todays recordists as they ever were
albeit in the virtual form of digital plug-ins.
But does British EQ mean something specic,
or is it just a convenient and effective marketing term?
Behringer is one of the manufacturers currently using it
a company founded in Germany but with production
based in China. British equalisers feature on some of
Behringers mixing consoles and the companys website
attempts to explain what this means: The EQs on British
consoles from the 60s and 70s are...kind, gentle and,
above all, musical. Some who have used Neve EQ
modules may recognise this description, but those
whose experience of vintage British equalisers is
conned to lesser desks may nd it hard to relate to.
But doesnt every manufacturer like to describe their
equalisers as musical? Its surely fair to say that
Behringers description could also be applied to Pultecs,
APIs and Klein & Hummels. To bring us closer to an
understanding of British EQ we asked some experts for
some technical insights rather than subjective opinions.
Expert evaluation
Vic Keary of Thermionic Culture seemed nonplussed by
the phrase British EQ. If there was any design similarity
between the equalisers made by EMI, Neve, Trident and
SSL, he felt it could be the Baxandall tone stack. Even so,
Vic pointed out that Helios EQ was designed differently
and was better in some ways.
John Oram has been described as the father of
British EQ a contentious title that has caused upset in
the UK. Oram trained with and was inuenced by Dick
Denny at Vox ampliers. Musician Dick wasnt
particularly interested in the mathematical approach of
Peter Baxandall and preferred to mix-and-match
components until he achieved a sound he liked.
Oram described how Denny also suffered from
hearing loss, so to compensate he tended to prefer
sounds that were quite bright and sharp. Oram
described the method as empirical design and it
certainly ties in with accounts of how the rst Trident
desks were created. Oram eventually joined Trident and
brought his style of circuit design and sound
characteristics to the later TSM and Series 80 consoles.
Oram also noted that Rupert Neve began his career in
the broadcast industry. Broadcast studios of the day
demanded very high technical standards, with
equipment judged by linearity and low distortion. John
Turner at AMS/Neve conrmed that these were guiding
principles for Rupert Neve.
Interestingly, Oram does not share Neves sensibilities,
preferring to approach circuit design from a musical
rather than purely technical standpoint. Since the Neve
and Trident brands are equally synonymous with British
EQ, you have to wonder about the whole thing.
UK to USA
Even the father of British EQ feels its a spurious term.
Oram recalls people started using it in the 60s to account
for differences in the sound quality of British and US
recordings. Some observed that the US sound was clearer
and cleaner, while UK studios were making dirtier-
sounding recordings with more pronounced midrange.
Sound engineering debates tend to gloss over any
contribution the musicians themselves might have made
while British bands were trying hard to capture the
primal and raw vibe of Chicago blues, US groups were
churning out good vibrations.
You may nd it illuminating to check out some
footage of Otis Reading with Booker T and the MGs on
tour in Europe during the mid-60s. Playing through a
rented Marshall backline, they almost sound like a
We have noticed that a growing number of equipment manufacturers of late have begun to
use the term British EQ in their product descriptions. Its undeniably evocative, but what
does it actually mean? Huw Price attempts to nd out...
The Neve 1073 is a favourite EQ of
many engineers and this is a reissue from
AMS/Neve. Its an active design with Class-A amplication and
discrete solid-state components. The Neve 1066 and 1081 are also
popular, with hardware clones and plug-ins widely available.
Only 13 Trident A consoles were
made, so original models are
scarce and very valuable. This
reissue has authentic faders for
the boosts and cuts and a
combination of active shelf and
bell (parametric) lters.
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British EQ demystied 10MM MT
MAGAZINE April 2014 | 59
EQ by design
John Turner at Neve says
their classic EQs were active
inductor-based designs up
to the introduction of the
8108 console around 1978.
Tridents A Series equaliser
was an active four-band
inductor-based design made
with discrete components.
The Series 80 design was
different, with op-amps and
no inductors. Helios EQ
modules had inductors and
discrete silicon transistors
for gain make-up. Unlike
Neve or Trident equalisers,
they were passive rather
than active, so they were
closer in concept to the
American Pultec EQs. If this
subject interests you, its
also worth researching
Cadac, Soundcraft, Calrec
and Amek designs.
Many regard Tridents late 70s
Series 80 as a great console;
however, there were no
inductors and op-amps had
replaced the discrete
transistors. When people wax
lyrical about Trident equalisers,
you should ask which one
theyre referring to. The Series
80 pictured below is a reissue.
different band. The typically
mid-scooped Fender amp sound is
replaced by the full-throated midrange of
cranked-up Marshall amps and Celestion speakers. With
equipment like that, its no wonder that British bands
sounded fatter (desk EQ notwithstanding).
Perhaps the approach of British engineers rather than
the equipment itself had a lot to do with the sound. All
EQs create distortion and phase-shift to some extent; if
two brands of equaliser are being used subtly to make
minor adjustments, the differences between them will be
less apparent than when heavy EQ is being applied.
Breaking the rules
The term equalisation indicates that it was originally
designed to correct the sound by levelling out frequency
response. Could it be that British engineers were more
inclined to break the rules and use equalisers creatively
to sculpt sounds? Were the British simply more rock n
roll than their American counterparts?
Consider all the legendary British engineers and
producers who went on to carve out stellar careers in the
US presumably they were employed to give US bands a
British sound, but its highly unlikely that they travelled
between US studios carrying racks of British equalisers.
British audio equipment was therefore clearly not a
prerequisite for the British sound.
Perhaps the British sound was actually an aesthetic
rather than a technical phenomenon, based on the way
studio guys were trained and the way they felt music
should sound. Rather than accept the technical
limitations of their gear, they would push it to get the
results they wanted. When analogue audio gear is made
to operate at the extremes, it tends to sound characterful.
Its worth noting that Abbey Roads in-house
technicians designed their own equalisers for the
legendary Redd mixing desks. Based on American-made
Pultecs, they were combined with V Series preamps from
Siemens in Germany and US-made Fairchild and Altec
compressors. Audio in the quintessential British studio
typically followed a multinational signal path.
The likes of Glyn and Andy Johns, Eddie Kramer and
Roy Thomas Baker started out in British studios, so its
inevitable that people attributed the sound of their early
records to the gear they were using and to the
equalisers in particular.
A lot of British equipment ended up being installed in
US studios and some American engineers eventually
adopted a more British approach because thats what
the record companies demanded. The lines have been
blurred ever since.
Verdict
Engineers with experience of classic equipment might
say that British EQ is really about fat and up-front
midrange, but the American records had better bass and
extended treble. It could have been the equalisers or the
working methods, but its more likely that achieving a
British sound required a bit of both.
With Neve shooting for technical excellence, Trident
prioritising vibe and Helios utilising a passive design, the
big three were quite different in concept and
construction. Ultimately, we would have to conclude that
British EQ actually means different things to different
people depending on what they want to believe and, on
occasion, what theyre trying to sell... MT
Dick Swettenham was an employee of Olympic Studios when he
convinced the management that he could build a mixing desk that
was better than anything else available at the time. The desk was a
huge success and the passive equalisation circuit is highly rated.
Helios modules, like this 500-Series Type 69, are still in production.
Audio in the quintessential
British studio typically followed
a multinational signal path