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MT 10MM British EQ demystified

58 | April 2014 MAGAZINE

Minute Master

British EQ demystified

N ames such as Neve, Helios and Trident are as

familiar to today’s recordists as they ever were

– albeit in the virtual form of digital plug-ins.

But does ‘British EQ’ mean something specific,

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

Behringer’s mixing consoles and the company’s 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

confined to lesser desks may find it hard to relate to.

But doesn’t every manufacturer like to describe their

equalisers as ‘musical’? It’s surely fair to say that

Behringer’s 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 evaluationVic 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 influenced by Dick

Denny at Vox amplifiers. Musician Dick wasn’t

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 first 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 confirmed that these were guiding

principles for Rupert Neve.

Interestingly, Oram does not share Neve’s 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 USAEven the father of ‘British EQ’ feels it’s 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 find 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. It’s undeniably evocative, but what does it actually mean? Huw Price attempts to find out...

The Neve 1073 is a favourite EQ of many engineers and this is a reissue from AMS/Neve. It’s an active design with Class-A amplification 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) filters.

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British EQ demystified 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.

Trident’s 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, it’s

also worth researching

Cadac, Soundcraft, Calrec

and Amek designs.

Many regard Trident’s 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

they’re 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, it’s 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 rulesThe 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 it’s 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.

It’s worth noting that Abbey Road’s 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 it’s

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 that’s what

the record companies demanded. The lines have been

blurred ever since.

VerdictEngineers 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 it’s 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 they’re 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