HOW TO easily build AUTHENTIC RE-CREATIONS OF LA2A, PULTEC, UA176... ALL BY YOURSELF

OK...so what does that really mean "no match"...?

For me, it's about the sound and the cost, and good build quality backed by a warranty and a customer service department...and not about having identical components to match a vintage unit, but YMMV....

When I said no match, I meant the sound not about matching components ;)
That'S just a saying - no match... like different leagues - night & day?

The WA is a nice sounding passive EQ - the Pultec EQP1A sounds f***in AMAZING - it's like grandma's finest hand-whipped cream - it sounds INSPIRING!!

That's what makes the difference. You know, if you use a piece of gear that inspires you to do things or get ideas or try things you otherwise wouldn't?

Like I remember singing through my U47 for the very first time - I was blown away!!

It was about the same with the first vintage LA2A and Pultec I heard and sang through in that studio in LA back then where I was blessed work with my band back in 2011.
From that very day I was like obsessed. I wanted to be able to create that sound at my studio. And after trying several kind of clones, always ending up disappointed, for me the only way to get there was studying what makes these legendary pieces of gear so special and how they exactly work (which actually took me years) and finally build them myself from scratch.
And I eventually made it. When finished my first "real" Pultec and switched it on for the very first time - there was that instant "Yeeeeesssss - finallyyyyy that sound!!"

It might sound ridiculous to you but from my personal experience I am convinced - once you heard them, there's no turning back. And if you then one day managed to create such a wonderful piece of gear with your own two hands and you switch it on for the very first time - I'm not shitting you - I was exactly like Tom Hanks in that movie "Cast Away". It might be you're a lot less emotional about things like that :D :D
But for me that completely changed my perspective on things, because I knew I could pull it off.

Anyway, it's fun discussing with you Miroslav, but I certainly don't want to spoil the 300$ EQs for you - if it works for you - cool!
I'm just sharing my experience here

This video is only on youtube so it's not really perfect for judging the sound, but it compares a vintage EQP-1A to a (very pricey $1500) clone - the EzP1-A:

YouTube

And even though it's a compressed audio format, it gives a pretty good impression of why the EQP-1A is the "holy grail" of vintage tube equalizers...
 
This video is only on youtube so it's not really perfect for judging the sound, but it compares a vintage EQP-1A to a (very pricey $1500) clone - the EzP1-A:


OK...so I would rather buy the $1500 ready-built clone...than a kit what will cost almost as much when it's done. :)

What's your point?


Also...you're talking about the Warm Audio WA...but you are comparing a vintage Pultec to someone else's clone.
That's like apples to oranges to grapes. :D

There are plenty of comparisons out there of the Warm WA to other clones, both hardware and plugins...and generally, they all come out in the same ballpark.
I've never seen one where a vintage Pultec absolutely killed all the others...and the reality is that you can grab 10 different vintage Pultecs, and they wont' all sound the same...so in the end, it's a wash, and mostly about different flavors.
When you consider that there are very inexpensive plugins that can be in the same ballpark...it's a hard sell to talk about a very expensive DIY kit.

Oh...and yes, at this time, the $300 EQ unit is equal to and even a touch better built than the Warm WA...so really, for $300, the slight sonic differences compared to an expensive clone or even vintage Pultec aren't going to be that compelling...at least not to me.
Of course, if you are heavily biased to seeing specific components...it's going to be the driving force in your decisions.

Not saying I would refuse a pair of vintage Pultecs...just considering where the money is best spent.


I also think that you put yourself in a dangerous position creatively and maybe even financially, when you start to believe that "only *THIS* piece of equipment can give me the sound that I want".
There are modern amps that can do a Marshall sound...but you have the guys who will drop several thousand on a vintage Marshall that is probably out os spec and that's seen better days...just as one example.
 
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Like I remember singing through my U47 for the very first time - I was blown away!!

I have to say, my experience was totally different. Maybe I don't have great ears or something .. maybe that's the difference. But the first time I sang/played through pro vintage gear at a pro studio (Neumann U87 and U47, Pultec EQ, Neve preamps, and LA-2A and 1176 compressors), it was extremely underwhelming. I thought I was going to have that reaction (being blown away!), but it pretty much just sounded like me. It just sounded like what I was used to.

Now, I wasn't there for the mixing, so I didn't get to twist the knobs of those units and all. So all I can comment on is the tracking procedure. But on that end, it didn't sound any different to me at all. You could have told me I was tracking through all Behringer gear and I probably would have believed you.

I certainly believe other people when they talk about their experiences and all (though I wonder how much of it is confirmation bias), but I can only speak to my experience, which was certainly not a "holy grail" one.

That doesn't mean I wouldn't like to have quality gear, but when I can't honestly tell that much of a difference between setup A and setup B, I can't justify putting my family in debt for some pieces of gear.

I'm not saying that if I sang through a Behringer mic and then a Neumann U47 back to back that I wouldn't be able to tell a difference. I'm sure I would easily (and it would likely be even more obvious listening back). All I'm saying is that when I first sang through the Neumann and pro signal chain -- with no other reference beforehand -- there was definitely not a "clouds parting" moment for me.

In fact, that was one of the reasons why I wanted to record in a real studio in the first place --- to see and hear for myself what truly pro gear would be like. We really couldn't afford the studio either, but were fortunately able to make it happen with a Kickstarter campaign.

I've modified several mics over the years by replacing capsules and circuitry. When I've done that, I always make before and after recordings to see if I can hear a difference. On the mic mods, the difference has always been pretty obvious (although I don't know how obvious it would to the lay person).

On other gear I've modified, such as a DBX 163x compressor, the difference was not discernible enough to me to warrant the trouble.

I've put my modified mics---these include a Studio Projects C1 (all new circuit), Apex 460 (new capsule, circuit, and grill), and MXL 990 (new capsule, circuit, and grill)---against some $1K - $2K mics that I've borrowed from friends, and mine sound just as good to me. Granted, these mics are basically nothing like the stock versions, since (aside from the C1, which has the same capsule) really the only thing in common with the stock version is the body. But my point is that none of them cost more than $400 in parts (the Apex mod being the most expensive), and yet they easily compete with $1.5K and $2K mics, IMHO.

Now, maybe if I step up to $4K and $5K mics, I will be able to notice a difference, but that's completely unrealistic for me at this point, so it's not even worth considering. (Even a $1K mic is usually quite out of my reach.)

Anyway, that's been my experience thus far.
 
I have to say, my experience was totally different. Maybe I don't have great ears or something .. maybe that's the difference. But the first time I sang/played through pro vintage gear at a pro studio (Neumann U87 and U47, Pultec EQ, Neve preamps, and LA-2A and 1176 compressors), it was extremely underwhelming.

I think when it comes to the pro studios, it's a lot more to do with the space, the room(s)...the overall vibe...and maybe the guy behind the console, than a couple of pieces of rack gear.
I'm totally into audio gear, and when it's worth the $$$...it's worth the money. :)
On the other hand, it's often too easy (and maybe kinda hard to accept) to find out that some piece of gear simply doesn't bring the magic that you imagined it would.
So it's important to really weigh things out, especially when it's a bigger chunk of change involved.

Speaking of new gear and clones...
I just picked up the new Warm Audio WA273-EQ...I mean it just came out the box and I have yet to plug it in.
It was $1500 for two channels of Neve-style 1073 preamps with the EQ section.

Warm Audio WA273-EQ

This particular build from Warm (along with the other 3 variations) has been getting a lot of attention recently, and the preliminary reviews were all positive.
I often hold off on newly introduced gear until there's been some hands-on reviews from the general audio community...but I figured I might as well go for this one, considering that they took things up a couple of notches with the overall build...and I have the 30-day return option from Sweetwater if I don't really like it...but I doubt I will not like it. (See that's another thing about buying ready-made...you can try it and return it.)

I had asked my Sweetwater rep to put me on the waiting list...and I kinda forgot about it, and then when he said they were in, and there was one waiting for me, and if I wanted it I needed to pull the trigger or pass...well, mine is a hair-trigger. ;)
I also figured the early units will probably be better QC'd...than later on as production increases. This one is #0042...so I guess it's the 42nd one made...?
 
I think when it comes to the pro studios, it's a lot more to do with the space, the room(s)...the overall vibe...and maybe the guy behind the console, than a couple of pieces of rack gear.
I'm totally into audio gear, and when it's worth the $$$...it's worth the money. :)
On the other hand, it's often too easy (and maybe kinda hard to accept) to find out that some piece of gear simply doesn't bring the magic that you imagined it would.
So it's important to really weigh things out, especially when it's a bigger chunk of change involved.

Speaking of new gear and clones...
I just picked up the new Warm Audio WA273-EQ...I mean it just came out the box and I have yet to plug it in.
It was $1500 for two channels of Neve-style 1073 preamps with the EQ section.

Warm Audio WA273-EQ

This particular build from Warm (along with the other 3 variations) has been getting a lot of attention recently, and the preliminary reviews were all positive.
I often hold off on newly introduced gear until there's been some hands-on reviews from the general audio community...but I figured I might as well go for this one, considering that they took things up a couple of notches with the overall build...and I have the 30-day return option from Sweetwater if I don't really like it...but I doubt I will not like it. (See that's another thing about buying ready-made...you can try it and return it.)

I had asked my Sweetwater rep to put me on the waiting list...and I kinda forgot about it, and then when he said they were in, and there was one waiting for me, and if I wanted it I needed to pull the trigger or pass...well, mine is a hair-trigger. ;)
I also figured the early units will probably be better QC'd...than later on as production increases. This one is #0042...so I guess it's the 42nd one made...?

Cool score! I hope it sounds as good as it looks! :)
 
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