The first seen applications of EQ as we know it today was throughout the 1920s for radio and television. These EQ’s used large electro-mechanical equalisers to boost or cut specific frequencies in order to balance out the audio signal – they were much larger machines than we use today, with large rows of dials to control specific frequency bands. One of the earliest examples of these EQs was the RCA 8B which was first introduced in 1931. [1]
With the further development of music recording techniques, these EQ modules soon found their way into music studios from as early 1945 when Peter Goldmark released the first commercial LP vinyl record. This featured a boost at 20,000hz by using an equaliser to enhance the sound quality of the music, which helped set the starting ‘baseline’ quality for music consumption that was improved throughout the following years.
There was further innovation throughout the 50s and 60s due to a new approach to targeting more specific frequencies by using electronic circuits instead of larger mechanical techniques. One of the most famous (and still widely used) EQs from this time was the Pultec EQP-1A which became known for its unique ‘warm/round’ qualities. One of the most well known characteristic of this EQ is how the ‘boost’ and ‘attenuation’ dials interact with each other. As seen on the graph below you can use the attenuation to clear a lot of muddy, boomy frequencies that otherwise would have caused issues in your mix while still retaining the warm sound of raising the lower frequencies.
I think that having a better knowledge of earlier developments in EQ will help my work by giving more context on what my aim is whenever I begin equalising a sound. I find it easy to get carried away and lose my musical intentions due to how easily you can tweak and overthink certain choices, and I think that having a better understanding of what EQ was invented for will give me a different perspective on what I should use it for.
[1] Black Rooster Audio. (n.d.). AAX/AU/VST Audio Plugins from Black Rooster Audio. [online] Available at: https://blackroosteraudio.com/en/blogreader/a-brief-history-of-equalization.
[2] Musictech.com. (2024). Available at: https://musictech.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Screen-shot-2014-05-29-at-13.05.46.png [Accessed 24 Apr. 2024].
[3]Cloudfront.net. (2024). Available at: https://d29rinwu2hi5i3.cloudfront.net/article_media/227a9abb-f582-4347-a4db-cadd9b71730c/w768/7_eqs_fig_1b.jpg [Accessed 24 Apr. 2024].
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