EQP-1 in a Pultec-Style EQ Comparison
- 09.09.2026
- Michael Krusch
- Story
- Basics
- Vergleich
- EQP-1
The Classic Equalizer EQP-1 shares its passive filter network and tube make-up stage with the same design principle behind the original Pultec EQP-1A – the principle two other EQs on the market today, the Warm Audio EQP-WA and the Tube-Tech PE 1C, are still built around. This comparison puts the published specifications of all three side by side, taken only from each manufacturer's own information. No sound judgments here: a fair listening comparison would need all three units in the same room, and this article stays with what each manufacturer states.
The same Pultec principle, three different builds
All three EQs work with the same passive boost-and-cut network at their core, but the surrounding circuit differs in the details manufacturers actually publish: channel count, tube complement, transformers, and the exact frequencies and dB maxima on each band.
| Tegeler EQP-1 | Warm Audio EQP-WA | Tube-Tech PE 1C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Topology | Passive tube EQ, Pultec-style | Passive tube EQ, Pultec-style | Tube push-pull, Pultec-style |
| Channels | 2 (dual mono) | 1 (mono) | 1 (mono) |
| Rack size | 2U (88.1 × 483 × 250 mm) | 2U (19 × 3.5 × 6 in / 483 × 89 × 152 mm) | not stated by manufacturer |
| Frequency response | 20 Hz–22 kHz | 20 Hz–50 kHz | not stated by manufacturer |
| Tubes | ECC88 | 12AX7, 12AU7 | tube push-pull amplifier (type not stated) |
| Transformers | custom-wound input/output transformers, made specifically for Tegeler | CineMag | input/output, fully floating |
| Low band | 4 frequencies (20/30/60/100 Hz); boost 14 dB max, cut 18 dB max | 7 frequencies (20/30/60/100/200/400/800 Hz); boost 12 dB max, cut 18 dB max | 4 frequencies (20/30/60/100 Hz); boost 14 dB max, cut 18 dB max |
| High boost | 9 frequencies (3–20 kHz), variable bandwidth; 20 dB max (narrow) / 12 dB max (wide) | 7 frequencies (3/4/5/8/10/12/16 kHz); 18 dB max | 10 frequencies (1–16 kHz), variable Q; 18 dB max (narrow) / 10 dB max (wide) |
| High cut | 3 frequencies (5/10/20 kHz); 18 dB max | 5 frequencies (3/4/5/10/20 kHz); 14 dB max | 3 frequencies (5/10/20 kHz); 18 dB max |
| Made in | Germany | not stated on manufacturer page | Denmark |
| Trial / return | 14-day studio trial | not found on manufacturer page | not found on manufacturer page |
| Warranty | 2-year statutory warranty (EU)* | 5-year manufacturer warranty | not found on manufacturer page |
*Under EU/German law, a 2-year statutory warranty (Gewährleistung) is a legal minimum owed by the seller, distinct from a voluntary manufacturer warranty (Garantie) such as Warm Audio's 5-year term. No additional voluntary Tegeler warranty is stated here, so the two figures are not directly comparable.
Two channels in one chassis
Both the EQP-WA and the PE 1C are mono units: stereo means buying two. The EQP-1 fits two independent channels into a single 2U chassis. Its transformers are custom-wound for Tegeler rather than a stock part from a named transformer maker – where a manufacturer does publish a brand, as Warm Audio does with CineMag, the table names it.
Where the EQP-1 sits on price
Price positioning, from least to most expensive: the Warm Audio EQP-WA, then the Tegeler EQP-1, then the Tube-Tech PE 1C.
The passive boost-and-cut principle behind all three EQs is the same one explained in The Pultec Trick, Explained: raising and cutting the same frequency at once, without the two curves cancelling out.
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