LANG PEQ-2

Name: LANG PEQ-2
Price: 74.25 USD
Author: Heritage Audio

by Heritage Audio · EQ · Vintage program EQ

Not rated yet

LANG PEQ-2 models the Lang PEQ-2 program equalizer, a transistor-based passive EQ about 60 years old.

It has low shelf boost and cut, high shelf cut, and a high peak boost with variable bandwidth, for $99.

Best for: Vocals, Drums, Bass, Mix Bus, Mastering. Genres: all genres.

Keywords: bass, vintage, bus processing, drums, mix bus, mixing, transistor, vocals, full mix, hardware emulation, inspired by, wide, tube, 50s, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, extreme, kick, mastering, smooth, static.

What it does

LANG PEQ-2 is Heritage Audio's plugin model of the Lang PEQ-2 program equalizer, a passive EQ built on the same Western Electric design as the Pultec and sometimes called the "Transistors Pultec". Heritage Audio acquired the Lang name in 2022 and pitches the plugin as a way to make a "nearly lost treasure" widely available.

Low boost: a low shelf boost selectable from 20 to 240 Hz, with up to about 16 dB of boost.
Low droop: a separate low cut with its own frequency choice from 25 to 200 Hz, up to about 18 dB, so boost and cut can sit at different points.
High boost: a peak boost selectable from 2.5 to 20 kHz, with a bandwidth control running from Sharp to Broad.
Interactive range: the maximum high boost changes with the bandwidth setting, from roughly 12.5 to 21 dB, which keeps wide boosts smooth.
High droop: a high shelf cut from 2.5 to 20 kHz, up to about 16 dB.
Boost and droop together: as on Pultec-style EQs, boosting and cutting at once creates shaped curves, such as a deep bass lift with a dip just above it.

Owners of the LANG PEQ-2 hardware or an i73 PRO get it free. There is also a DSP version for the i73 PRO, and a 14-day demo is available.

Source: Heritage Audio product page

When to use it

LANG PEQ-2 is the pick for Pultec-style boost-and-cut moves with a clearer, more direct sound and more frequency choices. Compared with the Pultec Passive EQ Collection, it lets the low boost and low cut sit at independent frequencies, and a Mixing.co.kr review found its bass clearer and its high boost more direct than the tube Pultec models. PuigTec EQs and the Pultec plugins bring more tube colour, so they suit you better if you want that warmth rather than clarity. Like those, it has only a few broad bands, so it is a tone-shaping tool and not a replacement for a surgical EQ such as Pro-Q 4. The review also noted low CPU use, which helps when running it on many tracks.

Best for: low-end weight on kick and bass, air on vocals and acoustic guitars, and broad tone shaping on drums, guitars and the mix bus.
Genres: any; especially rock, pop, hip-hop and R&B where low-end weight matters.
Look elsewhere if: you need many bands, precise cuts or dynamic EQ (Pro-Q 4 or TDR Nova), or you want tube colour along with the EQ (Pultec Passive EQ Collection or PuigTec EQs).
Tip: boost and droop at nearby low frequencies for a tight, weighty low end, and use the Broad bandwidth on the high boost to brighten a whole track gently.

What producers say

The plugin review we found was very positive, praising its clarity next to tube-based Pultec models.

Mixing.co.kr found it natural even at extreme settings, with fast, defined bass, more flexible low bands than a Pultec and low CPU use; it said owning both this and a tube Pultec widens your tonal options.
Compared with other plugins: the same review heard "clearer bass" and a more direct high boost than the UAD Pultec, and lower CPU demands than Acustica's Purple.

Mixing.co.kr review

Where to buy

Plugin Boutique: $74.25 (regular $99)
Heritage Audio: $99

Tutorials and reviews

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