1973

Name: 1973
Price: 59 USD
Author: Stillwell Audio

by Stillwell Audio · EQ · Console-style EQ

Not rated yet

1973 is a character EQ that pays tribute to a classic console EQ, with a smooth high boost, high-pass filter, low shelf and adaptive midrange.

It has optional oversampling and costs $59.

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

Keywords: inspired by, oversampling, smooth, CPU-light, vocals, 70s, full mix, acoustic guitar, bass, bright, bus processing, classic, drums, mastering, mix bus, mixing, perpetual licence, room mics, static, surgical.

What it does

1973 is the developer's tribute to the Neve 1073 console module, "not an emulation, but a tribute." The idea is to keep the well-chosen frequencies, bandwidths and slopes of that EQ and reduce them to a few quick controls.

High shelf: a smooth, detailed high-frequency boost centred around 12 kHz with up to 20 dB of range, built to brighten without harshness.
Midrange: a mid band with selectable frequency for contouring.
Adaptive mode: a switch that makes the mid band smooth and broad at small boosts or cuts and progressively more surgical as you push it.
Low shelf: a smooth low shelf to balance the top end.
High-pass filter: a filter with fixed frequency steps for bracketing the low end.
Oversampling and CPU: optional oversampling that reduces aliasing, low CPU use and a high-resolution interface.

This is version 4.1.2. A free evaluation copy is available, and updates are free with no subscription.

Source: Stillwell Audio product page

When to use it

1973 is the better pick for fast, flattering tone shaping when you want a 1073-style top end without paying for a full console emulation. Compared with the Pultec Passive EQ Collection and PuigTec EQs, it is cleaner and adds a usable mid band and a high-pass filter, though it lacks the Pultec trick of boosting and cutting the same low frequency. It has far fewer bands and no dynamic or surgical options next to Pro-Q 4 or TDR Nova. Against its sibling Vibe EQ, 1973 is the pristine one, while Vibe EQ adds deliberate color as you boost.

Best for: air and presence on vocals, acoustic guitars, overheads and buses, plus broad low and mid moves.
Genres: any; especially pop, rock and acoustic music.
Look elsewhere if: you need many bands, narrow notches or dynamic EQ (Pro-Q 4 or TDR Nova) or more saturation and color (Vibe EQ or the Pultec Passive EQ Collection).
Tip: a KVR reviewer found mid moves work best within about 3 dB, and an Audiofanzine user suggests leaving oversampling on as anti-aliasing for the plugins after it.

What producers say

Users single out the high shelf as the reason to own it; the main criticism, of a narrow mid band, predates the current adaptive mode.

KVR user (2008) rated it 5 out of 5 from 1 review, calling the 12 kHz boost "the sweetest sounding high frequency boost" they had used in a plugin, with negligible CPU use.
Audiofanzine users rate it 4.3 out of 5 from 3 reviews, praising the high band, the low CPU use and the well-chosen fixed frequencies.
Criticisms: one Audiofanzine reviewer (2008) found the mid band's Q too narrow, causing "unpleasant resonances", and the low cut inflexible with only fixed values.

Where to buy

Stillwell Audio: $59

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