Heritage Audio LANG PEQ-2

Although less well known today than the Pultec EQP‑1A, the versatility of LANG’s valve‑less PEQ‑2 won it plenty of admirers.

After making their name with a range of high‑quality Neve‑inspired products, the last few years have seen Madrid‑based Heritage Audio introduce more unusual vintage recreations, offering engineers the chance to get their hands on legendary recording tools at less than ‘collector’ prices. I reviewed a pair of their Motorcity inductor‑based EQs last year, for example, and I now use those on an almost daily basis in my studio for recording and mixing. I didn’t need too much encouragement, then, to take a look at their new LANG PEQ‑2.

Heritage Audio have acquired the full rights to the LANG Electronics name and designs, and the PEQ‑2 reviewed here is certainly the most well‑known LANG product (though I’ll be interested to see what, if anything, Heritage choose to bring back to life next!). LANG Electronics were based in New York in the 1950s and ’60s and were a popular producer of after‑market audio components for the broadcast and recording industries. In particular, they were known for supplying cost‑effective parts for Ampex tape machines, which were expensive to maintain and repair. LANG soon began to produce their own products too, such as small broadcast‑style mixers and equalisers, including the PEQ‑2 ‘program equaliser’. Broadly speaking, the original PEQ‑2 can be thought of as a non‑valve, more cost‑effective alternative to the more widely known Pultec EQP‑1A inductor‑based EQ. Both units were based around the same Western Electric design for a passive, inductor‑based EQ, so its resemblance to the Pultec EQP‑1A is perhaps unsurprising. As well as being significantly less expensive than the Pultec, the PEQ‑2 offered greater flexibility, with more frequency options available, and many engineers came to value it.