FEELER: Authentic P2P Pultec MEQ-5 chassis

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rainton

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 26, 2011
Messages
651
Location
Southern Germany
Hey guys - I did it again  ;D

As some of you might know one of my recent projects was an authentic recreation of a vintage Pultec EQP-1A.
Just after I finished the EQP-1A I was so thrilled by the result that I decided I just had to build an MEQ-5 as well.

So I designed an authentic chassis and built one from scratch - as with my other recent projects I wanted to stay as close to the vintage units as possible, so I used mostly original components throughout the entire unit (such as original transformers, NOS Allen & Bradley pots, NOS RCA tubes , etc...)

During the group buy for the EQP-1A chassis I mentioned to some members, that I might do an MEQ-5 in the future and the feedback I got was I should definitely start a group buy for it as well...
...so, well - if there's indeed some interest  I will do a run.
But I'm sure you want to know what it will look like so here's some pics of my finished prototype:

front:

1sjo5w.jpg



back:

izp2sz.jpg


8zfk9v.jpg


also here's a little peak inside before I wired it all up:

2up5jsi.jpg


1676pfd.jpg


With this chassis you will be able to build an authentic replica of a vintage Pultec MEQ-5.
For those who don't want to use the original transformers - as alway there will be adapter plates available
to mount Sowter transformers instead :)

As with the past group buys the final pricing depends on how many chassis we get together here.
We have to be at least 10 - everything below is ridiculously expensive - so:

10-19 chassis would be: 225 EUR (excl. VAT if applicable)
20+ chassis would be:  195 EUR (excl. VAT if applicable)

All chassis would come with powder coated blue-grey front panel with white silk screening and powder coated similar to hammer finish dark grey back chassis.
All kits feature all cutouts  needed to build an authentic recreation of the "real thing" and includes the filter box (also powder coated) to be mounted to the back of the main chassis. All screw holes needed to put the chassis together are fitted with threaded inserts to allow for extremely easy assembly.
I have to add that due to "Pultec" being a registered trademark the front panel will only say: "Midrange Equalizer MEQ-5"

Even though this is an extremely simple circuit (the amp section is even much simpler than the EQP-1A) there's not much info on the web when it comes the wiring and layout of the components inside the chassis. So I will try to do a graphical layout that shows it all just like I'm doing it for my EQP-1A chassis at the moment. So even though it'S p2p, this is not a very complicated build...

Alright folks, let's see if there's enough interest.
And I'm still open for discussion (i.e. my prototype has a cutout for a screw terminal on the back just like the vintage units instead of XLRs, but for the EQP-1A the majority wanted cutouts for XLRs) so let me know what you think :)

Martin
P.S.: Yes my MEQ-5 sounds amazing  ;D


THE List: B)

LeRoux (2) PAID
Craig PAID
Quayhog  PAID
jpharaoh (2) PAID
Hugo (2) PAID
moltenwok (2) PAID
kosi 2 PAID
59flame (2)  PAID
jpalden (2) PAID
AusTex64 (2) PAID
Famap (2)  PAID
Knotty (2)  PAID
rainton PAID
 
Quayhog said:
I'd like one chassis.  Can you discuss custom drillings? (Fewer), is there room for XLR or is terminal strip the only option?

Yes we can discuss.
But since the chassis are made of solid steel I think it's not a good option to leave out the transformer cutouts completely because it's no fun drilling huge holes in there...

There's room for XLRs. And I guess that's what most people want, right?
 
We're at 6 chassis so far - including the one I'd take for myself it's 7.

So we still need some more people to make it happen.
This thread has only be open for a week a or so, so I can keep this open for a while to gather more interest but I'm thinking about setting a time frame?

Also I guess many people expect this project to be too complicated and difficult? It's actually one of the simplest p2p projects I did so far :)
 
Come on people!

Checkout this video of what this eq can do

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3bhyfBt-DE&app=desktop
 
I would like two.  I would like XLR connectors so my LA2A's and EQP-1A all match.  These all are top quality.  For future reference I will probably take two of anything rainton makes, awesome quality and picks the right kind of gear to make. 

Sometimes I don't check the forum as much as I should, so I am a little late in joining.
 
Le Roux said:
Come on people!

Checkout this video of what this eq can do

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3bhyfBt-DE&app=desktop

Yes I love it!

It's so unbelievably smooth!
When I first used the 1.5K - 5K peak boost it was making it sound nicer around the selected frequency but it didn't sound like t was boosting that much, but when I checked the freq. response through a graph (with knob fully CW) I saw it was indeed boosting by 8db!!

I actually need a second one that's why I would also love to see this group buy happen :)


 
jpharaoh said:
I would like two.  I would like XLR connectors so my LA2A's and EQP-1A all match.  These all are top quality.  For future reference I will probably take two of anything rainton makes, awesome quality and picks the right kind of gear to make. 

Sometimes I don't check the forum as much as I should, so I am a little late in joining.

Thanks for the kind words!!  :)
So we're t least approaching 10 chassis...
...how long should I keep this feeler open to give everybody who's not checking the board on a daily basis  the chance to join?
 
Sinkia said:
Hi there !

I would definitly be interested for 1 !
count me in !!!

OK great! So we're at 10 now :)
I'll give it until Sept. 15th and see if we can cross the 20 chassis mark - would be great for everyone!
I hope it's ok to wait for you guys?

Martin
 
I don't Know if it had been mentionned, but so you have an idea of the price for 1 Chassis Mark?
 
Sinkia said:
I don't Know if it had been mentionned, but so you have an idea of the price for 1 Chassis Mark?

It's mentioned in the first post ;)

Or do you mean how much it would cost if we only had one chassis made?
 
59flame said:
Martin when will payment be required. i may be up for one or maybe 2?

Well, this thread is open until September 15th - I guess I would manage to get in touch within 1 week after that
and then collect the funds  in the week after...
...I don't know - personally I'm in no hurry, so one week more or less doesn't really matter to me. I don't know how the rest
of the group buy members thinks about that.

Fact is I can only place the order with the manufacturers when all funds are collected :)

So my guess is sometime last week of September - first week of October?
 
As a beginner, would it be completely stupid of me to join in on this one? I was of course planning on something a little easier, you know, like a complete kit with all parts included.

The guide you are planning to make, Martin, how detailed will it be? Will it be readable for a novice?
 

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