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Retro EQs Bundle v2

USER MANUAL

v 2.3.0

Welcome to Retro EQs Bundle v2

Thank you for choosing Nomad Factory's Retro EQs!

The bundle consists of two EQ racks based on the famous Pultec and Altec passive equalizers from the 50s and 60s. These equalizers were used on countless records and are still used today. The Retro EQs carefully model the filter curves and analog color of each EQ design while adding a few extra features.

Building upon the legacy of Nomad Factory Pulse-Tec EQs v1 and All-Tech 9063B EQ, version 2 features a fully rewritten DSP closer to the original units, a wonderful resizable new UI with 2 skins, 3 new EQ units, VST3 and Apple Silicon support, Oversampling and many more improvements.

Have fun!

The Plugivery Team.

The v2 is not compatible with v1 sessions or presets. They are completely new plug-ins and thus won't replace the v1, so you can still use them to reload your previous work.

Pulse-Tec EQs v2

Introduction

The Pulse-Tec EQs v2 include 3 equalization modules modelled after Pultec hardware in a single plug-in. Each module can be individually disabled or used simultaneously for full range equalization.

HLF-3 Module

The HLF-3 is a vintage filter module made of two high quality 12 dB/octave high-pass and lowpass filters. Each band provides 10 frequency options or can be individually disabled.

Controls

Power

Enable or disable the HLF-3 section.

Low cut-off

Select the cutoff frequency of the high-pass filter in Hz, or disable with the OFF position.

High cut-off

Select the cutoff frequency of the low-pass filter in kHz, or disable with the OFF position.

MEQ-5 Module

The MEQ-5 is a midrange equalizer which consists of two peak boost bands and one dip attenuation band.

As extra addition to the original design, the mid band filter offers 2 dip filters that can be used simultaneously"

Controls

Power

Enable or disable the MEQ-5 section.

Low peak frequency

Select the frequency of the low peak filter in Hz.

Low peak boost

Control the gain boost amount of the low peak filter.

Mid dip frequency

Select the frequency of the mid dip filter in Hz/kHz.

Mid dip band select

Select which band I or II is controlled by the mid dip frequency and mid dip atten knobs.

Mid dip atten

Control the gain attenuation amount of the mid dip filter.

High peak frequency

Select the frequency of the high peak filter in kHz.

High peak boost

Control the gain boost amount of the high peak filter.

EQP-1A Module

The EQP-1A section is composed of 3 filters: a low shelf, high peak and high shelf. The low band can be simultaneously boosted and attenuated to achieve the classic "low-end trick", while the high peak and the high shelf can only be respectively boosted and attenuated.

Controls

Power

Enable or disable the EQP-1A section

Low shelf frequency

Select the frequency of the low shelf filter in Hz.

Low shelf boost

Control the gain boost amount of the low shelf filter.

Low shelf atten

Control the gain attenuation amount of the low shelf filter.

Low shelf link

Link low shelf boost and attenuation amounts relatively. The link is only active when used from the plug-in interface. Both parameters are still independent when automated or remote controlled.

High peak frequency

Select the frequency of the high peak filter in kHz.

High peak boost

Control the gain boost amount of the high peak filter.

High peak bandwidth

Control the bandwidth of the high peak filter

High shelf frequency

Select the frequency of the high shelf filter in kHz.

High shelf atten

Control the gain attenuation amount of the high shelf filter

PRE-2S Module

The PRE-2S is the master section of the entire EQ chain. Use it to adjust the input and output levels, the amount of analog character and the dry/wet mixing ratio.

Controls

Input

The gain in dB to apply at the beginning of the EQ chain.

Output

The gain in dB to apply at the end of the entire EQ chain.

Mix

Mix between dry (post input gain) and wet (equalized, post output gain) signals. 0% is full dry, 100% is full wet.

Analog

When engaged, adds vintage analog character with distortion from the vacuum tubes and transformer.

The knob controls the amount of character to add. When disabled, the whole EQ is clean of any distortion.

VU meters

Display the input (post input gain) or output (post output gain) signal level. Change the metered signal with the IN/OUT switch.

The level is displayed either in dB or in Volume Units according to the metering settings. Click the "dB" or "VU" label to customize the meters behavior.

Specifications

Sample rates

44.1 kHz ▸ 384 kHz

Channel layouts

Stereo ▸ Stereo

Mono ▸ Mono

Latency

None

Oversampling: up to 6 samples

All-Tec EQs v2

Introduction

The All-Tec EQs v2 include 3 equalization modules modelled after Altec hardware in a single plug-in. Each module can be individually disabled or used simultaneously for full range equalization.

9067 Module

The 9067 Filter is a vintage filter module made of two high quality 18 dB/octave high-pass and lowpass filters. Each band provides 10 frequency options or can be individually disabled.

Controls

Power

Enable (IN) or disable (OUT) the 9067 section.

Lo freq cut off

Select the cutoff frequency of the high-pass filter in Hz, or disable with the OFF position.

Hi freq cut off

Select the cutoff frequency of the low-pass filter in Hz, or disable with the OFF position.

Lo/Hi Select

Select the active filters: LO (high-pass only) / HI (low-pass only) or both.

9063 Module

The 9063 Equalizer is a vintage equalizer for low and high frequencies equalization. It consists of 2 bands that can be individually boosted or attenuated.

Controls

Lo freq selector

Select the frequency of the low band in Hz, or OFF to disable the 9063 section.

Lo freq

Adjust the amount of boost or attenuation of the low band.

Hi freq selector

Select the frequency of the high band in Hz.

Hi freq

Adjust the amount of boost or attenuation of the high band.

9062/73 Module

The 9062/73 Graphics Equalizer is a vintage equalizer which consists of 7 bands that can be individually boosted or attenuated up to ±8 dB

The band frequencies can be switched between 9062 and 9073 models.

Controls

7-bands graphic equalizer

Adjust the amount of boost or attenuation of the selected band.

Power

Enable or disable the 9062/73 section.

9062/9073 Switch

Switch between 9062 and 9073 models, which changes the frequencies of the bands.

PRE-2C Module

The PRE-2C is the master section of the entire EQ chain. Use it to adjust the input and output levels, the amount of analog character and the dry/wet mixing ratio.

Controls

Input

The gain in dB to apply at the beginning of the EQ chain.

Output

The gain in dB to apply at the end of the entire EQ chain.

Mix

Mix between dry (post input gain) and wet (equalized, post output gain) signals. 0% is full dry, 100% is full wet.

Analog

When engaged, adds vintage analog character with distortion from the vacuum tubes and transformer.

The knob controls the amount of character to add. When disabled, the whole EQ is clean of any distortion.

VU meters

Display the input (post input gain) or output (post output gain) signal level. Change the metered signal with the IN/OUT switch.

The level is displayed either in dB or in Volume Units according to the metering settings. Click the "dB" or "VU" label to customize the meters behavior.

Specifications

Sample rates

44.1 kHz ▸ 384 kHz

Channel layouts

Stereo ▸ Stereo

Mono ▸ Mono

Latency

None

Oversampling: up to 6 samples

Motown EQs v2

Introduction

The Motown EQs v2 are two 7-band passive equalizer plug-ins, faithfully emulating the original Music Tone Equalizer and Film Tone Equalizer hardware units used exclusively by Motown engineers during the 70s era. These EQs revolutionized music production at the time and are still used today in some of the world’s most prestigious recording facilities. This updated version replaces the original Nomad Factory Motown Retro Bundle.

Our engineers have merged the Retro Music-Tone and Retro Film-Tone plug-ins into a single, modernized unit that allows users to select either "Music" or "Film" frequency sets on each of the 7 bands. This will surely please many sound engineers who previously had to load both plug-in instances to access their preferred frequency curves and Q characteristics.

Of course, you can still load two instances of the plug-in to create a 14-band setup, just like with the original separate versions.

As with the original hardware, we’ve recreated the proportional Q design—meaning there is no adjustable bandwidth: smaller boost or cut amounts result in a broad Q, while larger adjustments yield a narrower curve. Simply adjust the gain of each fixed frequency band (ranging from -8dB to +8dB) to shape your desired tonal character.

Controls

Band Gain

Adjusts the level (±8 dB) of the corresponding EQ band.

Band Freq

Click to switch the frequency of the band between the Music-Tone (blue) and the Film-Tone (red) settings.

Available frequencies:

	Music-Tone	Film-Tone
Band 1	50 Hz	80 Hz
Band 2	130 Hz	200 Hz
Band 3	320 Hz	500 Hz
Band 4	800 Hz	1250 Hz
Band 5	2000 Hz	3200 Hz
Band 6	5000 Hz	8000 Hz
Band 7	12500 Hz	16000 Hz

Band Enabled

Enables or disables the corresponding EQ band.

Power

Enables or disables the processing.

Same as the top-right power switch.

Trim

Controls the gain to apply to the input signal in dB.

Output

Controls the gain to apply to the output level in dB. Use it to compensate gain changes after equalization.

Phase Invert

Inverts the equalizer's output phase.

Output Meter

Displays the output signal level in dB.

Specifications

Sample rates

44.1 kHz ▸ 384 kHz

Channel layouts

Mono ▸ Mono

Stereo ▸ Stereo

Latency

None

Oversampling: up to 6 samples

System Requirements

OS
macOS 10.13 or above
CPU
Intel 64 bit or Apple Silicon
Software
64 bit AU / VST / VST3 host
Pro Tools 11 or above
OS
Windows 10 or above, 64 bit
CPU
Intel/AMD 64 bit
Software
64 bit VST / VST3 compatible host
Pro Tools 11 or above
An internet connection is required to authorize the plug-in.

Common Plugivery Features

Interface basics

The following commands can be used on all controls:

Fine tune

⇧ Shift + drag

Reset

⌥ alt + click

Edit

Double click

Top bar

Main menu

Display the main menu: access to plug-in preferences, support, updates, etc.

An color dot notifies you when something requires your attention (updates, etc), click the menu to view.

Beta menu

Only visible on beta versions.

Quick access to the beta testing forum and build number.

Demo menu

Only visible in demo mode.

Quick access to product authorization and online store.

Preset manager

Displays the current preset name. The text will appear dimmed if the preset was modified.

Click on the name to display the preset manager.

Click on the arrows to navigate to the previous or next preset.

Workspace manager

Not available on all plug-ins.

Switch to a workspace (A/B) by clicking on the letter.

Right click on a workspace to copy or swap between workspaces.

Oversampling

Not available on all plug-ins.

Oversample the plug-in by the choosen factor. When set to "1x", no oversampling is applied.

The oversampling algorithm is not linear phase and only adds a few samples of latency.

BPM

Only available in standalone.

Sets the BPM to synchronize with when using BPM-synced parameters (LFO rates, delay times, etc).

Power switch

Click to power the plug-in on or off.

The bypass has the following characteristics:

Soft bypass: The plug-in is still processing when powered off but will just return the input audio
Smooth bypass: Powering on and off doesn't produce clicks and can be safely automated
Latency compensated: The output has the same latency wheither it's bypassed or not.

Preset manager

The preset manager can be open from the center top of the plug-in. It gives you access to the plug-in's factory presets and your own saved presets.

Save

Not available for factory presets.

Overwrite the loaded preset with the current plug-in state.

Only enabled if the current preset was modified since load.

Save As

Not available in demo mode.

Save the current plug-in state as new a preset file.

The preset must be saved in user data's "Presets" subdirectory to be recognized by the plug-in.

Refresh

Rescans the user presets folder. Use this button to refresh the menu in order to see changes made in the presets folder from the Finder/Explorer.

Reveal

Reveal the user presets folder in Finder/Explorer, or the current user preset if one is loaded.

Organize your own presets as you see fit in the Finder/Explorer. You can easily create subfolders, move, rename or delete presets.

When you are done, use the refresh button to display the changes in the menu.

Reset

Reset the plug-in to its initial state, setting each parameter back to its default value.

Factory Presets

The factory presets bundled with the plug-in. These cannot be overwritten.

User Presets

The presets that were saved in the user preset directory.

Main Menu

The main menu is available from the top left of the plug-in, and provides the following options:

Open User Manual

Open the current manual document.

Online Support

Open the support page for the current product.

Audio Settings

Only available in standalone.

Opens the audio settings panel to configure input/output devices, sample rate and buffer size.

Preferences

Opens the preferences panel.

Scale

Select the interface scaling, from 75% to 200%.

This setting applies to all plug-ins in Retro EQs Bundle v2.

Skin

Not available in all plug-ins.

Select the interface skin.

Check for Updates

Check online if any update is available for the current product.

About

Show the about panel (plug-in details and credits).

Audio Settings

The audio settings panel is available from the main menu, on standalone applications only. It allows to configure the input/output devices, sample rate and buffer size.

Feedback Loop

Mute audio input to avoid feedback loop.

Output

Select the desired device for output.

Click the "Test" button to play a test sound through the selected device.

Input

Select the desired device for input.

The meter next to it displays the signal level through the selected device.

Active output channels

Select the channel(s) to use on the output device.

Active inputs channels

Select the channel(s) to use on the input device.

Sample rate

Select the desired sample rate.

Please note that this menu shows all sample rates supported by the device, the might differ from what the plug-in supports. Refer to the plug-in specifications about supported sample rates.

Audio buffer size

Select the desired buffer size.

The resulting latency is show in parentheses.

Preferences

General

These settings apply to all Nomad Factory plug-ins.

Control Value Tooltips

Change the position of the tooltip displaying the value of a control, relative to this control, or choose "None" to hide the tooltips.

Editing the value of a control using keyboard is not available when tooltips are disabled.

Show Help Tooltips

Display dynamic help on controls when the mouse is over them.

Metering

These settings apply to all plug-ins in Retro EQs Bundle v2.

Digital Meter Speed

Not available in all plug-ins

Changes the response time of the bar graph (LED) level meters.

Slow: Gives an average level over a long period, useful for observing overall loudness. May miss short, loud peaks.

Normal: (default) A balanced setting that provides a good general view of both average and peak levels. Suitable for most recording or mixing tasks.

Fast: Responds quickly to level changes, great for detecting short, loud peaks to prevent clipping.

Analog Meter Behavior

Not available in all plug-ins

Change the behavior of mechanical (needle) level meters.

Peak: (default) Shows peak level in dBFS.

VU: Shows level in Volume Units with real VU meter ballistics, for a true vintage experience.

0 VU Calibration

Not available in all plug-ins

Only available when analog meter behavior is set to "VU". Set the 0 VU calibration in dBFS. Default value is -18 dBFS.

Licenses

Authorization Status

Display the current status of the plug-in.

Product

Only visible when authorized

The product authorized by the current license.

Email

Only visible when authorized

The email address associated with the current license.

Expiration

Only visible when authorized

The expiration date of the current license, if applies.

Authorize/Deauthorize

Authorize: Open the Authorization panel.

Deauthorize: Deauthorize the current license and free the seat.

Updates

These settings apply to all plug-ins in Retro EQs Bundle v2.

Update Channel

Select which channel to use when checking for updates.

Release: Stable versions. Not available when running a beta version.

Public Beta: Includes stable version and Beta versions available to anyone. Use the Beta Forum link from the Beta menu to provide feedback when using Beta versions.

Check for Updates

Check online if any update is available for the current product.

Authorization

Demo limitations

The plug-in will run in demo mode until a valid serial number is entered. You can use the plug-in in demo mode without any time limit.

The demo mode has the following limitations:

Presets cannot be saved. You can still use the factory presets or another user's presets.
Session recall is disabled. If you saved a session with the plug-in in demo mode, it can still be recalled once the plug-in is authorized.
Automation is disabled. Parameter changes from the DAW including automation and remote control are ignored by the plug-in.

Authorization process

An internet connection is required to authorize the plug-in.

Insert an instance of the plug-in in a DAW.
Choose “Authorize” on the plug-in launch screen.

Enter the serial number provided in your order confirmation email, then click “Authorize”.
Some old serial numbers will require a (free) upgrade to authorize the newest versions of the product. Follow the instructions provided from the plug-in to proceed. A PV Connect account will be required (documented from the landing web page).
Once the authorization is successful, close the window and the plug-in will now be fully authorized.
If you experience any authorization issues, please contact support.

Deauthorization process

An internet connection is required to deauthorize the plug-in.

Your serial number comes with a limited number of 3 seats. To deauthorize a seat:

Insert an instance of the plug-in in a DAW.
Open the Preferences window from the main menu.
Go to the Licenses panel and click “Deauthorize”.

If you are not able to access the computer you want to deauthorize, please contact support.

Installation paths

Data

User data

Contains all user specific data: user presets, user plug-in settings, etc.

~/Documents/Nomad Factory/Retro EQs Bundle v2/

%UserProfile%\Documents\Nomad Factory\Retro EQs Bundle v2\

Factory data

Contains factory data: factory presets, manual, etc.

/Library/Application Support/Nomad Factory/Retro EQs Bundle v2/

%ProgramData%\Nomad Factory\Retro EQs Bundle v2\

Plugivery data

Contains data common to all Plugivery powered plug-ins.

/Users/Shared/Plugivery/

%Public%\Documents\Plugivery\

Plug-ins

AU

/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components

VST

On Windows, custom VST directory can be set during installation. This is the default directory.

/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/VST/Nomad Factory

%ProgramFiles%\VstPlugins\Nomad Factory

VST3

/Users/Shared/Plugivery/

%ProgramFiles%\Common Files\VST3\Nomad Factory

AAX

/Library/Application Support/Avid/Audio/Plug-Ins/Nomad Factory

%ProgramFiles%\Common Files\Avid\Audio\Plug-Ins\Nomad Factory

Uninstaller

On Windows, you can uninstall from the "Apps & features" page in Windows settings.

On Mac, run the following application to uninstall the product.

/Applications/Nomad Factory/Retro EQs Bundle v2/Uninstall

If you choose to remove your preferences and presets, the uninstaller will delete user data for current system user only. If you have other system user accounts, you will have to delete their data manually.

Uninstalling the product doesn't deauthorize the machine that still counts as a used license seat. See deauthorization process to deauthorize the machine and free the license seat before uninstall.

Acknowledgements

Portions of this software may utilize the following copyrighted material, the use of which is hereby acknowledged.

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Eigen

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libsoxr

NSIS

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Roboto

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Gin

toml++

Apple, the Apple logo, macOS are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. Microsoft, Windows, and the Windows logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. VST is a trademark of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH.

All product and company names are trademarks of their respective owners which are in no way associated or affiliated with Plugivery. These trademarks are provided for the sole purpose of identifying the specific products that were studied during Plugivery's sound model development.