Bettermaker EQ 502P User Manual

BETTERMAKER EQ 502P

Operations Manual

Addicted to Music Group

ul.Paryska 35 m.10 03-945 Warsaw Poland

Phone: [phone]

[e-mail], www.bettermaker.eu

www.addictedtomusic.eu

The Bettermaker crew would like to thank all the people that were deeply involved in the development of our

rst product, the EQ 230P. This product started our concept that leeded us to EQ 502P. Thank you for the insight
and inspiration you gave us to make it even better.

Thanks to all the Beta-testers that gave us hands-on tips and all people involved in the conceptual stage. We

hope we have listened to you carefully so as to produce an ideal tool in the hands of every engineer.

As for this amazing manual, it would be nothing without the enormous help of Tim Boyce and Bob Katz.

Thank you guys!

Pultec™ is a trademark of Pulse Techniques, LLC

Table of Contents

Important Safety Information 4

I. Introduction 5

II. Standards, Use and Alignment 6

III. Hardware 6

IV. Front Panel 7

V. Software 10

VI. DAW Integration 12

VII. EQ Filter Sections in Depth 14

XI. Contact info / RMA warranty 19

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Important Safety Information

WARNINGS

• Do not operate this unit in the presence of rain, liquids, or condensing moisture. Liquid entering the product

enclosure presents the risk of electric shock injury.

Practical Safety Precautions

Do not operate the Bettermaker EQ502P underwater, uncovered in the rain, in a sauna, or anyplace near water.
(We know your shower is the greatest reverb chamber ever created). In such cases we advise the use of long cable
runs (preferably balanced) from the control room to minimize potential harm to both body and equipment. Always
be sure to protect the unit from dust, particles, water, beer, groupies, and stage divers.

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I. Introduction

Congratulations on your purchase of the Addicted to Music Bettermaker Equalizer - all analog sound with
the exibility of digital control!

Welcome to the family! The hybrid audio equalizer now in your possession is the result of years of research
and development in emerging digital control technologies. The nal hand-built result is currently glowing happily
in your rack (Lucky you). The EQ502P brings the exibility, ease of use, and instant recall-ability of software
plugins to the realm of high delity analog processing like no other analog EQ on the market.

Company

Addicted to Music began in 2004 in Warsaw, Poland as a recording and mixing studio. Long before it was
a hardware company we were deeply involved in the international music and recording scene. This is not a
company run by scientists who crunch numbers all day, we are a company run by engineers who live, eat, and
breathe music (like you do). We know good sound, and know rst-hand what it takes on both sides of the glass to
capture the perfect take. We developed the EQ502P to go from the perfect take, and make it even better!

Unit

The Bettermaker EQ502P was designed to have the greatest exibility of any analog EQ, while still allowing
absolute recall and repeatability. We often found the strengths of software plug-ins wasn’t their sound, but the
ability to quickly audition different settings. This allowed us to make faster, better informed musical choices. The
ability to jump back and forth between (sometimes vastly different) settings allowed us to keep a clear vision of
the sonic goal in mind, while quickly making decisions on the best setting to use.

However, we recognized the sonic superiority of our analog gear compared to their digital counterparts. In
countless shoot-outs, the analog versions always won. Since we’re a company that cares about better sound over
processing speed, our engineers would take the extra time to use a full analog chain because it simply sounds
better. We developed the Bettermaker EQ502P to give us the speed of plugins, but the delity of analog.

In the traditional analog world the time spent in the act of having to set and reset knobs and buttons to audition
between settings often skewed our choices. More time was spent tweaking knobs trying to recover an earlier
setting than was spent listening. The limited resolution of the mechanical parts often meant only very coarse
adjustments were possible (previously only solvable by very expensive mechanical switches). A difcult situation
to say the least, but the greater delity, openness, and depth of the analog gear was always worth it to our ears.
Even after years of advancement in digital algorithms, the older analog versions always sounded better. With these
goals in mind, we strove to create a hybrid EQ that was the best of both worlds: A true analog EQ based on classic
designs, but with the repeatability, ne resolution, and consistency of digital plug-ins. Enter the inspiration for the
Bettermaker EQ502P!

Design History

The EQ502P is a natural evolution of its older brother the Bettermaker EQ232P with our quality P circuit. The
circuits of the P sections are identical in both models.

We began with the analog sections. Choosing modern components and design practices over older traditional
methods helped maintain the transient response and low noise-oor necessary for today’s recording practices. We
hand build every unit, and even hand-wind the coil for the P-Filter section. Wherever possible we choose over­spec’ed components to ensure trouble free operation and a long product life. Where feasible we increased the gain
resolution and frequency range to ensure the greatest exibility no matter what source (from tracking to 2-bus and
mastering applications). Most importantly we listened rst, tested, and then listened again. We hope you enjoy
your Addicted to Music EQ502P. Now go make some music Better!

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II. Standards, Use and Alignment

The Bettermaker EQ502P is designed according to international standards, and is fully functional in any
location with proper power and 500 format enclosure available. This includes but is not limited to studio, stage,
video post, on-location, festival, corporate, and both installed and temporary audio solutions. This equalizer is
excellent in festival situations as its instant recall makes it perfect for fast resetting between multiple stages or
bands. Once you grow accustomed to the amazingly quick recall and exibility of this EQ, we believe you will
nd new uses and applications for it in your professional workow. You may never want to be without it. The
Bettermaker 502P is a stand alone module to be installed into an API 500 series compatible rack frame (sold
seperatly).

The current consumption is +16V 200mA and -16V 50mA. Take note that EQ502P takes two 500 spaces. Most
API 500 compatible racks will meet this requirement without problems, but there might be a limitation of how
many units can be installed in a single rack. In case of doubt please check with the manufacturer of your specic

rack.

III. Hardware

This basic overview of the hardware design approach of the Bettermaker EQ502P will help further your
understanding of its sophisticated toolset and purist design.

Internal Routing

For normal operation it is not necessary to access the interior of the EQ502P. In the event of possible failure,
please see Part IX, Trouble Shooting, where many issues can be solved. The analog and digital sections of your
hybrid EQ are completely separate and isolated. This keeps any control voltage for the digital section away from
the sensitive analog components and lowers the overall noise of the unit.

Analog Section

Great care and thought went into the development and implementation of the analog section of the Bettermaker
EQ502P. High quality capacitors are used throughout the analog path. All analog PCB is totally separate and
isolated from the digital section. This keeps each channel of the EQ within tight tolerances, resulting in precise
stereo tracking and thus a more natural, open stereo spread with no phase shift between channels. Exacting
performance results in nearly unmeasurable differences between channels at all frequencies and levels and 100%
repeatable preset recalls.

Digital Section

All digital circuits are 100% separated from the analog sections. Memory cells are stored in non-volatile
EEPROM Memory. This means that your custom saved states will not be lost even if power is disconnected from
the unit. The current power-on condition is retained when the unit is manually switched off. The USB type B
connection lets you use it as you would use a plugin in your DAW, including automation and recall with session
opening.

Installation in a 500 rack

The Bettermaker EQ502P can be quite easily installed in to a API 500 series compatible rack. However if
you are unsure, please ask someonse more expirienced to help out. Here are a few steps to install the 502P in
to a API 500 series rack. Switch your API 500 series compatible rack off and disconnect the power cable from
mains. Insert the module into two free slots of your rack. Make sure both PCB connectors match with the rack
connectors. Push the module in place - do not use any excessive force, they will t sung, but should easily align.
Tighten the front panel with four screws provided by your rack manufacturer. Connect XLR audio cables and
apply power to your rack. Now you are ready to make it Better!

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