Adm 1540

The ADM 1540s are parametric equalizers that I believe are originally found in a console. I however have only used them outside of a console as a piece of outboard gear. Not sure exactly what type of board these come from, but I was using both the ADM 1540s and the 780 preamps that were in a custom casing for them, so it was apparent that they were taken from a board. This EQ is an analog one, the connections of which I'm not sure, but as I said it was in a custom case so you can't just use it without some sort of external casing to connect it to.

UTILIZATION

The make up of the ADM 1540 is pretty simple, so if you know a bit about parametric EQs, this knowledge will definitely translate well to the 1540s. It is a four band equalizer, with bands for low, mid lows, high lows, and high. Each band has a dual knob that controls both frequency and gain, and that's really all the parameters that it has to offer. There is a button on the bottom to put the EQ in or out, but that's really it. I don't think you could get your hands on a manual for the 1540 even if you wanted to, but one isn't necessary anyway in my opinion.

SOUND QUALITY

The ADM 1540 processes sound at a very high quality. It does a great job for traditional equalization, with enough control to make it useful in all sorts of situations. I've personally only used it on a drum kit (snare and kick mostly), but the other engineers at the studio where I used it mentioned to me that they are quite versatile and can be used on just about anything where you would want a parametric EQ. I can definitely see how they are versatile as they don't color your sound beyond what you do to them, which is always the mark of a great equalizer.

OVERALL OPINION

The versions of the ADM 1540 that I have used are to date the only ones that I've ever seen in a studio. They seem to be a bit elusive as I wasn't able to find out too much about them, so I don't know about their price or anything like that. I will say that if you come across one or have access to one in a professional studio that you should definitely take advantage of them as they are awesome sounding equalizers...