ART Tube EQ

I thought I should drop an updated review, seeing as there hasn't been one for a while. I just picked one of these secondhand (the only way you can get one as discontinued) and it has helped me dial in or get closer to the tone I was looking for.

It is very easy to use. If you are reading this then you probably have a fair idea of what it offers so I'll say that the magic really happens in the mid section, they over-lap each other to help dial in the sound you are looking for. Just tweak away for Half an hour or so and you should hit it. I was able to dial up a great improvement to my sound in less than 5 minutes. Very simple.

Brilliant!, I have not noticed any added noise as noted by previous reviewers and I would have noticed as my JC77 has a natural hiss even when dormant.

Heres my setup:

1986 Roland Jazz Chorus 77 (80watt solid-state)
2005 Boss ME-50 Multi Effects Pedal Board
1999 Ibanez RG 7621 (7 String)
1998 Ibanez RG 7421 (7 String)
1999 A.R.T. Tube EQ

As I play 7 String (with stock pups that need upgrading) It is very easy to get a muddy response when applying a heavy distortion. The Tube EQ was able to help me take care of this with ease. Any further adjustments would need a pickup change.

My Roland JC77 is legendary for the cleans it produces and lives up to the rep, but it is some-what lacking character when it comes to distortion. It handles it really well but still it sounds sterile. The Tube EQ fixed this and added warmth and sizzle to my sound.

I have tried other EQ's (think popular pedal EQ's) and this Tube EQ kills them, there is no comparison. The tube, while subtle, manages to really come through with the goods.

I can't say enough about it, but would recommend grabbing one if you get the chance. They go pretty cheap secondhand (I paid the higher end of the spectrum just to get one) as I said before, they are not made anymore so snap one up. There are apparently some excellent replacement tube options out there that can enhance the quality of the sound further, I am currently looking into this.

I would use this at a gig without a backup, I cant see anything going wrong with it, it built tough. Maybe the only prob would be the tube going, but that is a maintenance issue.

No dealings

I can go from clean Jazz to Funk to Metal an this puppy will help you warm up and dial in a great tone without a fuss.... for a stupid cheap price. If it was stolen I would cry and then hunt out a replacement tube eq. It totally was able to revamp my tone for both the clean and distorted settings. I have no other choice than to give it a 10, as that it the impact it had on my tone (not that it was bad to begin with)
The sound quality vs $$$ is ridiculous.

Super easy to use. I can't remember if i ever read the manual.

I love the Tube EQ. It's my "special friend" for recording. Seems to make most sources sound better just by running them through it even with the EQ flat. I don't run every track through it, but its nice when I wish a track had that "something extra".
I bought one new 5 years ago for approx. $200.00, and have since bought 2 used ones on Ebay for around $75.00 each.

They seem pretty bullet proof. One of the used ones I bought off ebay definetly sounds different than the other 2 I own. Slightly more hiss. I sent it to ART for repair and they reported it was still within spec. though they did change the tube out and didn't charge me for it.

They are frendly and helpful enough, but not so good at estimating when a repair will be completed. The last repair I sent them took twice as long as estimated, but they didn't charge me for it, so I was happy enough. I'm still a customer.

The Tube EQ is a swell but subtle tool. If you're the sort of person say, who can't hear compression, or perhaps the difference between a large or small condenser microphone, then you probably won't be able to tell what the Tube EQ does.
But if you have good ears, you will notice and appreciate what it adds.

I bought this EQ to "beef up" my sound, and it is really flexible. I needed something that would give me a high degree of control over my midrange, and the Tube EQ does just that. If you know what sound you're looking for, or even if you aren't exactly sure what you want "your sound" to be, this unit will deliver. I didn't have a manual (purchased used), but if you know how to work an EQ, it's no trouble at all.

I use humbucker-equipped Jackson and Hamer guitars, through a custom pedalboard with an ART Xtreme preamp/processor pedal, to a Peavey TransTube Special 212S solid-state combo and 212ST cab. I previously used a DOD FX40B 7-band EQ pedal, but it seemed to color my tone, even when bypassed, and recently broke. The ART Xtreme has a great EQ of its own, with excellent midrange control, but I wanted something that would 1) get me a crisper lead tone, 2) get my solid-state amp to sound closer to my tube amps while using the same effects setup, and 3) not color my tone if bypassed.

The ART Tube EQ has done all of the above. I have some previous experience with their Tube MP mic preamp and found that the addition of a tube does warm things up to a certain degree. In my effects loop, I can get a very ballsy lead tone, and bypass the loop for rhythm if I so choose. While it doesn't have the same results as playing through a true tube amp, the combination of the Peavey TransTube emulation and the 12AX7 in the ART gets me closer to where I want to be. I never need to turn the gain or output past 12 o'clock.

There is a downside to the Tube EQ, and that is noise. Even with the gain and output at modest levels, it has a lot of hiss and hum, pretty common if you have boosted high frequencies. I run a Rocktron Guitar Silencer in the loop after the ART, and it is now totally silent. Without the Rocktron, the ART alone would be fine for live performance but not acceptable for recording. With any decent noise gate, it is fantastic. In terms of providing a wide range of EQing functionality, it does a fine job.

I've had mixed results with ART gear. I have one Xtreme unit (purchased used) that has run flawlessly for years, but another that recently needed service after being hauled around to garage, basement and studio rehearsals. I also have an FX-1 that worked fine, but after a year without any use, wound up with a dead digital effects section. Only time will tell...

The link to the Tube EQ online manual (.PDF) was not working, but my recent dealings with ART's service department have gone quite well. I haven't needed to talk to them about this unit, but I would not hesitate to do so.

I play thrash/death metal, and although I really like the scooped-mid rhythm sound, I am the lead guitarist and need to be heard in the mix. I just added this EQ to my home rig about a month ago and haven't used it during rehearsal or recording yet, but the improvements are very clear. I wanted something with more features than most EQ pedals offer, and am very happy with the array of sounds that ART's products can give me. It sounds great, is easy to use, and is very compact (1/2 rack-space), making it well-suited for almost any situation.

I did some online price and spec comparisons between this and parametric EQs from Behringer and Nady, as well as the new Boss EQ-20 pedal. Ultimately, my previous experience with ART and an opportunity to get a used unit for a good price made this an easy decision that I have been very happy with so far. Other than the noise factor (which is easily corrected), this has proven to be perfect. I'd buy another in a heartbeat.

With a basic knowledge of EQ, you can figure this thing out pretty quickly. The manual isn't all that great, but as far as I'm concerned, the product is simple enough that the manual barely merits a glance.

I LOVE the sound of this EQ. I use it for synth bass and for pads and everything that comes through it just sounds sparkling and beautiful, definitely a "tube" sound. The EQ section itself is very musical, and you can definitely overdrive the tube and get some classic valve distortion, which is what I do to all of my basslines. High frequencies get that classic tube sparkle to them. There is some high frequency hiss that seems to come through the thing, but its definitely not bothersome, and is to be expected if you are processing signals with valves.

I just got this off of eBay literally two days ago, so I can't comment on reliability, but it seems like a very solidly constructed item.

I make drum and bass... dark drum and bass... valve processing seems to be a religion among d&b producers, and I definitely made a wise choice with this EQ. It adds sparkle and warmth to my pads and leads, and adds grit and distortion to my bass. If this thing was stolen, I'd definitely go and get another one. I've only had it for two days and I'm already looking at get one or two more just so I can process some more signals... I never really compared this to other similar products, because this is the only tube EQ that was even remotely in my price range, but from what I have heard I am not missing out on much. This thing has opened up a lot of musical possibilities for me, if you want a great tube sound go out and get yourself one!

Ease of Use... well, it's fairly easy to use I suppose if you know much about EQ'ing. Let's see... gain knob, followed by bass, low-mids, high-mids, treble and finally output. Each of the EQ knobs has a shift button next to it that radically changes the overall sound. This model also has a real 12AX7 preamp tube tucked in there but from what I've read, the unit runs very low power through the tube so it's not going to distort, nor will it need changing much. The manual does a so so job. It explains a lot of overall stuff but if you're using this strictly for guitar (I am) you won't find much. You just have to experiment.

Excellent sound. I LOVE this unit. I've got an ESP Explorer, a Strat, a real shitty 20 watt Charvel amp and my new Mesa Boogie DC-3. The DC-3 has it's own 3 band EQ, PLUS an assignable 5 band graphic EQ PLUS my tone is running through the Tube EQ so basically, I'm dipping the mids out three times. :) It really does help me find the exact sound I'm looking for and I've only begun experimenting. There's a LOT of different settings here and it takes a lot of time to experiment with them all. As far as noise, there's nearly none... I'm not saying there isn't any but if you hit the Bypass switch, there's no noticeable difference and if I kill power to the whole unit, my amp doesn't sound any quieter. It's great.

Only had it for a week or two and haven't gigged with it yet. I've heard pretty good things about ART... seems pretty sturdy, all metal chassis.

N/A

I play metal and hard rock and I LOVE this unit. My amp doesn't sound like I want it too for rhythm work without the EQ on. In short, this unit rocks. The only thing that could be any better is the Aphex Parametric EQ, it allows even more tone shaping. It's also $500. :)