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The Vintage King Tech Shop is always buzzing with activity as our talented technicians restore classic studio gear to its former glory. This month, Vintage King Audio Technician Scott Krause is especially excited to be working on six vintage TAB/Telefunken W695 EQs.
You might be familiar with the TAB/Telefunken V7x family of preamps, and while the EQs from that era are significantly more rare, they are equally as treasured. The TAB/Telefunken W695 is a solid-state 3-band equalizer, originally designed for German broadcast consoles in the 1970s.
The W695 belongs to a family of German broadcast EQs, along with the TAB W95, Siemens W295, and Telefunken W395. These modules were the first to use transistor-based amps to compensate for the gain lost within the passive filter network.
Despite being designed for broadcast facilities, it didn't take long for these EQs to catch the attention of studio owners looking for affordable audio gear.
Often praised for their simple design and rich, warm sound, TAB/Telefunken W695 modules are still commonly used today for tone shaping, sweetening the mix bus, or as a character EQ.
Ready to take a closer look at this classic EQ and the groundbreaking designs it was based on?
The history of German audio manufacturers is a long and complicated tale, so we’ll keep things brief and only focus on the brands relevant to the family of German broadcast EQs we mentioned earlier.
In 1903, German communications companies AEG and Siemens found themselves in a patent dispute. As a resolution, the German government urged the two brands to form a merger, and Telefunken was born.
Telefunken quickly became a major player in the radio and electronics fields after producing the V41 tube preamplifier and its successor, the legendary V72. Demand for these two products became so intense that Telefunken subcontracted TAB to manufacture additional units.
With the rising popularity of Telefunken’s V7x family of preamps, Siemens, Telefunken, and TAB began manufacturing broadcasting consoles to house them, along with a new line of solid-state EQs.
It all started in the 1960s with the TAB W95c, the first transistor equalizer built in Germany and the successor to the early tube-based W95 models. Equipped with five germanium inductors and two transformers per channel, the W95c EQs deliver tons of vintage color.
Featuring fixed high (10 kHz) and low (60 Hz) bands with stepped controls and a sweepable mid-band with settings at .7, 1, 1.4, 2, and 3 kHz, the W95c is surprisingly versatile.
Also developed in the 1960s, the Siemens W295 EQ is the direct successor to the W95c and uses a similar design. With fixed shelves at 10 kHz and 60 Hz, the W295 is known for its silky-smooth highs and tight bass.
In addition to the standard model, the W295 was also available in A and B variants, which all offered different midrange frequencies.
Telefunken’s first take on the W Series solid-state EQs was the W395, which features the same frequency options as the original TAB W95c. Throughout the 70s, Telefunken released A and C variants of the W395 EQ, with Siemens releasing the W395B.
The original W395 features fixed shelves at 10 kHz and 60 Hz with selectable midband frequencies at .7, 1, 1.4, 2, and 3 kHz.
The W395A offers extended high-end with fixed shelves at 15 kHz and 60 Hz, and selectable midband frequencies at .7, 1, 1.4, 2, and 3 kHz.
The W395C features fixed shelves at 10 kHz and 60 Hz, with additional midrange frequency options at 1, 1.4, 2, 3, and 5 kHz.
More inspired by the W95c than a direct descendant, the Neumann W495B is also a 3-band solid-state EQ. It offers three selectable frequencies for the high and low shelves, plus 11 selectable frequencies for the midband, ranging from 175 Hz to 5.6 kHz.
Unlike the other EQs in the series, the W495B was originally intended for music production and included in all Neumann mastering transfer desks at the time. In fact, it’s said that Neumann W495 EQs were used to master the vast majority of vinyl records made in the 1970s through the 1990s.
Finally, we come to the star of our show, the TAB/Telefunken W695B preamp!
Designed in the early 1970s, the W695 shares a lot of similarities with the popular W295 circuit design, but there are a few key differences. Most notably, people often say the W695 has a tighter low-end, and punchier midrange presence.
Much like the original, it features fixed shelves at 10 kHz and 60 Hz with stepped controls for boosting or cutting up to 15 dB in 2 dB increments. These shelves are perfect for sweetening up the mix bus and can be cranked without sounding harsh or muddy.
The mid band can be boosted up to 8 dB (in 2 dB increments) and offers selectable frequencies at .7, 1, 1.4, 2, and 3 kHz, plus an additional option at 4 kHz, which works great for helping guitars and vocals cut through a busy mix.
Additionally, the W695 features separate inputs and outputs, making it easy to interface with other classic gear like the V72 tube preamp or its solid-state sibling, the V672.
It’s worth noting that Telefunken’s successor ANT released a modern version of the TAB/Telefunken W695B in 1984 called the ANT W695B. Designed as mastering EQs, they are smooth and clear, with a slightly aggressive and punchy presence.
Much like the popular Neumann W495B, the ANT W695B features 11 selectable frequencies not just for the mid-band, but also for the high and low shelves, offering unparalleled flexibility.
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