[Dean Roddey]

If you look at the slight high frequency rise of the SSL EQ, you could add that to an EQ and many people would hear that and say, no way RenEQ is as good, it's so crisp and has this really airy sound. They wouldn't necessarily consider that it's just a simple high shelving effect they could get with any other EQ. The EQ could also have a small hump somewhere in the upper lows plus a little high shelf and it would immediately 'sound' better, because as soon as people engage it they'd hear that slight smiley face EQ and think, hey that sounds really nice.

So I guess one thing you should always do is just engage/disengage the EQ when it's flat and see if the sound changes. If so, then it's probably got some sort of built in curve before you start making changes. If it's not harmonic saturation type of changes, then it's probably nothing you couldn't get with another EQ.