Equalizer in a Hi Fi system

To clarify, “true complete bypass “ as I stated above means the tape loop ‘Rec’ button on my Bryston amp is OFF. meaning the unit is completely bypassed. That’s how I ab it. By toggling my amps Rec button on and off. On and the loop containing the EQ is active. Off and it’s completely out of the picture. So further to your point, with the EQ switched to ‘bypass’ , Rec off sounds better (slightly) than Rec in. Like you said, not truly transparent. But who cares if when the unit if switched to EQ In and with all the dials set on flat that that sounds better than my amp alone, Rec out?  I know all this is confusing:

amp rec in and EQ on and flat sounds best. Followed by amp rec out (true bypass). Followed by amp rec in and EQ out. 

Mike Deming said he designed the unit to be this way. Namely EQ In has some favorable effect even with the dials on flat. I asked because of the above observations. Hence with this unit true transparency is unnecessary. 

Analog Equalization causes havoc with image generation. This is why serious audiophiles steered away from toner controls and EQ in the past. Any major errors in amplitude were controlled at least in part by acoustic treatments. 

Fine control over amplitude is a huge advantage, much finer than any analog method can muster, literally 1 Hz at a time. This can now be done in the digital realm without any added distortion of any type. Certain digital preamps have this capability allowing you to create target curves. I'm sure there are also plug ins that allow you to do this. This is the path to a SOTA system in most rooms. The other path requires incredible luck.

@mirolab , have you done any direct comparisons between any pro hardware EQ and the Lokius or Loki Max?

Digital EQ is flat and 2 dimensional compared to high end analog EQ. I’ve directly compared modest curves on Roon and Auralic digital EQ as well as Mojo2 104 bit “lossless” UHD EQ against Charter Oak. The CO beats all 3 easily in terms of all hi fi qualities/ descriptors including image specificity. Particularly in the realm of high frequencies. So I don’t agree that digital is better in terms of image specificity. Minimal phase shift exists with the higher end analog solutions and they just sound way better. At least mastering and home playback. But hey, don’t take my word for it. Go read what audio engineers have to say on forums like Gearspace