Hi,
Yes I know the post is old, it's a good explanation of what a tape monitor loop is but I find it surprising that among all these responses from audio fans none bothered to look at what a Yamaha RX-797 was to answer the OP's question about whether it could connect an EQ. Of course it can, the Yamaha RX-797 is equipped with a REC OUT function! For those who don't know, it's like a Tape monitor loop except that you choose what you want to send to the Tape out independently of the selected input, so you can record one source and listen to another at the same time.