We would like to present an awesome customer feedback we received. Jens Buchholtz from Nordwest-Mastering recently purchased our Mastering D/A converter SPL Mercury and has sent us this great review. Of course, we want to share this with you. Many thanks to Jens! Here we go:
“As a big fan and user of SPL’s mastering processors in 120 volt technology, it was no question for me to test the Mercury without having read reviews before. The device is so new – there simply hasn’t been any tests around yet. But my confidence in the skills and experience of SPL’s engineers is great and that’s why it was bought unseen/unheard. My analog mastering chain has so far been fed by an RME ADI-2 Pro (D/A – A/D), and there is nothing wrong with the quality of the converter. The perfect conversion, as you can read everywhere.”
“Now my analog treasures were fed by the Mercury for two masterings. In this league it is difficult to express the difference objectively. Subjectively, the Mercury sounds as if it adds a certain ‘lightness’ to the rather high-level fed of the analog chain, because it still has a lot of headroom left internally. The converted audio stream sounds a bit more dynamic, more open, the stereo image and the depth staggering of the elements in the mix a bit more differentiated.”
“For me, mastering is the philosophy of fine nuances and small steps – a tiny bit here and a tiny bit there, which in addition results in a clearly audible increase in quality of the audio material.”
“I don’t think that D/A conversion can be done any better technically – that’s why my Mercury stays right where it is, hoping that one day a sibling in the form of an A/D converter of the same company will be added.”
“The operation of the device is deliberately kept simple, became clear to me in about 2 minutes even without opening the manual. There is no VU meter or other gimmicks that no one needs on such a device and only pushes up the price. The qualities of the Mercury are inside! Being from Bremen I would attest it ‘hanseatic restraint’. Once again, SPL delivered an audiophile precision tool at a fair price! Thanks for that.”
For more information about Nordwest-Mastering , visit Jens’s website.
