In the mid-sixties, at Abbey Road Studios legends were born. Not just the Beatles or George Martin, but also the REDD.37 recording desk that was used to record most of their earlier work. The very rare amplifiers used in that desk were called "V72s" and were a modified version of the standard Telefunken / Siemens V72 module.
The more common V72 amplifier modules were later modified and have been sold for many years as outboard preamplifiers all over the world. These V72 modules have not been available new for 40 years, and working units have become extremely rare and expensive. It is the uniquely musical tonal characteristics of these preamps have made them the prized possession of many engineers lucky enough to get the vintage modules, and a "secret weapon" for many studio musicians. With that in mind, Mercury Recording Equipment has made a faithful reproduction in the M72s -- not only of how the units behave, but of how they SOUND overall. The addition of pad, phase, phantom and gain controls make it even more versatile without sacrificing the most important feature: Musicality.
The most sought after Telefunken/Siemens "V series" modules are famous for being used in Abbey Road's REDD.37 consoles. These amplifiers were called "V72s" and were a modified version of the standard V72 modules that were much more common. Unlike those vintage modules that had fixed gain, The V72 at 34dB, and the "V72s" at 40dB, the Mercury M72s has variable mic gain from 28dB to 58dB. Also, with the M72s, you have a selectable input pad of -16dB or -28dB for even more control. When the -28dB pad is engaged and it is set at the lowest gain setting (28dB) you can run line level signal through the M72s. This will provide a warm, rich path for mixes, keyboards, drum machines, samples etc... There are also all the modern features we expect on a new piece of equipment: 48V DC (Phantom), Phase Reverse (Polarity) and Direct Input for Bass or Electric Guitar per channel. The Mercury M72s has the rich lows and punchy mids that the vintage V72 modules have but a more open high end. The Mercury M72s Studio Microphone Amplifier has that "vintage" tone and "break up" like the original modules but it is a bit more musical over all (not cleaner... more musical, there is a huge difference).
The Mercury M72s brings that "vintage" magic back! It is truly a new classic for today as well as for the next 50 years!
Mercury Recording Equipment Co. products are hand wired and/or assembled using silver solder and no-compromise parts. All Mercury products are transformer balanced, inputs and outputs and there are no I.C.s (chips) in the signal path. The chassis and front panels have a very distinctive "vintage" look with custom powder coating finish. They look as good as they sound! Mercury M72s Downloads
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Mic Input Impedance:
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Approx. 2k |
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Suggested Source Impedance:
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Approx. 200 ohms |
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Input Impedance with -28dB Pad:
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Approx. 4k |
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DI Input Impedance:
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2M ohms |
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Internal Output impedance:
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30-50 ohms (depends on gain setting) |
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Suggested Minimum Load:
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500 ohms |
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Max. Mic Signal Input Level (@ 20 Hz):
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+34dBu with -28dB Pad engaged / +6dBu with Pad not engaged |
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Max. Output Level:
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+22dBu |
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Frequency response:
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20 Hz to 20 kHz +/- 0.5dB |
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Harmonic Distortion:
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All musically related low orders of harmonics, with no significant order above 5th.
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FAQ: Mercury M72s vs. M76m, Whats the difference?
First: Both are multipurpose tools for making music. But if you were to have both or only one application that you have a need for, they do sound different.
Tone: The Mercury M72s is warm and punchy. The M72s has a thick bottom end, a great push in the mid range and a open airy top end. The M72s performance great on Vocals, Bass, Drums, Acoustic and Electric Guitars as well as room and Over head applications.
The M76m is warm, open and airy. Compared to the M72s the M76m is overall more evenly "EQ'ed". Meaning there is not a push in the low or mids. The M76m shines on Vocals, Bass and Guitars (you have amazing control on the amplifier's tone) as well the M76m opens up your Room and Over Head mics. With 72dB (+/-) of total gain and choice High and Low Input Impedance - Ribbon mics are big and open with the M76m.
Gain: M72s has 58dB and the M76m has about 72dB. The M76m has 60dB input gain, +6dB (+/-) with your Level Control and +6dB with Low impedance selected.