The Universal Audio 2192 was not designed for clinical transparency. It was designed to sound good. It used discrete class A analogue electronics, a deliberate choice in an era when many converters were praised for being sonically neutral. Coupled with an advanced low-jitter internal clock, it was an attempt to bring classic analogue musicality into the digital domain. The sound from the Universal Audio 2192 is not the last word in transparency, but it is one of the most musical sounding converters I have ever used.
The Universal Audio 2192 was designed by Rich Williams, who would go on to found Burl Audio, carrying the same design philosophy into his own company. The principles that shaped the Universal Audio 2192, discrete analogue circuitry prioritising musicality over clinical transparency, became the foundation for everything Burl Audio would subsequently build.
Build and Operation
The front panel was refreshingly straightforward. Four rotary knobs selected clock source, sample rate, D/A source, and A/D source. Two buttons chose between AES and S/PDIF digital formats, and between single- or dual-wire AES operation. There were no menus to navigate, no display to squint at. What you saw was what you got, and what you got was a highly functional interface that could be operated by feel in a dark studio. Ten-segment LED meters indicated input and output levels, although their resolution was limited. –27dB was the lowest level indicated, a drawback in critical mastering situations where low-level detail mattered.
Connectivity and Flexibility
The Universal Audio 2192 offered analogue (XLR), AES (XLR), S/PDIF (coaxial), and ADAT optical inputs and outputs. Sample rates from 44.1kHz to 192kHz were supported at 24-bit resolution. High sample rates were handled by S/MUX on ADAT optical, S/PDIF, or single- or dual-wire AES. Rear-panel trim pots allowed analogue levels to be calibrated precisely.
The unit could route any digital input or the analogue input to the analogue outputs, with the selected input feeding all digital outputs simultaneously. It converted among digital formats, had two word clock inputs and four word clock outputs for distributing clock around a studio, and the A/D and D/A stages could work independently. This last feature was useful for integrating legacy digital equipment at 48kHz with source material recorded at 44.1kHz.
Sound Quality
The Universal Audio 2192’s analogue circuitry was its defining feature. Discrete class A electronics gave the unit a character that stood in marked contrast to the clinical transparency of many contemporary converters. The sound was warm, rich, and natural, with an open and detailed top end that never turned harsh. It was not a converter that aimed for invisibility. It was a converter that aimed to enhance the source material, and it achieved that with notable success.
Multitracking with Pro Tools at high sample rates proved entirely unproblematic, and recording direct to a Fostex DV40 recorder yielded results of remarkable clarity and depth. The unit was tested against a range of other converters, both built-in and standalone, and consistently outperformed them, not by being the most transparent, but by being the most musical. The top end was open and detailed without any trace of harshness, a combination that is far from easy to achieve.
Limitations
The LED meters were a genuine shortcoming. With –27dB as the lowest indicated level, the meters lacked resolution for low-level or very dynamic signals, a drawback in critical mastering situations where detail mattered. The unit had no equalisation, no built-in effects, and no sophisticated gain structure beyond the rear-panel trim pots. It was a converter, nothing more and nothing less. Some studios might have wanted more, particularly in an era when competitors were beginning to offer comprehensive channel strips with integrated dynamics and equalisation.