SM Audio Design’s owner and turntable constructor Mirko Smolić comes from Ljubljana, Slovenia and was born in Pula, Croatia. At 64 his passion for high-end audio is as sparkling as it was at his first encounters with the audiophile world. Analog reproduction and playback is Mirko’s life long passion, that began way back when he was 16 years old. He designed his first turntable in 1999 and continuously refined his designs. Over two decades he has manufactured 11 turntables, each of them being unique and completely handmade. The current product line consists of there models; Nimis, Versus, and Artemis.
Nimis might look familiar but a closer look and once the massive platter is removed the hidden mechanical microcosmos of a well thought out solutions is revealed.
Mirko is a perfectionist and strongly believe that there are countless musical treasures hidden in the grooves of the vinyl and Nimis’ highly balanced performance really had shown no reservations in delivering the music in an unaltered form.
Over the years Mirko didn’t change his beliefs that any kind of magnets’ implementation is not mandatory. He feels that all the working solutions should be simple, but not simpler and it can take a lifetime to achieve such a goal. Of course with the help of state of the art high-end audio that is actually capable of revealing all of the analog secrets.
SM Audio Design Nimis turntable really surprised yours truly. Partnered with the Supreme Analog Tagenta 12″ tonearm and Zavfino 1877PHONO Graphene Gold Rush Au/Ag Gold Occ/Pure Silver Tonearm Cable a selection of well-known albums from all genres ( Harry Belafonte – At Carnegie Hall etc.) has delivered an instantly captivating aural presentation, full of vigorous energy and with an emotional impact that remained unchanged from song to song.
There is something organic about the Nimis, that instantly drags you into the music and drives you to grab next black disc.
Unlike many turntables, the Nimis doesn’t put at forte the particular sonic attribute. It evenly distributes the music in the sonic scenery with an impressive lightness and ease. The lower register momentum is one of the best I’ve heard and this was at once audible with ubiqaudiolab Ubiquitous stereo amplifier and Ubiquitous speakers as well as accompanied NAT Audio electronics.
Nimis uniformly paints the sonic canvas with what it’s given! Its chameleon-like nature can instantly establish emotional interaction and project/interpret the music’s mood.
Pitch stability is always a key point of the proper analog rendition and Nimis’ optical encoder not only ensures a stable pitch but smoothly correct any of the speed related anomalies.
SM Audio Design Nimis turntable was designed from the ground up by a person who loves and appreciates music for what it is and not what it should be. The sound is portrayed with realism. Mirko Smolić is an avid music lover and this clearly reflects in the way the music is presented through his tour de force analog machine.
A careful mixture of materials, inverted bearing, POM platter, an optical encoder and all of the subtle technical solutions deliver highly engaging, out of the box performance. Nimis holds its firm nature from sole instruments recordings as well with complex orchestral music.
Truly a unique record player designed by a music lover for the music lovers…
Nimis specifications
– Motor – DC Maxon
– Belt – Rubber
– Speeds (Rpm) – 33, 45
– Suspended – No
– Bearing type – Inverted
– Platter – POM
– Turntable leveling – No
– VTA adjustments – Yes
– The external electronic and optical encoder
Contact: audiosmolic@gmail.com
