Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Meridian - Systems DSP8000 and 818

Hi All,

It has been a long time since last post. I still have my G91A but went in a different direction and sold off my DSP3100s and sub about 2 years ago when I got away from HT and back into 2 channel.

I'm looking at DSP8000.2's (SpeakerLink). My room is 26 x 16 feet with sloped ceiling on the long walls to 9 feet. The speakers can only be about 7 feet apart tweeter to tweeter and we sit about 13 feet away from speakers. Will these 8000s be too much for the room?

Second question, an 818 is also available. All my music now resides on a NAS drive and plays through a Mac Mini with pure music software. Will the 818 make the 8000s better in any way? I do not contemplate a Sooloos system anytime soon. The speakers would be 12 inches from the front wall max and I remember being able to use various boundary settings with DSP speakers.

I cannot audition these in my room, therefore all the help I can get would be appreciated!

Thanks,
Jeff

Welcome back Jeff. I don't own 8ks, and others will chip in, but they will be fine in a room of that size. I have a pair of 6ks in an 11' x 11' x 6"6' basement and they sound wonderful...

Have you seen this link?

VK, yes and thanks for the link.

What would the 818 do for me if anything?

As a Sooloos zone (end point) it would sound very very good feeding directly into a pair of 8ks. That assumes you would be using a Sooloos core to run the system (MD600, MC200 etc).
It would also act as a preamp for the system to take care of any other inputs you may need.

If you do go the 8K route, I really would give Sooloos a chance.

I was a long time Mac Mini/Pure Music user and the jump in audio quality is too big to ignore. It's a pain that you can't use a standard NAS and have to buy expensive Sooloos hard drive solutions but to be fair TwinStores can bought second hand pretty cheap these days and they are built like tanks.

In terms of whether the 818 will improve the sound, short answer - it depends. If you are using PureMusic to upsample, then yes, the 818 will sound a lot better. My own path to enlightenment was to buy an 808.3. When I compared the PureMusic upsampling to that provided by the 808.3 I was impressed by how much better the Meridian upsampling sounded. This intrigued me enough to get an MC200 and stop using the Mac Mini for music.

In terms of usability, I was using PureMusic and then Apple Remote on an iPad, which was pretty nice. However, recent upgrades to the Sooloos iPad app have made Sooloos even more compelling. You simply keep adding tracks to a queue as you browse your music collection. Then there is the focus/swim functionality.

The biggest pain, as a new user is getting your existing FLACS into Sooloos. The import process can be fiddly, but the Wiki has a lot of tips, and people on the forum will always chip in if you have problems.

Hope that helps.
Cheers
Greg

VK,

I was wondering what sort of listening levels you can go upto in a smallish room with a speaker like a 6K.

Cheers
Greg

75 max. Material-dependent, obviously.

7200s in Study 8' x 10' because I spend my working days here.
A compromise yes but very acceptable re SQ. Biggest problem is missed calls at volume above 65. Must get a phone with a high intensity visual call enunciator.

Lol... yes... I know that one. Plus, you do need a very loud door bell or even a flashing light when someone knocks on your door?

I have missed several people at my house before now.

Or just stop caring?

Are "you all" just deaf ?
Why you buying high $$ money ?
Sorry, i do not understand that...

Robert

Jeff,

Those stereo exchange 8000.2 are an amazing deal and in almost perfect condition. I saw them in NYC last week.
Buy them. Any room size. Any material. Buy them.
Another chance at that price/condition won't come along soon. Did I say "buy them"?

Buy them.