Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Meridian - Systems DSP 5200 enough bass?

I have DSP5000 24/96. In general I am very happy with it. However, I feel like the low frequency response is not enough. My living room is 14ftx18ft. If I sit close to back wall, I can hear more bass. Does DSP5200 have better bass than dsp5000? Or adding D1500 is the answer? I appreciate your input.
Thanks.

Harry

Harry, the 5200s have "better" bass than the 5000s - not deeper but tighter and more articulate. In outright terms you need to add a sub to get the lowest tones but, as you've noticed, your listening position relative to the back wall can change what you hear. The same is true for the speakers position relative to the front and side walls. There's a trade off between bass reinforcement and clarity so I'd recommend moving the speakers around over the course of a few weeks to get a really good sense of what they can do and what you like.

As for a sub, personally, I would ignore the D1500 and look at a modern design - small box, smaller driver, high power amp. The Velodyne DD10 and similar designs would be on my list and I think someone on the forum has a couple of those for sale...

Regards,
Steve

also look at the Meridian sw1600 - new design...

competes favorably with Velodyne and others...

ken

Harry,

I strongly preferred the 5200s over the 5000s. I felt that the bass was much tighter on the 5200s. Although if you're considering a speaker upgrade, the 5500s put out a lot of bass which is another option.

John

My living room is not designed as dedicated audio room, I do not have freedom to move them any way I want. What I do is to adjust listening distance. If I move closer the imaging and clarity is better. Is overall performance of DSP5200 that much better than 5000? In adding subs, I prefer to stay with Meridian new design sw1600 but I personally never compare them with Velodyne. I have listened to old Velodyne few years back and I thought it is slower then Meridian digital subs. Is single sub enough? Does stereo subs really help?
Thanks for your comments.

Harry

John,

Is DSP5500 better than dsp5200 other than more extended bass? Have you compared the two? I have read few comments saying that 5200 clarity is close to 7000.
Thanks.

Harry

FWIW....I demo'd the 5200's and 7000 against my 5500's about 2 yrs ago.

The 5500 and 7000's were really quite similar. Perhaps 7k's a bit tighter and more articulate in the bass but not �10k's worth better. Not even �4k when I considered an ex-demo pair.

Both 5500 and 7000 were significantly better than the 5200's especially in the bass and mid-range.

The 5200's struggle in the same area as the 5000's which is much to do with the shared mid/bass config.

I would say that the 5200 are better and more refined than the 5000 and I'd put this down to a better cabinet and amps.

Not sure if the top end of the 5200 and 7000 were similar or not (memory fades). By spec they should be due to the shared componentry. BUT, as the 7000 was overall more controlled and far deeper in the bottom end, it presented the top in a different way. The 5200's were possibly brighter sounding but mainly due to lesser bass; not better treble. I may be a bit fuzzy on this though.

So, if I were in this position wondering whether to go 5200, 5500 or 7000...........I'd go 5500.

Not as good looking, but, probably 98% of the 7k performance. Pick up a good pair for much less than 5200 RRP.

Word of warning though, if you don't want to worry about upgraditis on such matters, do not demo the higher models vs 5000 and 5200. It can have serious consequences

Harry, not many of us have the luxury of dedicated listening rooms. I think you'll find small changes will make a difference - if you read about Wilson's technique for installing their speakers, you'll find that once they've found their preferred overall position they deal in quarter and half inch adjustments!

I don't exclude M subs but I was thinking of a small (10 inch)driver and the SW1600 is a 12". Stereo subs will help smooth out in-room frequency resonance but one will give you large improvement and probably higher WAF.

A pair of SW1600s and a pair of 5200s would comfortably exceed the cost of 5500s. Personally, I think they are bass heavy and lacking in mid range but 5500s may be good for you.

Regards,
Steve

Hi,

I intend to purchase a pair of DSP5200 and possible a SW1600. These will be driven straight from a Sonos ZP80 digital output. So my question is will I be able to setup the speaker/sub combination without using any Meridian sound processor?

Thanks,
Stephen

Hi Stephen

It was formerly the case that you could daisy chain a Meridian sub from one of the DSPs. The main pair had the choice of two X-over frequencies, 80Hz and 120Hz IIRC. That isn't hugely flexible, so if the same functionality is still available on the 5200s, it would be possible, but perhaps not very desirable. You'd really need to try this in your own listening room. I personally think that 80Hz is a high X-over point, and easily audible, so unless the sub is slap bang between your mains, it will draw attention to itself.

Cheers

George

Thanks Mr Meridian
I see you point. In this instance I would be able to place the sub where I like as it is a dedicated listening room. The room is quite small only about 16 by 12 feet.

I cannot find a manual for the SW1600 on the Meridain web site so it is hard to tell what control I would have over it.

Cheers
Stephen

Stephen:

Meridian subwoofer User Guide:~

http://www.Meridian-audio.com/download/Handbooks/Loudspeakers/Subwoofer%20User%20Guide.pdf


Holtz'.