Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Meridian - Systems Dipping a toe into Meridian waters : speaker quandary....

Ah, is that right ? That's a big drawback in that case - and a large oversight in my research ! I thought that the whole line-up had been revamped for SpeakerLink....

I mean this in the nicest possible way, but if you don't hear the difference between the Tag and Meridian and certainly Naim, why bother spend all that money??

I hate Naim with a passion, I can't see why anyone other than deaf people and bats would want to listen to it, let alone part with good money for it. Horrible nasty sounding tat imho.
But, we are all different and some people adore it.


How many systems have you had in your room? And over a fairly long period too, at least a few nights?
This is when the differences really start to shine through.

You know Naim kit is harsh when the sales rep turns it down slightly 3 times during a demo of their top of the range set up because the audience are all gritting their teeth and frowning with pain because of how sharp it is.

A good system will egg you on to get louder and louder and louder and it is only when you step out of the room and realise just how loud it is do you run back in and crank it down 20db.
I can play the Meridian at 0db and my wife says nothing, all my other systems have had her giving me 'that look' at around -10db!

I would just like to echo some of what the previous posters have said:

Considering 861v6 + HD621 is a done deal, take a deep breath and consider the scenarios...
1. DSP7200 L/R and DSP7200HC Center
2. DSP8000 L/R and no center.
3. Keep the passives

Get subs or what you feel is lacking in your room later. Skip the DSP5500HC as it will drag L/R fronts down a bit in quality and refinement. I do notice you listen alot to music but try to remain honest about real life differences between speaker sets..

I would put the B&W order on hold until further notice, since it's alot of money at stake here, try to soak in and decide what you want to achieve with the setup. If you want the ultimate musical quality from Meridian, there is only one speaker that suits that definition and that is the DSP8000. I would rather take two DSP8000 fronts than three DSP7200/DSP7200HC for music. Just something to consider if you are changing the game to DSP's.

It really depends what the OP can do in this room. I think the 8Ks would be far too much speaker for his room considering its size and that the speakers will be tucked in the corners. Even with the boundary setting set to "corner" and bass tone control set to -5.0, he will have substantially more bass than mids and highs without acoustical treatment and room correction. I would hate to see him get his hopes up for the ultimate speaker only to find that he doesn't have the flexibility to make them work in his room. Now, if he can pull them out of the corner, he could certainly get 8Ks setup where they throw an incredible center image in stereo and tame the bass.

I think if you are looking at 861V6, HD621 and a min of 2 7200's I think it would be a no brainer to go with a 7200HC vs 5500HC for a center. All SpeakerLink, all cutting edge, all matching electronics, all matching colors etc. You can always add a sub later. But in that size room I really doubt you'll need one. Only reason why you might is you may need the felxibility to move the bass around with a sub, not really to add more bass.

If rolski's not sure about spending for the 7200HC, would the 5200HC be a better bet than the 5500HC? it's speakerlink, it's from the nice new series, rather then the 5500, which isn't a current product anymore. and it's smaller too. It's not going to be a bass-monster, but you can define it as small and redirect bass to the 7200's.

or is it a bad idea?

That would probably be my choice.

However, it depends how important films are really?

I have never found the 5kc lacking as a centre with Rel sub and 5000s as mains, however I have always wanted the next level for music, and finding I am preferring stereo over Trifield for music, so for me the mains are the most important.
I just don't like mixing different brands of speaker front and rear, the difference when you match and go seemlessly from front to back can not be emphasised enough imho.

I would take 2 7200's and loose the centre, processor and sub if I had the choice of doing that in my 5000 set up right now.

I would lose the sub and have a pair of 7200s and a 7200HC.

I have owned both and IMHO the 7200HC is a big step up from the 5500HC and I doubt lack of base would be an issue in a room of this size.

Regards,
Carl

5500hc is the limiting factor in my 5.0 setup. It can be tamed but you give up some dynamics. I would not go there again though it seemd a good idea when I had 6000ks and 5000k center. JimK

Home Demo, Home Demo, Home Demo!!!

If the Dealer is interested is supplying either the D7K2s or D8Ks then he has to supply the kit on a Home Demo, especially given your already significant investment in the 861v6 and the B&W Speakers as well

Also, whatever about having the Rear directly in the corners, try and move the Front L&R out from the Corners

Even a few inches can make a difference, and certainly a foot or two makes a big overall difference. Toeing the the Speakers in towards the Listening Position also helps greatly

It's not like the Meridian DSP (or B&W's for that matter) won't sound good in the front Corners, it's just that they will sound better when out of there. Simple Physics, which no amount of later "Tweaking" will help with

Many thanks to everyone for all the thoughts & comments - will mull them all over very carefully and reply / ask more in detail later !
Genuinely much appreciated....