Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Meridian - Systems Re: New Firmware Impressions

I have not been able to analyze old material in this short period. But my gut feeling is that the speaker tilt on non-SL 8k's, the weight and presence of bass vs midrange/highs have lessened considerably? I don't think it's just tighter, I think it's actually less bass. Am I the only one experiencing this?

Hi Ronnie

Yes, I am happy to confirm that the only change is to the firmware of the 8kSLs. I have not yet had a chance to try DAB or my iPod but I would expect my findings to be the same. But I did listen to a wide range of CD recordings and music genres and am very confident in my conclusions.

That is the opposite of my impression, hence my comments about bass slam. But I have relied on my ears and used some bass-heavy recordings.

I'm using non-SL8k's upgraded from 1.20 to 1.40.

I would agree with Asa's comments above (except for bass).

'Mrs L' is a terrific test for any change in SQ. After 2-3 days of music being on whilst she was not specifically listening and a few albums whilst she was listening, she returned some interesting views last night....

1) it sounds more exciting
2) more enjoyable...really engaging
3) treble notes are really nice
4) best she's ever heard it.

Interesting as none of the above are in hi-fi jargon terms.

All listening was done in new-Direct.

Bass is tighter. More control. I'm not sure what 'slam' is exactly. It still rocks the room at volume but it's not the first thing you notice. Mid and high range is what jumps out more than before.

Certainly there is more detail with 'direct' and, I'm afraid to say, you can really hear it between direct vs Trifield. I think it puts Trifield performance down compared to when I had the 3dB tweak on all presets. I never noticed any clipping before.

Because there is more detail I think it yields a much better sound-stage. I felt the same with the previous 3dB tweak and also the ID40 when I put that in. You can really place where things are in the recording.

Overall, very positive and well done M !!!

(now can you get Trifield to operate at 0dB also using any other tricks ?)

The difference in your respective impressions could come down to speaker positioning in your rooms with respect to the bass. Crion, does adjusting the bass control a little bring it back? Is there a lack of energy all over the room or just in a few spots? The midrange and treble could be more prominent because the bass "got out of the way".

As we all know to our costs from Nightclubs & Friends' Boomy Systems etc., Bass can act like an Anesthetic for the Ears..........dimming their Respectiveness to Midrange and Treble frequencies

So I agree with Dollar that the above Phenomenon has quite a bit to do with the reported Gains from the Firmware Updates

I also think that the Characteristics of Trifield have changed......and I had to change my Width and Depth settings to Re-Dial Trifield back in......it's worth playing around with these Parameters again IMHO

And as always, trying to Angle the Tweeter of the Centre DSP towards the Listener is a good thing in Trifield........worth experimenting with

I had my firmware upgraded by HTOLI (Kal) on my LR DSP8K's to 1.40 and 861V6 to 6.03. I agree - the higher frequencies sound more realistic; the midrange is clear; haven't heard much difference with the bass yet - some semi-classical music sounds amazing - Steve Reich, Different Trains - heard effects in the mix I haven't heard before, Rachel's Full On Night - sounded amazing.

The 861V6 6.03 upgrade also fixed the long-standing Sooloos standby-on to SAT instead of SLS (AUX) bug which Meridian USA/my dealer couldn't fix.

A big Thank you to HTOLI and Meridian Audio for designing, testing AND DEPLOYING these software upgrades to us. It is a great reminder why upgradable DSP speakers theoretically can superior performance over a longer product cycle, justifying a bigger price possibly.

Agree with others' description of the improvements; Nils Lofgren's steel string accoustic guitar solo on Black Books never sounded as sharp and airy. The bass, while calling less attention to itself, may now, if anything, be a smidgen too dry - so time to cycle through some of the stored longer decay times in the next few sessions to see what difference that makes.

On the whole, I'm very pleased.

For an 861v6 with analogue speakers have users found a significant improvement with the new firmware or is it only present with digital speakers that also had firmware update?

Do you feel it is worth the effort for a 861v6 with analogue to update software?

So how do those with the Trifield fix feel? Is there a concensus, perhaps, on the most suitable value?

Regards I

I'm very happy with it. I'm currently running width at 1.2 and moved the center forward slightly but still at -2db.

Ken