Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Meridian - Systems DSP5000 v DSP5500 differences

I'm thinking of returning to the Meridian fold after an absence of nearly 30 years. I used to own a pair of M1s in the early 80s but family and other silly things got in the way.

I've been using Naim based systems with PMC speakers for many years, but I'm now after a change. So I'm thinking of secondhand DSPs to go with a Squeezebox Touch as a streaming only system.

What's the considered opinion on the differences between the 5000 and 5500 as it seems the 5500s are generally about twice the price of the 5000s on the s/h market.

Is this worth it, or are diminishing returns at work here?
I'm not after the nth degree of sound, just a good bang for buck. Otherwise I'd look at 7000/8000s but I'm still married so they're out of the question.

Thanks for any pointers.

Hi and welcome to the forum.

There's been some discussion on this in the past.
Try a Google Search of the forum (see link top of this page) for "DSP5000 V DSP5500" that yields a few hits.

In summary DSP5500 are much more powerful than 5000, but the bass can be difficult to tame esp. in a small room.

The 24/96 versions command a high prices over the 18/48 versions. if you wish to use with hi-res audio you will need the former.

What size room will there be used in?

Regards,
Carl

Welcome back, may we call you Ron Sir? Or would Mike Norris be OK
5Ks still the best bang for buck, especially in a relatively small room. They seem to mature with age if not abused. 5500s have never impressed and are not for me, but that is my personal choice.
Hector

The difference is in the midrange and bass.

The midrange is a lot cleaner and a lot less "honky" than the 5000's. Honky being a relative term as the 5000's are NOT really "honky" but the 5500's mids are a lot less coloured.

Bass is an issue as is size, I would say the size subjectively is 1.5x bigger but the 5500's have POTENT bass, in fact IMO more bass than the DSP6000's (ported vs sealed - the ported seems to excite room modes more) so if you already have a bass problem the 5500's will make it worse.

I use my 5000's as TV sepakers and am still astounded at the level of bass the smaller drivers put out, some of our movies broadcast via Satellite TV have serious sound effects and the 5000's still shake the room...

I have seen 24/96 5000's go for as little as 1000 quid, I don't no of any analog system that gives you as much value for money as they do.

Hi Sir,

Please take my lack of qualifications compared to the other HH'ers who replied into consideration and also my comparison is 5200 vs 5500. But your comment re 8k's possibly puts my experience into relevance.

I switched from a 5200 to 5500 centre in my system in a 12 x 18 room. The improvement was night and day. I could not imagine a 5000 system if you have the choice of 5500's.

Good luck,

It's very room dependent, but, in a given room 5500s will always put out considerably more bass than 5000s. My understanding is they were originally conceived as home theatre speakers for US market (although others may correct me there) which places their sound signature perfectly in my mind whether that's true or not - big, slightly muddy bass, more at home with movie soundtracks and SFX than accurate music reproduction. Seeing as you're coming from Naim/PMC, I think you'll find even the 5Ks somewhat warm sounding by comparison and would be quite surprised if you liked 5K5s, but if you can, have a listen, of course.

I'm a big fan of 5Ks and personally I don't find 5Ks 'honky' in the midrange at all, they're very natural speakers and an absolute steal at their second hand price today - remember you're talking about all the amplification included too, and DACs.

There was a pair in Rosewood in the Restaurant recently, wasn't there?

IMHO a pair of DSP5500's in a room without any form of room correction, and by that I mean bass traps etc. the bass is muddy.

However, if the room is treated correctly the bass is tight - the difference is night and day!

I started my Meridian journey with a pair of 5000s and about 5 years later bought a pair of 5500s and can still remember saying to the missus "I don't care if the system never sounds any better". It was a tremendous upgrade, in that room.

5500s have terrific bass power but of course that's a double-edged sword. If your room works with them they will definitely be better than 5000s. If it doesn't they'll be too much & you'll end up with boomy bass & a muddy midrange.

Mk1 5500s aren't much more expensive than early 24/96 5000s so it depends if you need hi-res.

Out of interest:
"Family gets in the way" I get, but did they say "you can have Naim / PMC but we're not having any Meridian rubbish in here"??!!

Although 18 bit 5500s are less dear, I'm unaware of whether they can carry the latest firmware. That made quite a difference to the clarity of the bass, etc., iirc?

Seems like the concensus is that 5Ks are more room tolerant (in my a experience they're among THE most tolerant, 'fit and forget' speakers around) but if you have the right space with either just the right dimensions/construction, or a good amount of bass traps, etc, 5500s might be just the thing?

Hi All, and many thanks for all the replies. I'm impressed by the rapid responses.
And as Hector says, probably easier to call me Mike, it just seems boring using your actual name

To answer a point one or two made (and I should perhaps have said earlier) my room is quite large and a slight conundrum. It's about 4 metres wide x approximately 10 metres long. It's actually two rooms that have been knocked through.

I was using a setup across the width of the room, but it seems a bit hemmed in and not quite where I want to sit ideally. So I'm probably going to place speakers with backs to the window at one end, listening position about 5 metres away with the other 5 metres of the length of the room behind me (hope that makes sense)

So I guess the issue of a small room isn't necessarily an issue here re the 5500 bass weight. Also, if anything I could do with a bit of bass weight and warmth as that's what I'm currently missing - or at least I think I am!

Not 'Arf. I've had to work my way back up to where I am with the Naim stuff over many years! It was just the size, (and probably shape) of the M1s that didn't go down well with the manageress. Now I've worked back up to decent sizes after little Arcam standmounts and other such toys it seems like the time may have be ripe to try the Boothroyd Stuart sound once more.

Despite the lack of room size worries I'm beginning to think a pair of 5000s is probably a good and cost effective way to start based on the consensus.

Once again, thanks all for the advice.

Not sure of wall/ floor construction etc. but I think a room of that size is crying out for some 5500s!

It's not as simple as out and out size where standing waves are concerned, what you're trying to avoid is dimensions which are the same, or multiples of other dimensions - the length is almost twice the width, although a metres difference would be enough not to be a direct multiple. What's the height?

I think a nice pair of 5Ks would sound great for a start, and maybe for a good long time! The beauty of them is that you'll pretty much get what you paid for them second hand if you ever decide to move them on and upgrade. I think they'll be a good move from Naim/PMC in terms of adding some naturalness and warmth, while still retaining the dynamics and rhythmic drive you're used to. The risk with the. 5500s is if they don't gel with the room, or you aren't prepared to spend time and redecoration with room treatments in the form of bass traps, you might get too much bass richness which will translate into perceived 'slowness' and boom - the opposite problem to the one you're trying to get away from now?

I speak as someone who came from Naim/Avondale systems in the past and now greatly enjoy certain Meridian gear much more