What about an 818 v1 or v2? This option should be a lot cheaper than the v3, but still a bump above the 218.

I upgraded to the V3 earlier this year based on reviews and feedback here and was quite taken aback by the step up in quality from the MC. The 818v3 is a spectacular endpoint.

Theater: 861v4_LPS, 818v3, HD621, Oppo 203, Lumagen Pro, DSP8000SE, DSP5500C, SW1600x2, DSP5500, Epson 6040UB, PS4
Living room: 861v4_LPS, HD621, DSP8000SE, DSP5200C, Oppo 203, Lumagen 2143, 818v3, Sooloos/MC600 Bluesound Node
Bedroom: M80
office: G68D, DSP6000
Garage: DSP5000
Storage: M33s, DSP33s, DSP5k, 501, 518, M1500, G98DH, SW1600