Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Meridian - Systems Finally, a "made man" and new member: Directives for firmware requested!

Hello to one of THE best forums that I have lurked and learned from since the days of the 561 that I got many years ago to replace a venerable Lexicon MC-1. Truly one of my favorites in all of hi-fi and home theater kingdom. Since having the 561, I have had a number of processors and receivers over the years but have always had my closest connection to Meridian Digital Theatre ever since hearing the 861v2 and DSP8000's at a high-end store that featured, PMC and Wilson amongst others.

Fast forward and now I am blessed to own second hand, DSP6000 24/96, DSP5500HC, DSP33, D2500x2 to team up with a G68J I already had. Oh! I have a 861v2 as well but have heard that the G68J has more potential and more up to date.

A couple of questions to the vets around here:

Should I stay with the G68J with the set of speakers I have to take better advantage of the features that it promotes? If so, I have firmware version, 1.36 IIRC. Would love to be pointed to the right direction to an updated firmware for the G68J.

As for the 861, I think I have the latest legacy firmware version for version 2. Looking for the best sonics of course but also for features that would better take advantage of what the DSP6000's could provide.

A huge thanks in advance for the assist!

Merry Christmas, fellow Unplug'ers!

Hi, and welcome to the forum.

You have a very good system. The speakers are probably the best of the legacy equipment and will be hard to beat.

With regards to processors, I would probably go with the G-Series, only because it is slightly more modern and will give you room correction. If you had a later version of the 861 (v4 or above), I would go with that.
It would be worth rigging up the two processors and comparing them side by side, as the 861 (even in its earlier versions) is a fantastic processor.

Drop me a PM, and I can sort out the latest version of the firmware for the G68.

It is also worth getting all the equipment serviced. The speakers would seriously benefit from a re-cap and it is worth checking on the state of the PSU and capacitors in the G68, as they have a nasty habit of going pop and creating expensive door stops!

Good luck,

Steve

I would fully agree with Steve, a man who knows what he is talking about and can back it up!

I was once in the same position as you, upgraded to an 861v2 from a 561, I eventually I sold it and bought a G68 as this was the most cost effective method of achieving surround sound from un-compressed PCM sources (via an HD621).

If you are only using compressed sources (DTS, Dolby Digital etc.) the 861 is virtually impossible to improve upon and was even a 'reference' at a very well known Post Production facility in the US at that time.

So, take careful note of Steve's suggestions and make the most of your chosen setup.

Paul.

This is a matter of taste, of course, and room setup - but I would recommend trying your setup minus the subs. The 6k's are much more than capable of supplying plenty of low end - and they do it in way that I haven't heard from the 2500's (I took mine out of the system, in fact).

You can always just add them in if you want.

Thanks for the warm welcome! Yeah, they are amazing and while sure, the much more modern DSP8000's or DSP9's are in another league, I have to say, in my modest 15x17x9 ft media room, just with the 6K's alone, when playing Tidal or Spotify in 2ch, there was prodigious amounts of bass. So, I could only imagine what it would be like having even just one of the D2500's in place to fill in, say below 40hz.

Still working my way around MConfig, but I think I should get the firmware updated first to see if there are any enhancements that go along with that.

Thanks for the great tips! Yes, I have been intrigued at the idea of hauling these heavy beasts to a local servicer to have them capped with some higher end caps to see if that helps the sonics on them. But then again, they are HEAVY and Meridian dealers aren't in the Houston area, not to mention, it would be hard to trust just anyone knowing how delicate this process would likely to be.

PM sent!

Hey Adam,

Yes, the 6K's are very impressive but being a bass guy for LFE for movies and such, I am curious about what the D2500's can do in that room. Starting with one for now. Don't recall the specifications of the D2500's but it's a massive coffee table-like sub with 2x10in drivers. Not sure if it's as fast as the drivers in the 6K's though..

It's interesting that you took yours out of the system. Did you try them in stereo, mono, LFE modes before doing so?

Much appreciate the advice, Paul, and from what I have learned from countless of posts, reviews and my own experiences, I would have to agree. Would like to own a 861 v4 (or higher) with some newer than legacy MConfig software as well as some of the more recommended cards for 24/96 room correction ability. IIRC, there are some other enhancements as well that going with a G68J/v4+ would bring as well. Right now, the sound is very good, so I could only imagine what the possibilities would be as I further update and upgrade the electronics.

I would have to admit when having the 861 even with that so very old almost original form, it sounded so very smooth and dynamic, so I am hoping by going with a slightly more modern setup with the G68, I won't lose too much of that sonic character. Looking forward to what room correction can do as well as the upsampling (?)

Just got a second HD621too! So going to integrate this as well but probably will get the speakers all dialed up first as it has been a real chore and challenge getting the speakers to get audio to them from the processor. Was told to have the speakers off *then* turn on the preamp, then each speaker starting with the Master. NO joy until I reverse the Comms cable from input to output even though it seems backwards, it worked - but! when having the speakers on before turning on the G or 861. I was just about to put my Proceed AMPs back in lol..

So, yes, having the HD621, I want to take advantage of my AppleTv 4K (audio only) and Sony 4K BD. Hopeing the sound (PMC?) will be a bit better than high bit rate dts or DD.

Thanks again for the advice!

Hey, Steve, looks like MU says your PM has reached its limits? Looks like you are one of oracles on the site with lots of advice and help. Much appreciated again!

Hi,

I've had a mailbox clean-up, so feel free to drop me a PM.

Cheers,

Steve