Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Meridian - Systems INFO: New Firmware for 218, 251, 271, ID41

Requires Meridian Device Manager version .64. There is also a new version of the Control App available in the appropriate app store.

Thanks for sharing Bruce, do you already know what was changed? I am going to check it out tonight.

June 2026 reading and Date of release: 1st June 2026
Firmware release versions:
218 v1.1, build 271
251 v1.1, build 271
271 v1.1, build 271
ID41 v1.1, build 271
The firmware is contained within the download of Meridian Device Manager for PC v64. See below for details.

Overview
The update adds SSDP search response to all four products. This works in conjunction with the current version of the
Meridian Control App, and is designed to allow the app to discover products more quickly – particularly relevant in
installations with large numbers of Meridian networked products.
In addition, this update adds maintenance improvements to 271 and ID41 which had previously been introduced on 218 and 251.

RELEASE NOTES
How to carry out the updates
The firmware on these products is updated using the Meridian Device Manager, a Windows PC program which can
be downloaded from the Meridian website.
Please note: the Meridian Device Manager program is not available for use with Apple Mac.
When Meridian Device Manager is run, it will find all relevant Meridian products connected to the network and offer
the option to update the products for which updates are available. While a product is being updated, playback may be
interrupted and functionality will be disabled, so ensure that this will not cause problems before running the program.

Not sure if its me, but the latest Roon and ID41 updates seem to have increased stability and performance when streaming.

Before, I would get the occasional loss of ID41 when jumping around tracks, and album to album could be occasionally slow. Now everything is snappy and the ID41 endpoint hasn't dropped despite giving it a hard time earlier...

Long may it last!!

Cheers,

Steve

Where is the download?

I went to the support section and there only seems to be a dealer login option.

Thanks
Greg

Good Morning,
l take it the updates do not include the 210🤔
Best
Colin
Relham

I also cannot find the latest device manager to download.

Here's hoping it is in the pipeline...

The 210 was already Roon Ready with RAAT wasn't it ? So, I suspect that it already has the SSDP capability.

Can someone share latest Device Manager? Thanks in advance.

I’d also be interested in knowing how to obtain the latest Device Manager

I suspect that it's only accessible for download by authorised dealers.

Hi,

Firmware should be available from your local dealer; failing that, I suggest you contact one of the HH-friendly dealers that post here.

I'm sure someone will be able to help you.

Cheers,

Steve

That is a pity, I would like to have it as well.

First couple of hours and I would say the ID41 is much more stable and responsive with Roon.

Not lost the zone yet and that would happen frequently before this f/w update.

I did the upgrade on 1xID41 (Rip #2) and 2x 218's so far so good!
Thanks Bruce

Got help from a friendly dealer - thanks to him. I love my Meridian gear - but they have become a weird company, why all these blockers to make simple installs of firmware?

It is aimed at keeping dealers and customers engaged. And as a side benefit can prevent frustration and gear getting bricked.

I tried to install the firmware on the ID41 (current software version: 1.2, build 218; hardware version: 2.1), but Meridian Device Manager does not detect the device when I run it.

My computer, router, and ID41 are all connected to the same network switch.

Does this mean that my ID41 does not require the new firmware, or is there another reason why Meridian Device Manager cannot find the device?

Make sure your computer's firewall is temporarily disabled.

Device Manager needs to see the ID41 before it can update the firmware.

Cheers,

Steve

Thanks Steve !

that worked

Can someone help to obtain Meridian Device Manager version .64?

Thanks in advance.

Ditto ! Anybody willing to share the link to firmware for 271?
How Meridian have changed over the years

M

I am trying to install this update to both a 218 and 271 following the read me first instructions, but can't get past the "Preparing Device for Update" screen.

Meridian Device Manager correctly identifies each device, and provides an Update button.

I am connecting one device at a time to a simple network switch that is connected directly to my router.
Nothing else is connected to the router.

My Windows 11 laptop is connected to the switch using a UGREEN USB 3.0 to Ethernet adapter, and I have disabled WiFi.

I have tried configuring the Ethernet network as both a Private and Public network, and have disabled the Firewall for both types of networks.

Any suggestions on what else to try would be greatly appreciated.
Kevin,

If it is a 218 or 251, connect directly to the device, no network involved.

I had the same problem, only when I had everything hardwired to a cheap switch it worked.

I could not get it through one of my Cisco 2960 switches. Last resort could be to connect it all directly to the router.

I had to look for an old laptop, these modern things have no ethernet port anymore. Good luck. It is worth it, my network performance of the 218 has improved. Less drops and smoother recognition on the network without rebooting.

Thanks for the suggestion Mimesis. Reading the comment about using 'a cheap switch', I looked at the switch I was temporarily using to connect the laptop and Meridian devices.
It was a Netgear GS105E. It was a cheap switch, but looking at the Netgear webpage, a support app can be download to update it's firmware.

I did this and noticed that a second GS105E also appeared. It is a switch installed in the back of the TV cabinet in the living room.

After updating the firmware on both switches, I looked at the other available options in the app and found a Multicast page for IGMP Snooping Configuration.
It was enabled, so I disabled 'IGMP Snooping Status' and 'Block Unknown MultiCast Address'. I repeated this for the second switch.

This solved the problem and I was able to update both Meridian devices.

Connected my laptop directly to the ID41 but still showing “Preparing Device for Update” forever.

Turned off 818, unplugged, turned it back on. No difference.

Anyone have any ideas?

Run it with admin privileges. This might help.

If someone could provide me with a copy of the Meridian Device manager I would be very grateful.

I have e-mailed the importer for Meridian in my country but no reply. According to their website there is only one Meridian dealership left: an interior design studio 😳 I think I need not bother asking them.

Thanks in advance

So after acquiring a new Nucleus (as recommended by our local M dealer) and applying the Meridian update to the ID41 cards in our 818 and 861 (with Bruce's help - again thanks), I thought all would be well. Unfortunately no. Last night while starting to play a new album via Roon/Tidal, I liked what I was hearing so tried to add it to our library (while the first track was playing). The system immediately choked, losing the 818 endpoint that had been playing. Once the endpoint was again recognized by Roon, I tried again. Same result. Tried playing through the 861 - same behavior. Rebooted the Nucleus. First try again, no joy. But on second try, the album played in its entirety. So no more trying to add to our library while listening. (I used to do this regularly.) Does anyone know if Meridian is working on a solid firmware fix (or new interface card)? This behavior is not acceptable.

John

I have had similar issues using Roon lately. Choose a audio source and play a track (always a Meridian 218) the endpoint will disappear and Roon will display choose an audio zone. I need to investigate further to see if this is also the case with non Meridian endpoints.

This is the same thing that is happening to me, as well as sometimes losing the endpoint by just opening Roon on my iPad.
I have yet to update the i41 in my 818v3 as I do not have a copy of the new Device Manager.


.

I can send you a copy.

FYI - Roon has been terrible with M zones for quite a while. There have been significant code issues causing memory chokes and general bad server performance. The M zones seem to be quite impacted by this (you can see it in the logs). However, recent updates and fixes to Roon pushed into their EA (Early Release) program have been improving things. It's still not 100% yet as the memory issues still seem to brew up after a day or two between reboots.

So, my point is that if you are on the main production release of Roon, you may not have seen any improvements yet.

My experience is that with the ID41, the network glitches and zone disposal annoyances, have reduced with the new firmware. Roonserver still has some work to do.

Hope that helps

My system must be the exception to the rule, as I’m not experiencing the regular Roon drop-outs that others are reporting.

Typically, on Saturday mornings, by 9.00 am, I set up Roon once to curate/stream my chosen music genre for the day. My system isn’t closed-down until 6.00 pm.

I simply don’t experience any problems.

Bruce,

That would be great!
Thanks,

James

I opened a ticket with Roon Help to investigate the endpoint dropping problem we have been experiencing.

https://help.roonlabs.com/portal/en/home

They will be monitoring our system and ask that " The next time this dropout happens, please make a note of the exact date, time, the track being played, and the specific Meridian endpoint that disappeared. This will allow us to pinpoint the exact event in the diagnostic logs."

Might I suggest those of you also experiencing this problem to open your own ticket. Hopefully if enough squeaky wheels are engaged, Roon will solve the problem.

just for your information, i am not experiencing any issues with Roon using an ID40, are you sure it is not a network issue?

My 818v3/ID41 has also been dropping frequently. Several times per listening session. Nothing has changed in my setup

Have you updated firmware ?

I have not. I would like to, but I don't have a Windows install at the moment. Last time I used device manager was in a Virtualbox VM on an Intel Mac. I don't even have Intel hardware anymore. My next question was going to be how, if at all, folks are doing firmware updates if all you have is Apple Silicon.

soundserge

Hi, I updated successfully on my Macbook Pro M1 running a VM with Windows 11 ARM64 edition in Parallels Desktop.

Thank you for confirming all hope is not lost.

Soundserge

Yes I'm the same, for the past few weeks my 218 and MS200 are basically unusable. I'm listening with Roon through Google Nest Minis!

Roon continually drops the M zones,and goes back to 'Choose an endpoint' for a while, then it comes back but has to be restarted again. I never even get through one song.

My 218 is on Build 185, and the MS200 is on something like Build 165.

Any chance someone could shoot me the updater? I live over 4,000 km from the nearest M rep!

Cheers,
Jason.

Same for me.

All my other endpoints are solid as a rock (Squeezebox emulators and iPad acting as a USB transport) but the 218 will barf within a few minutes.

Maybe Meridian endpoints are falling off the QA priority list now...

BTW, another question: has anyone tried running the updater app through WINE rather than a VM?

For 218 users:
I have been experiencing dropouts for quite some time.
A while ago, I opened a support ticket with Roon regarding the issues with both internet radio and audio streams.
My 218 is running the latest firmware.
Roon's technicians have been working on a solution for a while, but so far, they haven't been able to resolve it.
I suspect an update from Roon or Tidal (or both) is the culprit.
I would like to ask you to contact Roon as well and clearly report your issues.

Odd, my 218 has been super sable before/after firmware. the id41 will sometimes drops a lot sometimes be stable all day. MS200 is more flakiest.

Playback through the ID41 in our 818 stopped last night seconds after I added an album to our library (while the album was playing). Restarted the play where it dropped (after the endpoint came back) - crashed again within seconds. Cleared all pending tracks and restarted the album. It ran fine until we manually stopped it. Reported all this to the Roon helpers. Nothing back from them yet.

John

I’m getting a lot more zone drops since updating to the new firmware. Pretty frustrating.

Interesting, Im trying to run the installer on VMWare Fusion on an intel mac with no joy. Im running a lan cable from the laptop to the router.
Added complication, Im running a Virgin Hub 5 and all the Multicast options have now been removed form the Virgin configuration page.

Its a longshot, but anyone in the UK managed to run the installer on a Virgin Hub?

Last option to try would be run the Hub in modem mode and add my own router, but its a lot of hassle and expense.

Thanks
Greg

Try taking a ethernet cable and connect directly to the 218.

That was my first step, but unfortunately no good result….

I am adding to the chorus of struggles with the 218s and Roon. I will be updating the firmware tonight (hopefully) if I can secure a Windows machine.

My 218s have been struggling to play Tidal as a group of 3. I did all the tricks the Roon team has suggested. I have had ticket open with them for about two months now. My last attempt was to ungroup the 218s and run two sets of DSP320s from one 218. It ran nonstop for about a week (about 100 continuous hours). Today, it won't make it through one song. My Roon Ready endpoints are rock solid. The Roon Tested, Sooloos based endpoints in the 218s have been problematic. The next step is to get into more detail with my network.

I'll report back after the updates go through.

This is the key piece if the update AFAIK.

Hi Bruce,
Do you know if this update is in response to the complaints regarding Roon?

Do you have the link for me please Bruce

I do not

PM me your email address.

As I noted previously, Roon helpers are monitoring our system. This is what they reported after our most recent endpoint dropout.

What we saw in logs was a control-layer disconnection between the Meridian and your Roon Server on the local network. The endpoint (the Meridian) stopped sending expected data to the Roon Server, and the latter had to broadcast a device announcement and then re-establish a handshake with the Meridian to continue playback.

They have instructed me to initiate playback to our Meridian endpoint and the internal HDMI port in our Nucleus at the same time, and see if both are dropped during outages or just the M endpoint. (Evidently the HDMI port doesn't need anything connected to it.)
I'll report what we discover.

John

Interesting.

I’ve been getting good help from the Roon team as well, and things initially improved slightly after restarting the core as memory usage had gotten out of hand.

Unfortunately, as of today, no M endpoints appear in Roon at all, it’s like they don’t exist.

I can see them on my network, and log into both the 218 and the MS200’s configuration webservers, but Roon can’t see them.

The last the Roon guy told me was that my network seems ok, as does Roon, but the M endpoints are not doing what they are supposed to, and I should take it up with Meridian.


PS. It never rains but it pours. Now I have no Roon I’ve gone back to CD’s on the G98, and it’s just gone to meet its maker, grinding noises, then a couple of reboots, now dead!

Cheers,
Jason.

I ran the most recent version 65 of Device Manager and let the system run yesterday. It played a Playlist without issues and was paused overnight. Pressed play this morning and it continued with the Playlist and allowed me to skip some tracks and shuffle but the minute I did a search and selected the searched track to play, I was back to the "select audio zone" message again. So, long story short, not fixed yet.

That is one of the problems.
Open a support ticket with Roon.
The more complaints that are reported, the sooner it will hopefully be resolved.

I already have.

I strongly believe the problem lies at Meridian’s door…

I've owned my 218 and 210 since they were first introduced.

The upgrade function within the Meridian app hasn’t upgraded my 218 hardware since v0.7.

My 218 software version is '1.1 build 218'.

Hardware version 0.7.

Co-processor version 0.6.3.

This, I believe, is the reason I don't have any issues using Roon - at all. Therefore, it is a Meridian software issue and not a Roon issue.

Until last week, when I purchased my own MacBook Pro, I didn't previously have the means to easily upgrade my 218 and 210 with a laptop. My copy of Crossover Mac, with Meridian Device Manager, identified my 218 as being available to upgrade.

Given others' negative experience on updating their kit with more recent Meridian operating software, I'm reluctant to follow through on updating my own kit.

What is the upgrade function within the Meridian app? This is my 218
Software version:
1.1, build 271
Co-processor version:
0.6.3
Hardware version:
0.5

I have sent logs to Roon and they say that my Nucleus One can see my 218
and that my audio zone dropouts is because of memory issues with the N1.
Roon is saying that a memory fix is in the pipeline so 🤞🏾🤞🏾🤞🏾

There is a major update for Roon.
I’ve installed it; first impression is that the system seems a bit more stable.
Time will tell.
Fingers crossed.

I tried using Crossover Mac to update the firmware in my ID41 and 218s but it kept timing out at the reboot. Bummer, I was really hoping that was going to work.

If you have Apple Silicon, try UTM, plus an additional Windows 11 licence.