How would B&W sound with Edge or Merdian?

[Horacio]

Need help here. I'm looking to upgrade my Rotel pre and amp and can't find any threads mentioning Edge G2/G8 or Meridian G02/G57. I don't have any easy way to audition them, so would like your opinion before I bend over backwards to try to audition these.

I would use them to drive 804s in a stereo setup. Room size 11x27x8 ft. I like listening at rather loud volumes, mainly blues and jazz, some classical, lots of rock.

How would they compare with Classe, McIntosh, or Rowland (201 or 501)?

Thank you!!

[ZX10 Guy]

I don't have a G02/G57 but I do have a Meridian 568.2MM used with 4 N804s and an N HTM1. I'm quite satisfied with the setup and I won't ever listen to 2 channel music without Trifield if I can help it on this system. You may want to post up over on the Meridian enthusiasts board. http://www.meridianunplugged.com

[jack d]

Need help here. I'm looking to upgrade my Rotel pre and amp and can't find any threads mentioning Edge G2/G8 or Meridian G02/G57. I don't have any easy way to audition them, so would like your opinion before I bend over backwards to try to audition these.

I would use them to drive 804s in a stereo setup. Room size 11x27x8 ft. I like listening at rather loud volumes, mainly blues and jazz, some classical, lots of rock.

How would they compare with Classe, McIntosh, or Rowland (201 or 501)?

Thank you!!

I use a Meridian G68 and Mac 501s with 802Ds, HTM1D, and 804Ss in the rear. To me it sounds gorgeous and I would highly recommend the Meridian gear. I mostly listen to jazz. Clarity, detail, and imaging are superb.

[Horacio]

Thank you both.

When you were looking for amps/pre, did you compare Meridian to Classe, McIntosh, or others? Why did you end up choosing Meridian?

ZX10: thanks for the hint on Meridian enthusiasts forum. I wasn't aware of it.

It's great to have your feedback.

Cheers,
Horacio

[ZX10 Guy]

Auditioned the Meridian at my local dealer. Did some online research and felt they focused on absolute sound quality. Plus their propensity to update firmware for many of the products (some that are many years old) and the upgradeability of many of their hardware products. The last thing that sold me on Meridian was that how many audio companies you know of that have actually written some of the audio algorithms used as a standard. MLP (Meridian Lossless Packing) is used in DVD-A.

[jack d]

Thank you both.

When you were looking for amps/pre, did you compare Meridian to Classe, McIntosh, or others? Why did you end up choosing Meridian?

ZX10: thanks for the hint on Meridian enthusiasts forum. I wasn't aware of it.

It's great to have your feedback.

Cheers,
Horacio

The Meridian just sounded better than anything else--especially the imagining--and I liked their reputation for really upgrading their products rather than just saying they will. Finally, I liked the idea of the room correction which I think helps at the margin (I'm a big proponet of acoustic room correction and have about 25 panels in my room).

After installing the 68 in my system I also have come to be a big fan of their sound formats. Now, I only listen to two channel recordings in trifield mode--heresy to many but I think it's great.

PS I did not listen to Classe with my set up but I've heard the combo with 801Ds in a nice store set up. It was excellent and I think it is just a matter of taste between Mac and Classe for amplification as both work very well with BWs. Also my local dealer didn't carry Classe so I just tested Macs and Meridians on my home system.

[Dave999]

I spent a lot of time listenting to Meridian and other processors including Classe and Anthem and prefered the Meridian sound quality, for both multi-channel and two channel. I am using a G68 with B & W 800Ds.

[Horacio]

Thanks again to all.

The Meridianplugged website was interesting. I must say the general feeling I took away was along the lines of B&W being sort of harsh on trebble and mids, except for a few individuals. Then of course I have the experiences from all 3 people replying to this saying it sounds great, so maybe I'm not sensing the right takeaways.

Jack: I found your post right after you bought your G68J and were reporting trouble with the sound being harsh. But now you are really happy with that same setup (you seem to have changed your MC402 for a MC501, so same sound signature). How did you fix it?

You guys rock!

[jack d]

Thanks again to all.

The Meridianplugged website was interesting. I must say the general feeling I took away was along the lines of B&W being sort of harsh on trebble and mids, except for a few individuals. Then of course I have the experiences from all 3 people replying to this saying it sounds great, so maybe I'm not sensing the right takeaways.

Jack: I found your post right after you bought your G68J and were reporting trouble with the sound being harsh. But now you are really happy with that same setup (you seem to have changed your MC402 for a MC501, so same sound signature). How did you fix it?

You guys rock!

The problem I experienced was related to the firmware version that came with my G68; it had a glitch in the lower frequencies with analog speakers that "thinned out" the bass. It was not widely known because a lot (the majority?) of Meridian clients use the Meridian "active" speakers and the problem with the firmware was only with analog, rather than "digital", speakers.

The interesting thing that I discovered first hand was that when the lower frequencies are weak or flattened out it skews the entire sound spectrum making the upper range seem harsh. Once I installed the firmware upgrade it totally corrected the problem. It was a revelation and I couldn't be happier now. I did have some sleepless nights, however, after I first installed the 68. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Anyway, luckily that is a thing of the past.

It's good that you are reading through the unplugged web site. The thing is that the people over there are very knowledgeable about Meridian and many of them are hooked on the entire Meridian package which includes the Meridian "active" speakers. In other words, you can buy the entire package from source to final output from Meridian and that includes speakers with individual amps for each driver and active crossovers. It's a very different concept. As you can see, however, they are pretty open-minded and you can engage in a helpful discussion. In any case, at this point, there is no way I would give up my BW speakers to go with the Meridians. Some people who have heard my system and a full Meridian one say that the Meridian speakers sound lifeless and un-engaging compared to mine. I've never heard them but I do know several people who swear by the active system approach. In the end, like most things audio, it is a matter of taste.

[ZX10 Guy]

I've listened to the flagship Meridian 8000 speakers. They're nice and all. But I felt the cost premium to buy into any of the active Meridian speakers was just too much for the benefits gained. Hence why I have my B&W speakers.