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In Reply to: RE: ok, i'll add a little more... posted by Bob Neill on January 31, 2008 at 11:52:12
If all the hullabaloo is simply a need to invest one's self in a well written review of the Merlins, look no further:
"A comparison to the VMPS RM40 is in order. In spite of all the wonderful things that I have said regarding the VSM, the RM40 is still a superb loudspeaker... I am not abandoning it. Still, these are two very different loudspeakers. The one is a 6.5" 2-way, the other a seven driver 3-way. The RM40 has more authority in the very bottom octaves - multiple 10" woofers will do that for you. On the other hand, the VSM is everything the larger RM40 is in terms of dynamic range and ease under large scale symphonic assault-maybe more. In terms of tone and timbre, both speakers are superb. Where the VSM comes into its own in this comparison, and in every comparison that one would want to place it, is in terms of its coherence and "on a clear day," transparency. The VSM simply represents a new vista in terms of putting less between the listener and the music listened to. In this respect, to these ears, it is the state-of-the-art.
Conclusion
Lest you think my endorsement of the VSM as a very special product has been made against a backdrop of soft contenders, I am fully versed in the sound of the latest Magico, Wilson and Kharma loudspeakers. l have heard nothing as exciting or as uniquely absent of coloration as is the VSM mxe. Were I to guess at two speakers capable of giving the VSM a run for its overall title as the "best", they would have to be the Sonus Faber Elipsa and VMPS RM V60 with VMPS sub. I had the pleasure of hearing both of those two loudspeakers in Las Vegas in January (amongst several hundred other contenders) and they are the creme of the "money no object" crop.
Still, the no holds barred, ultra transparency of the VSM MXe will be hard to beat."
Follow Ups:
A good start, though I see we're dealing with the transparency thing again. Relative merit aside, do you feel that Merlins are similar in voice and presentation to the Magico, Wilson and Kharma loudspeakers you mentioned? That is, do you find the Merlins better at the same thing they do? I'm surprised to read Merlin and Sonus Faber in the same paragraph, though I haven't heard these particular SF's. I would have expected them to be a bit creamier than Merlins. Anyway, thanks for addressing the hullabaloo.
Mac, based on what you heard at RMAF 2006 and 2007, could you compare the voice or overall presentation of the Merlins with other speakers you heard?
Believe it or not, I did not start this sub-thread to pick on Merlins, just to see if I could provoke a more useful comparison than Mr. B's, which set Merlin purity against the competition which he finds full of character. You see I hear character in Merlins too, so I'm looking, perhaps hopelessly, for some confirmation of my experience.
OK, I'll lay out.
Bob,I think only you can confirm your experience. I also think the "transparency thing" is what Merlins (and what all good speakers) are about. Colorful language aside, transparency, to me, is simply the lack of artificial artifacts in the sound of a component or speaker. I have owned and compared Reynauld's Twins, Trentes and Evolution 3s to Merlin's TSM-M, TSM-SE, VSM-SE, VSM-M and VSM-MXe. There is no question in my mind that the Reynauds are enjoyable speakers (I still have the Twins in my bedroom system), but in each one of them I hear colorations absent from the Merlins. Colorations that, once you are used to the Merlins, lead you away from the actual music and back into the mechanical reproduction of music. If you are hearing a particular "sound" from the VSM-MXes, my hunch would be that you're hearing it from upstream in your system.
No, I haven't heard the Magico, Kharma or Wilson brands. I live in the Orlando area, which is void of high-end gear, and so they are not accessible to me. I bought my first pair of Merlins (and most every other speaker I've owned) based on professional reviews (of all things!) and of course also based on my budget. However if Martin Dewulf holds such revered brands in the same company as the Merlins, that too should provide enough "street cred" to potential Merlin owners to take the plunge.
Personally, compared to all of the other speakers I've owned, from Sound Lab Dynastats to the various Reynauds, Gershman Avant Garde, Joseph Audio RM25 MkII, Magneplanar 1.6, Triangle Zays, etc., I would prefer to live happily ever after with the Merlin TSM-Ms (not even the current generation) coupled with a subwoofer. Now that I have the latest VSM-MXes, I can live ecstatically ever after, with no qualms about what I'm missing from other speakers. They are all-around fantastic transducers - take up little room, look great, and are built by master craftsmen one at a time with no tolerance for flaws in finish or sound. The most technically correct term representing the Merlin's sound is indeed "transparent." They are also engaging, full of light and life, dreamy with female vocals such as Eva Cassidy's Songbird, painful when listening to poorly recorded 1980's hairband music, lucious with any well-recorded harmonies (even the new Eagles CD), faithful to bass notes as opposed to creating false fullness in that region, fully capable of rocking one's world with rock (try No Doubt's last CD), firmly entrenched in the "less is more" realm of design - which aids in channeling their increbible coherence into every piece of music in your collection, and gosh darn it they just sound good :)
DKL
Stupid me, I thought that was your review, not Martin's!
well I'll take that as a compliment - don't beat yourself up :)
I agree that JMR's (and for that matter AN's too) have more character (personality, whatever) than Merlins though to my ears it is the character of music (in both cases), not something else. But this is not the place for a JMR/AN dealer to go into that kind of comparison. You are happy with your Merlins for all of the right reasons, so let's call it a day for our exchange. What's especially interesting to me that is that very different sounds can reach different ears and produce the same reaction - that is, a sense of rightness. That should drive designers nuts.
bob.
because no matter how this goes someone will cross the line of what is fair and proper. i for one will not do that.
in closing, a designer has to do what he or she thinks is right, period. if he listens to everyone that offers opinions he will end up with no product at all because he will just keep changing to make others happy. all of the gifted and talented ones go primarily with their own feelings.
for every individual on the planet there is a potentially different opinion about any given thing.
so, to thine own self be true.
best,
b
A good start, though I see we're dealing with the transparency thing again. Relative merit aside, do you feel that Merlins are similar in voice and presentation to the Magico, Wilson and Kharma loudspeakers you mentioned? That is, do you find the Merlins better at the same thing they do? I'm surprised to read Merlin and Sonus Faber in the same paragraph, though I haven't heard these particular SF's. I would have expected them to be a bit creamier than Merlins. Anyway, thanks for addressing the hullabaloo.
Mac, based on what you heard at RMAF 2006 and 2007, could you compare the voice or overall presentation of the Merlins with other speakers you heard?
Believe it or not, I did not start this sub-thread to pick on Merlins, just to see if I could provoke a more useful comparison than Mr. B's, which set Merlin purity against the competition which he finds full of character. You see I hear character in Merlins too, so I'm looking, perhaps hopelessly, for some confirmation of my experience.
OK, I'll lay out. Thanks DK.
you need to live with a pair for a while to get to know what they do. walking into a room at a show does little for a truly qualitative assessment.
listen to all different kinds of music but primarily complex stuff and you will get the idea.
best,
b
Venice, CA: Accuphase CDP, Blue Circle BC3000 and BC2.1's, Spendor SP 1/2's and SP 100's, around an hour and a half, c. 1992?
Montreal show: Naim CDX, Berning amp, around an hour, later that decade.
And yes, I did pop in at RMAF this year, but just to say hello and see if the brief impression I got was any different from the earlier, more studied ones.
I have no bone to pick with you or Merlin, just trying to account in some concrete way for what it is that folks are hearing from your speakers, which are so different from what I'm used to. "From what I'm used to." I don't underestimate the significance of that remark!
When I come home from a live concert (local recital hall, Snape Maltings in Aldebergh, England), I have a sound in ears. And that's the one I pursue. Just like everybody else, including you. As I just said to DK, it is mind boggling how such different sounds (Merlin, JMR, Audio Note, Harbeth, Spendor, Thiel) can yield the same results in different ears. Bobby, Jean Marie, Peter, Alan, Jim all appear to be correct. Mind boggling, absolutely.
forget about the older models, listen to the vsm mme or mxe in a properly treated or large room with a nice associated system. then make a qualified judgement. maybe you'll still think the same thing. :-)
still, like i said, they are not for everyone. so don't worry if you still feel the same.
best,
b
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