Merlin VSM or Revel Performa F52

another vote here for Merlins , i have the VSM mm and the big EXL-4 . I love them both. what you put into them is what you get out!

I`ve owned the e version of the tsm mm`s for several months and am still in awe of the "realness" of the music, whether it`s jazz, vocals, full orchestra etc.

For me it`s a genuine "you are there" experience. I love `em.

One thing that may be of interest, is that I`m getting this wonderful music through relatively inexpensive components. aa prima int. amp...aa prima cdp...reality cables ic`s and speaker cables.

Have fun.

Yet another vote for the Merlins. They do all the detailed audiophile stuff but their best trait in my opinion is to weave it all into a believable whole. People keep saying, the music just sounds right, real, etc... and I didn't really appreciate what the heck that meant until I bought a pair. Highly recommended and I can only imagine how a 5ch system of them would sound. I'm sure you'd be pleased with the merlins but best of luck whatever your decision.

Bryan

Another vote for the Merlin's. I have the VSM-MX's with the Merlin center channel and I could not be happier. Fantastic presentation, a fanatical attention to detail and the best customer service in the business. Let your ears decide and the choice should be clear (pardon the pun).

Alright, by popular vote (7-0), Merlin it is. I can only imagine how those SACD's will sound on a 5 speakers Merlin system.

Maybe I will even switch to copper foil speaker cable, like Goertz MI-2. The foil trick dramatically lowers the cable impedance at the expense of capacitance.

Many say that with these kind of cables your ears don't need break-in anymore. However, the Zobel network at the speaker end has to be adjusted accordingly. Apparently Goertz's free Zobel network uses two 5.1 ohm resistors in series with a 0.1uF capacitor, which is not correct.