Merlin VSM MXr vs Thiel 2.4 vs Dynaudio C1

I haven't heard the Merlin's or Thiel's but as a Dyn C1 owner all I can say the C1's are a great speaker for the type of music you listen to. Very natural and smooth (some may say a little laid back). Also as Mechans stated the amp is also part of the equation. I had a Bryston B100SST rated at 180 w/ch into 4 ohms which I thought sounded pretty darn good. Then I demoed an Octave V70SE tube integrated (in my home) rated at 70 w/ch into 4 ohm. The Octave just destroyed the Bryston in every way. With the Octave I can roll tubes to change the sound without having to buy new electronics or cables :).

Another speaker you may want to consider would be the Sonus Faber Creamora Auditor M. But at the same MSRP the Dyn C1's sounded much better to ME.

Good luck

I have had the Dynaudio C1's for the past two and a half years and really love them. Previously I had the Contour S3.4's and enjoyed them very much which was my impetus for upgrading - I wanted more of the same, which I feel I got in the C1's. I drove the S3.4's and the C1's with a Krell 400xi, which was an excellent value for the price. I felt it hands-down beat the McIntosh MA6900 driving these particular speakers and I demoed both amps side-by-side. It was no contest.

Recently, I upgraded to a setup similar to Xti16's with the Octave V70SE and the combo is everything he says it is - I couldn't be happier! If you're interested in Dynaudio, check out the "Dynaudio Owner's Thread" on avsforums.com for a ton of information on those speakers (just Bing/Google it). A few others there have the Octave/Dynaudio combo and love it.

OP, the speakers you mention are all great but system synergy (with amp and source) are key. I'm sure the McIntosh amp sounds great with others (I've seen them paired with B&W a lot). You probably just want an answer, but everyone's ears and taste is different. If possible, you should demo them all (ask the dealer to swap the amps, so you can try different ones) to really find out what sounds good to *you* and then you won't be disappointed!

Not very familiar w Dynaudio but all reports indicate that both Thiel and Dynaudio have a very different than Merlin. The Ref 3A monitors are very good but I've never heard the full range models.

I think Thiel is a poor choice for classical music.

I think Thiel is a good choice for Classical Music if and only if you mate them with components with no warts upstream. ..but isn't revealing what's recorded the reason one gets good speakers? Merlin is the poorest choice of the speakers mentioned. By the way, if Vandersteen is the sound you like, they have less expensive speakers/or used.