why no recent Merlin speaker reviews?

I too, have owned and very much enjoyed the Merlin speaker. I have owned both the monitors and floorstanders. Their display of resolution and detail was simply uncanny. There ability to distinguish between various amplifiers and CDP's was reason enough for a few changes. I always felt something missing in the Merlin's. it was not due to the associated equipment, room placement or anything to do with their lack of the lower the regions. The Merlin's seem to meet all of the Audiophile requirements. All of the "words" of analytical discription (that we find in the reviews) they easily meet with flying colors. However.... The one thing that I wanted from them, I could not pull out. It is something that the speaker, that I now own does with a stunning array of emotional fulfillment. What the Merlin's did with their high degree and amount of accuracy, detail and resolve, is the work of unrelenting dedication to a craft. I have moved on since then, to a speaker more involved with the musical emotions and passion from the performers. I have found that (IMHO) the Reference 3a MM DeCapo (with the new Beryllium tweeter) packs a greater (true to life) musical presentation in the areas of emotional involvement and intricate sound-staging. They lock onto my listening area like the Merlin's never could and involve me with their sound. I think of my times with the Merlin's, but I don't look back with any degree of remorse. The DeCapos are there for music, but for me, the Merlin's just never got there.

Amps used with the Merlin's: Edge, Rowland, Kora, Cary

Having owned a TSM MMe for more than 6 years with several amps they are one of the most revealing and enjoyable speakers i have heard with very impressive bass considering it is a Stand mount.
Although my main rig is now Tannoy prestige (5 times its price) , the imaging size/depth and the quality of the presentation of the TSM is still striking. From my limited experience, it is one of the few speakers which does not add any obvious color to the sound and hence the different views as per the personal preferences.

Given the right Placement, amplification and cables they really shine through. IMHO the fact that Merlin has never changed its models but only focused on incrementally tweaking and improving is a big plus in my books. Not to mention the instant support and clarifications given by bobby irrespective of the model or the year of buying.

BTW I paired it with a leben and preferred it without the RC as well

I've spent more time with my TSM's sans Master RC network.
At this point I am quite certain my system's sound quality
has improved significantly (after the RC network was
removed).

A couple of my favorite cuts are complicated/complex pieces
with a lot going on, and I've never heard the detail in
these pieces as I heard it last evening. I don't have the
CD's in front of me at the moment, but the cuts are on the
Yellowjackets "Live" CD (second to last cut), a
Cassandra Wilson piece replete with hard-driving,
polyrhythmic percussion, and a couple of cuts from one of
Paul Simon's African music-themed CD's (maybe "Rhythm
of the Saints").

My god! These are amazing speakers! Loved them before.
Love them much more now. Whatever the underlying reason,
they're now firing on all cylinders, um, humming on all
rotors, in my system in my room, and I couldn't be more
pleased.

rx7audio

rx, i am sure you will find that your spectral amp is terminated with a zobel or there may be some sort of a network in your mit cables.
arj, find out if the amp from leben is terminated with a zobel as well.
personal taste is involved here and what the rest of the system sounds like has an effect as well. that is why we make the rcs removable so "you" can find your preference and use them or not. for unterminated amps in high res systems the rcs are a must imho.
tubeears, more than anyone i am happy for you. it would have been interesting to hear your thoughts about our latest versions wired with cardas clear.
best,
bobby

Merlin & Spectral? That's different.

Bobby,

I wonder how the latest Blue Circle gear would sound with the MXM?