Merlin TSM comparisons


Hi,

I've been reading up lately on all kinds of monitors, and have been intrigued by Merlin's TSM. The latest iteration is the mmi, I believe.

If you've heard the TSM lately, especially in comparison to other, current monitor offerings out there, I'd love to hear your opinions. I know that there are other Merlin threads on Audiogon but I am especially interested in hearing from folks who have compared them to others, especially if you've lived with them.
rebbi
Hard to define thin objectively really.

The opposite to a thin sound is one with weight, authority and power behind it, like a big band or symphony orchestra playing full throttle, or even feeling the weight of the synthesized bass in a BEP tunes in your gut beyond just hearing it. For me, much of the weight comes from the low end where a lot of the power in music occurs.
Ok, so you mean no bottom heft. It seems like the great speakers always have a mid-band and highs in balance with their bass output, however deep that bass might be. One thing Bobby gets right as that balance,which is why both the TSMs and VSMs, with considerably different bass outputs sound so natural, and never thinned out, which seems to be a problem of balance and not actual bass depth, and why I agree that a subwoofer, while it might help, is a difficult thing to pull-off well, when it is not part of the overall design of the speaker - but I guess it can be done, just not easy.
"a subwoofer, while it might help, is a difficult thing to pull-off well, when it is not part of the overall design of the speaker"

True, its up to you and not the speaker designer to pull it off, which is a BIG difference. You just have to trust your ears.
paul, there are many aspects of thinness but i think in this case it is a foundation to the music that adds expanse and a breath of life. some speakers do a better job than others but monitors in smallish rooms with the resulting bass reinforcement modes can be superb. however these monitors in too large a room volume can sound lost. this is where a sub can help.
the hardest aspect of sound reproduction is the range below 30 hz. just having the output is not everything to everyone. making it sound like it fits the performance is more important to me.
best, b
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