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
I used the term "cult" in good humor regarding the Merlins!
The reputation for Merlin is among the highest I've ever witnessed in high end audio.

Rob
I guess if you read all of the positive comments by owners of Merlins without having heard them, you could feel it is sort of like a cult because many owners are very passionate about their speakers, but because the speakers are so good once you spend some time with them you realize it is not a cult, but a valid appreciation of an outstanding product. Before I owned my TSM's I had only heard Merlins at a few Stereophile shows and I never got a real good listen because the room was always so crowded and even with a very bad listening spot they still sounded very nice, but until I owned them I didn't fully appreciate how good they are and understood the passion people had for them.
mapman, imo, the amplifier termination issue is something that almost 98% of the amps need so it did not seem incorrect to combine it with the hf filtering poetential.
speakers that are very linear with gobs of resolution can reveal things in the way of complication/confusion to the sound. we filter both ends of the bandwidth in the bam and by using the ers paper on chip sets in the system. how intense must these fields be? strong enough to be heard i suppose. i am not the only one that can hear them.
best, bobby
Guppy...what CD player are you using with the TSM's?

My associated gear:
Manley Stingray II, Cardas SE9 speaker wire, Skylan 4 post stands, MJ Acoustics 150 MKII sub. CD player is a 4 year old Oppo with a few mods. I tried the Rega Apollo, but did not find it a big upgrade.

Rob
Robbob, I took the cult idea as intended. The hardest thing to believe is that (and it is the VSM with which I am most familiar) a small two-way speaker would be able to compete with the mega$$$$, large, multi-driver speakers with a claim to being among the best. The truth this "humble" speaker is state-of-the-art for what it is, and in most real world rooms it should be at least considered, no matter how much you can, or are willing, to spend for speakers. They are not for everyone, but for many they are the core around which they can build a long-term system. The fact that they work especially well with tube amps, and that 30-60 watts is more than enough to drive them is all the better.

I once saw a thread question the evolution of the VSM and questioning the cost increases over the years, it was clear this fella did not actually listen to the VSMs over time. I for one have always appreciated that Bobby continued to find ways to improve what had already been a very good speaker right from the start.