Anybody considerered Merlins?

Chazz my friend,
You've done enough puttering around with traditional hi-fi, not to mention spending $$...time to be a real man, evolve, and jump into SETs, and single driver paper cone speakers/horns. OK, maybe just a bit more $$.
i think the further you move from the 'what product out there is going to suit my needs' mentality, and towards creating/building your own, the better.
98+ dB + directly heated triode, that's where the bliss lies.
Hi-fi nuts are afraid of going that route because that would signal the end of their equipment addiction! Cheers from Stockhom,
Tom

Oh yeah, Tacs, spoken like a true DHT, horn, and probably mono LP fan. I think I'll find my bliss elsewhere, thanks. Oh, and what will he do for bass below 100Hz?

I love my Merlin VSM-Ms run with a 300B SET amp (I listen to classical music at moderate levels). I don't use a BAM but rather run them full range with a Janis 12" sub (50w SS). I abandoned the single driver relatively high efficiency approach (with the same sub) for the very nicely balanced and integrated sound of the Merlins. I do miss the magical sound that came from cello recordings with the single driver but I also love the sound that I get from the Merlins which is more consistent accross all instruments (especially like piano). Merlins are definately worth considering.

...the high sensitivity speakers forum on audioasylum.com, there are plenty of ways to get bass and high sensitivity, high enough so that a few watts are all that's needed, pi speakers being a good example. well, you might have to add a tweeter to that 15 inch driver. and you'll need a larger space.
i have not heard these but am quite curious about them.
i have heard the merlins, refined sounding speakers, as far as they go, but lack the macro- and micro-dynamics of live music. for this you need high-sensitivity. cheers
tom

VSM's are great sounding speakers...which is the main reason lots of people use em in tade shows for demo's!...that and they're compact!
However, if you're into loud/hard rock, percussion, regae or home theater(especially), you should DEFINITELY cross em over with a home theater pre/pro for those purposes at 80hz, and let a good ACTIVE POWERED subwoofer handle bellow that! You'll then haver a superb, hard hitting, powerfull full range sounding speaker that will sound marvelous with those mediums! When you need ultimate clarity, refinement, etc, for other music, you can then run em full range on their own!
good luck