Meridian 508.24 CD Players

Meridian 508.24 CD Players 

USER REVIEWS

Showing 41-48 of 48  
[Jun 08, 2000]
Joseph
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Exceptional soundstage. Impressive detail and life-like musical reproduction.

Weakness:

A little expensive, but well worth it.

I went into the store looking to hear the Meridian 506. I walked out with the 508.24. This player is incredible. I've got it paired with a Bryston 4B-ST and a Conrad Johnson PV12L. I think the combination of tube and solid state really did the trick. When reviewing players I found the Alpha 9 to be a little too "soft" for my taste. The 506 was an excellent player, but when I listened to the 508 there was no turning back. I am very happy with the purchase.

Similar Products Used:

Arcam Alpha 9, Meridian 506

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Feb 14, 1999]
Per Kristian Roren Lien
an Audiophile

I believe that the Meridian 508.24 player is one of the best players around.I find it more musically attracting and involving than Copland 288 which used to be my reference. The meridian will be mine for quite some time.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
[Mar 29, 2001]
ferrari generali
Audiophile

Strength:

natural,good sound,

Weakness:

price

I very fanatic for Meridian. Is Beatifull cd. Is very analogic sound for cd players. I prefered the 508.24 at other cd of similar price. I have the amplifire with Krell 300kav , speakers thiel 2.3 cable HiDiamond Signal + ,Power 2+ and XLR +. I very happy for where cable because the sound is wounderfull. Is natural and scheap.My cd is very upgrade with i buy the cable HiDiamond . The link of internet is http://web.tiscalinet.it/hidiamond.
The Meridian is the best with the natural cable. I like the music in general. Today i arrived near the perfection..

Good music , good live.

Similar Products Used:

meridian 506.24

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Apr 24, 1999]
Alex Brenner
an Audio Enthusiast

System:Meridian 508.24
cj PV10AL
Krell KSA-80B
Spendor LS3-5As

I recently purchased a 508 to replace a much loved but ageing Sony 715E. I had never heard the Meridian in my system before and so, although I was expecting a significant difference, I wasn't prepared for just how much of a difference. The Meridian is of the front rank in every area - imaging, detail, control and so forth - but above all else it is immensely natural and rhythmical and -musical-. Especially at British prices (a $4000 American CD player costs about £4000, so CD players competing at the same price point as the Meridian in America are twice as expensive as it in Britain) it is, of all the players that might truly be described as high-end, probably the cheapest. I have heard better CD players, but the improvement was marginal and came at the cost of multiplying the price tag by two or three times. I doubt very much that, until I come to buy a DVD-A/SACD player, I shall ever feel that I need, or could get much of, a better player than the Meridian.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
[Apr 12, 1999]
walter

In FI magazine J. Valin goes into some detail describing how difficult it is for an audio system to reproduce with stability (my choice of words) the soprano voice singing at triple forte volume levels. He decribes this as suddenly thinning out and moving up in the sound stage. So I can tell you that opera was last on my list when I brought the dealer loaned 508.24 home for a trial. After the stack cds became to numerous to count and my girlfriend finally agreed the player had merit and proceeded to fall asleep right in the middle of the sweet spot I pulled out my copy of La Boheme. I cant qoute what aria it is although it is the first female solo on the cd. I could not believe my ears, the voice of Luba Organslova was firmly planted just behind and slighty left of center. But this was not a voice coming from a recreated soundstage--this was a voice--with a mouth that affected the direction both tward and away from me and with lungs that resonatted and controlled her powerfull voice. My decision---Buy the Meridian 508.24 and start an active Operea collection. By the way Lucina Williams sounds just great also!

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
[Jul 03, 2000]
Kurtis
Audiophile

Strength:

Soundstage, imaging, palpability

Weakness:

build

The addition of this player to my system brought a greater sense of palpability and concreteness of images. The improvements that one gains with a CD player (as opposed to a change in speakers or amplification) are subtle, but after a few days, I was blown away with this player. I compared it with the Wadia 830, and I found that the Meridian had a more natural sound. Instruments' timbre was more realistic, images were more solid and palpable.

Similar Products Used:

Wadia 830

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
4
[Jul 16, 2000]
Steve E.
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Exquisitely smooth effortless playback.

Weakness:

Price, build quality.

This player was purchased as a factory boxed demo 508.20, and subsequently upgraded by the manufacturer to the 24 bit DACs.

When I took home the 508 as a replacement for my CD67se the first thing that struck me was the bass improvement. It was more firm, natural and clearly articulated. The rest of the audible range was similarly improved. Simply smooth, natural and a joy to listen to. After the 24 bit upgrade was done, I can't report such dramatic improvements. Whatever was gained, it was far more subtle; I doubt I would be able to distinguish between a 508.20 vs 508.24 in a blind test. I just love this player in both its incarnations.

Associated equipment: currently the 508 is run balanced into a Bryston BP20+P / Bryston 4B-ST combo. Some reviewers have suggested that the Bryston gear can be too revealing (I call this "truth in amplification"), but with the 508 no such difficulties exist. I've also used the 508 plugged directly into an Audio Note Kit 1 SET. This is a whole different scene and it too is excellent.

With regard to build quality, it isn't really bad, it just isn't really good. Certainly it is a handsome box to look at. FWIW my unit has had its drawer serviced twice. In one case it completely hung, and in the other instance it was simply rough at one point of its travel. In both cases Meridian was responsive, but I think after the second incident they should have replaced the drawer. As it is, it still has the the rough spot in its travel, and I fully expect that it will eventually hang again.

The ratings below reflect that I have only about $2,500 invested in this player, and it would be difficult for me to justify spending any more than that on a digital source.

Similar Products Used:

Marantz CD 67se, AH Tjoeb 99

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
4
[Dec 06, 2000]
Richard Clapham
Audiophile

Strength:

Musicality, emotion, tingle factor, realism and soundstage

Weakness:

Only complain would be when you put a CD in, you have to push play to get the CD read.

I use in my dedicated sound room -

Meridian 508.18 (uprated to 24 bit)
Shahinian Arcs
Dynavector HX1.2 (190w x 2)
Plinius 8150 used as Preamp only
Kimber Select 1020's between Amp, CD and Preamp
Kimber 4TC speaker cables

I upgraded to the Meridian after having a French Micromega stage 6 for 9 months and then had technical troubles enough to qualify for a full refund from Soundline so used the credit (yes I was offered cash back) to buy a second hand 508.18 for $4000 NZ ($1800 US).

For all of the people who have given this CD player a bad review, you haven't lived with it, you haven't sat down and nearly cried from the emotion that oozes from the artist's presentation, vocals and instrument mastery from this piece of equipment. For people to say it's comparable to a Yamaha don't have the equipment to show what this component can really do. As they say, Garbage in, Garbage out and this is the one of the best sources around.

I upgraded to the 24 bit technology for $1100 NZ ($440 US) and while there was no difference in speed or timing to my ears, the difference was that it was like a veil was lifted off my speakers. Well worth the money and as they say, closer to the truth.

Since owning this CD player I have upgraded my speakers, my amp, my preamp, my interconnects and my music rack but I haven't changed my CD player for the sole reason that the better the equipment you put with this piece, the better the sound.

I have listened extensively to several other top of the line ($10,000-/+ NZ) CD players including Quad's, Tag McLarens and even a very sexy looking Linn but the overall sound of the other units was not the truth. There are CD players that can give The Red Hot Chili Peppers an almost glorious sound while the Meridian plays the tunes as you know "the boys" play them, bloody well but not "glorious". I have auditioned a Tag McLaren and a couple of other players alongside the Meridian in the comfort of the large soundroom in Soundline and played the same tune as reference, Shinaed O'Connor's "Troy" and it was the Meridian that showed how angry this woman can get. The others sounded great but that's it, they "sounded great" as opposed to "telling the truth". When you're ready for the TRUTH, audition this piece but make sure you give it a good warmup of at least 30 minutes playing to get the best.

Highly Recommended by this Audiophile. If you care about listening to how the Artists want their work to sound, rather than how an audio company thinks they should sound, then buy a Meridian 508.24. My brother boughta 506.20 due to financial constraints but go for the 508.24, it's not a lot of difference but it's enough when the lights are out, the bourbon's cold and the spine is tingling!

Similar Products Used:

Micromega Stage 6, Wadia, Denon, NAD, Meridian 506.20

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
Showing 41-48 of 48  

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