JimmyBlues

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Price Paid:  $1000.00 from Music For Pleasure

Summary:
I purchased this amplifier in the mid '90's and used it for a short time. It was a well built, nice sounding, and was very pleasing aesthetically. I was driving a pair of
vintage LS3/5A's at the time and found the unit to be a good match with them.

The sound was articulate, with a good sense of (Naim audio's criteria for their own amplifiers) -- pace, rythym and timing.

I also owned a Meridian 504 tuner, however not at the same time as the 551. In those days I had friend who was a hi-fi dealer, and between him and a subscription to the AudioMart used audio magazine, I had a different audio system virtually every month.

For those who are looking for a nice used system in the present day, The Meridian 551/504/506 is a nice combo that can be had for well under $2000.

Strengths:
Good sound, well built, nice asthetics

Weaknesses:
lacks some warmth in the midrange

Similar Products Used:
Naim NAIT2, NAIT3-Hicap

Price Paid:  $800.00 from eBay auction

Summary:
Great little integrated. The 551 has the signature Meridian sound. Very clear and detailed but smooth and organic at the same time. The 551 presents a very transparent window and soundstage.

Strengths:
Very detailed and smooth. Plenty of power and tight, strong bass.

Weaknesses:
None

Similar Products Used:
Krell intergrated, Conrad Johnson Integrated

Price Paid:  $895.00 from Martins HiFi Norwich

Summary:
I was using a Meridian 506CD and Pioneer A400GTE amp combo for several years. But in the end I got fed up with the mix and match approach to my gear (it was now in my living room rather than bedroom) and decided to add the 551 to the 506. The sound is very very good. The silences are just as dramatic as the noises. The detail and dynamics are superb and it works with all types of music. Just recently upgraded the 506 with a new 507 (24bit) and it works even better. Looks very discreet in the livingroom too! Detail, detail and more detail.

Strengths:
Looks, facilities, dynamics and detail.

Weaknesses:
Upgrade the standard powercord.

Similar Products Used:
Monitor Audio 9 Speakers, Russ Andrews Powercords, Trichord Research Argentum Interconnect, Furukawa FS-2T14 speaker cable

Price Paid:  $1000.00 from audio images uk

Summary:
This is a superbly engineered, physicaly very solid and aesthetically pleasing amp from a company renowned for digital products.

The combination of this and the 509CD or the newer DVD surpasses most systems I've heard. I've used this with 3cd players meridian, marantz, sony with stunning results. Speakers have included BW Nautilus series and old Mordaunt Short which despite being some 15 years old have been given a new lease of life filling the room with energy be it classical, piano, jazz or rock.

Strengths:
superb transparency, balance, crystal treble and more than adequate bass - best integrated amp I've heard hence I bought it

Weaknesses:
none so far
the MS remote failed after 3months but was immediately replaced with anew unit on the spot

Similar Products Used:
Cyrus7 pre/power, muscical fidelity nuvista, primare 300, quad 99, aragon 24K+multivalve power

Price Paid:  $700.00 from ebay

Summary:
I was trying to find a system for my home office. I planned to integrate the system with my computer as well. I had Cary 300B SEI in my office for a while. Cary is undeniably magical, but it produces lots of heat, and not flexible enough, but i am very happy with its sound. Then i came across Meridian 551. It offers so much features such as lots of inputs and adjustable gain for each input in a small package. Beside it does not radiate heat. So i gave it a try. I did not expect the magic or liquidity in the midrange associated with Cary. However, the sound is clear with lots of details. It can sounds a little bright with some cable, but my home office is not very acoustically lively and the cable i use does not sound very bright, so it works fine. It has that British sound, clear, a little bright, a little lean. When listening to Al DiMeola plays live, I can tell it is Ovation guitar he is using, because i have one too. Despite how great it is, it still lacks the warmth of tube gears. I really missed the tube sounds. Cary and Meridian have completely different sound, but since i spend more time in office, i chose to place Meridian in my computer integrated system. I still keep my Cary, but for different occation.

Strengths:
build quality, very flexible, lots of inputs, midrange clarity

Weaknesses:
Can sound a little too bright in some system