Price Paid:  $450.00 from Listen Inn Northants

Summary:
I purchased this second hand to allow my daughter to have my old Pioneer 802 (well the wife never argued). It partners my Audio Research SP9 Hafler DH 200 power amp (I have bought a second and am loking for a third to tri amp) and was amazed by its natural laid back qualities - imaging and depth. At first thought I thought it lacked bass slamm but on lengthy listening I realised it prodiced what was on the album and that my earlier cd player emphasized this. I then purchased Art Impression loudspeakers (and you really ought to check these outfrom art-loudspeakers a specialist UK manufacturer) and am in audio heaven. The 506.20 plays and you listen - nothing added and nothing taken away. I still prefer my Systemdek 4 Rega arm Decca Gold (retipped by expert pickups)but hey Cd is never ever going to sound as good as vinyl. For anyone looking for a sonic bargain second hand this has to be the machine - you won't be dissapointed provided the rest of your equipement is up to it.

Strengths:
Natrual and analgue sounding Doesnt make bad cds sound worse - tries hard to dig out all there is. Great imaging and sound stage Doesnt add anything

Weaknesses:
Needs great loudspeakers or will show up bass weaknesses - they go low and so if you speakers havve humps at very low frequencies they will sound soft. inablity to fast forward in a track without the remote. No balanced output. For the money you will pay no weakenesses at all really

Similar Products Used:
Tested against; Micromega Linn Naim Arcam Sugden

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
I find the 506.20 a very smooth and musical player which really shines with jazzmusic. It has a tuneful bass and a nice open and airy soundstage. It is also very detailed. One month ago I have heard the Meridian 588. That player sounds great and is also very dynamic. Only the bass could have been tighter. I will wait for sacd.

Strengths:
Open, airy and big soundstage. Very sophisticated and involving player that excels with jazz.

Weaknesses:
Bass definition and it could have had a little more slam/attack: it is not the most dynamic player on earth. Meridian cd players are not the most lucid players. Use a good power cord (Siltech)

Similar Products Used:
I have heard a lot: Meridian 508.20, 508.24 and 588, Linn Karik and Linn Ikemi, Lindemann cd 1 and D680 and Sony Scd 1.

Price Paid:  $800.00

Summary:
Finally! I have had the hardest time trying to get my system to sound the way that I wanted it to. I could not tell what the weakest link was. I had it in my head that it was the cd player. I had a Cal Delta that I was using through a Meridian DAC that sounded descent, but not what I was looking for. I tried a Meridian 596 DVD player, I was seriously disappointed! It is a DVD player, it does not do cd''s well! Then came the 506. Presto, problem solved. Soundstage, imaging, detail, air, and a dash of warmth. What a sensational unit. I can finally sit down and listen to the music rather than sit around and try to analyze and critic what I don''t like about it. Everything sounds nice. I have resurrected albums that I pushed off as being a "bad recording". I am still amazed about the amount of dimension that the unit puts out. The soundstage goes way beyond my speakers and I am able to hear the location of all the instruments. Details that I have not heard in the previous players come to life. I have achieved musical nirvana! (For now!)

Strengths:
Detail, imaging, soundstage, dimension

Weaknesses:
I wish that the unit had balanced outputs.

Similar Products Used:
Merian 596, 586(sounds better than the 596)Cal Delta, ML 37.

Price Paid:  $750.00 from Used on Audiogon

Summary:
This is one beautiful player, smooth and detailed. Airy highs, tight bass, a lot of detail overall. I haven''t had a whole lot of different experiences with players in my own system but I have listened to a good deal of different players at various dealers and I can honestly say I have never enjoyed listening to a player this much before. Closest competitor was the ROTEL RCD-1070 I had beforehand. The Meridian has more detail and better soundstaging and separation than the Rotel. Separation and spacing and pacing are all top notch on the Meridian. The only little downsides to me are that it is a little too polite for Rap and Heavy metal, and it seems to get some kind of electromagnetic interference from tv''s, mine malfunctions when to close to one. Other than that it is a top notch player and is a definite steal if you buy it used. I got mine in beautiful "like new" condition on Audiogon.

Strengths:
Detail, detail, detail. Smoothness, Clarity, airy highs, tight bass, great build quality "like a tank", the drawer doesnt even budge if you try to shake it, very nice looking.

Weaknesses:
A little light on the bass end, a little too polite with some music. Seems susceptible to electromagnetic fields.

Similar Products Used:
Rotel RCD-1070, Toshiba SD-2109 DVD player, Pioneer Laserdisc player, Krell 300i, Various Sony ES SACD models, Various Marantz, various models by Proceed, Mark Levinson, Linn, etc.

Price Paid:  $1600.00 from UK

Summary:
When auditioning, the Meridian was head and shoulders above the opposition. The Linns were the best of the bunch but lacked the involvement and depth of the 506. The Quad again lacked some of the detailing and the Audiolab, paired with my Audiolab amplification was too sterile and harsh by far.
The 506 does sound best with well recorded acoustic music - try "The Hiring Fair" from Fairport Convention's "Old-New-borrowed-Blue" live album - I have never heard such beautiful acoustic guitar on a recording - with the acoustic base guitar having a wonderful resonance. It's not only acoustic music that the 506 excels at - it can handle rock bass with superb speed and timing - listen to "Wake Up" by Mad Season - the start of the track has very deep bass and can sound flabby on lesser players but the 506 handles it with panache and overt musicality.
I'm somewhat bemused by the earlier reviewers stating that the bass was poor! I can only assume that their other components are detrimental to the 506 performing at it's best. My Audiovectors purr with the 506, but they are very large and have amazing control and need to be driven quite hard.

In my opinion there are no better players up to £1500. If you can pick up one second-hand, audition it, it's a wonderful bargain.

Strengths:
Build Quality, styling, massive bass capacity, supreme with acoustic recordings. Tends to be on the warm side - but that's to it's credit when paired sympathetically.

Weaknesses:
None

Similar Products Used:
Linn (x2 - cant remember models); Quad CD77; Audiolab 8000CD; Marantz CD17