Meridian g08

Meridian first made their name by being one of the first manufacturers to take cd seriously and very brave it was when you look at how many formats have failed.

This is the latest machine and follows on from the 508, 508 24 and 588. Meridian have undergone some style changes recently and have completely changed the way the components look. I really liked the old five series look but this will probably grow on me and lets face it hifi isn't judged on how it looks!

Once warmed up first impressions are very, very impressive. Detail is incredible. Compared to something like a cdx2 (Naim) there is just so much more going on. Background noises are so easy to hear. The other thing you notice is the shear drive of the machine.

Bass is fantastic, deep and rich and perfectly in time with the rest of the frequency's. In fact I would go as far to say this has the best bass of any cd player I have heard!

Bass has always been a meridian strong point and if you have not heard a meridian cd player before then you probably have not heard bass like it. High frequency are good although not what I was expecting.

I owned a 588 for while and it was quite a dark sounding machine, the treble was there but did not draw any attention to itself.

This player is different, the treble is very extended and can get harsh with the wrong equipment. It is not that the treble is not of good quality it is just it is more obviously there. Midrange is good and timing and coherence is excellent. Good recordings sound superb and realism is another strong point.

Imaging is also spot on. Everything is so easy to locate within the sound stage. Image depth is good and it is most definitely a three dimensional experience!

In terms of how it deals with recording perspective I would say it sits somewhere between sounding live and concentrating on the recording. It is not as forward as a Naim or as laid back as a Linn, if that makes sense!

One criticism of this player is how it handles bad recordings, they don't fare so well. Compressed pop sounds like compressed pop. In fact all recordings are handled in a very matter of fact way. The cd player simply reproduces what is there, much like a Linn cd player this is not about having easy access to all of your music.

The other small fault is how this player flows. It doesn't have the liquid musicality of a Linn or Naim cd player. It can sound a little bit staccato. Nothing is sweetened, nothing is added. It is very, very accurate, some people will love that or some people may find it a little bit cold.

One thing that isn't in doubt is that this cd player is a very high quality device. I would probably compare it to cd players costing an awful lot more. If you compare it to similar priced equipment it probably wins hands down. It is down to the number of strengths this player has, it has very few weaknesses.

It times well, it sounds realistic, it images superbly and has more detail than just about any cd player I have heard. It falls down slightly because it is so accurate, some people may want slightly more emotion.

If you like your cd players sweeter than life this probably won't interest you but if you are after accuracy and realism there aren't too many players better.

Ebay Alert!

Still expensive, expect to pay anything up to £1400 for a late model.