Audiophiles and home theater enthusiasts alike have learned to be weary of the term "future-proof," as history has proven it is synonymous with the term "BS" when it comes to investing in audio-video gear. Ask the guy with a five-year-old, $20,000 60-inch 720p plasma about future-proof and prepare for him to spit venom at you. Ask anyone with an HD DVD player about future-proof and you are likely to hear that they are not willing to be early adopters for new AV formats in the future. But mention future-proof to a Meridian 800 series owner and watch him smile, because Meridian, the ultra-high-end electronics company from England, has provided a meaningful way to keep the world's most feature-packed and best-sounding surround sound AV preamps relevant since the mid-1990s in a world that has seen everything from SACD to DVD-Audio to 720p to 1080p to HDMI to HD DVD to Blu-ray and is about to experience the insane video of 4k. This said, the Meridian 861 has been there at the absolute cutting edge of technology for AV preamps longer than any other component in AV history. There should be an award for this kind of feat but, sadly, there is not.

Additional Resources
• Read about Meridian-Sooloos 2.0 Server here.
• Read Meridian's DSP8000 Digital Active Speakers Reviewed Here.
• Explore the best AV preamps from the likes of Meridian, Anthem, Krell, Mark Levinson and many others.

The Meridian 861 is a single-chassis AV preamp that is card-based, not unlike the now-discontinued Mark Levinson No. 40 AV preamp. Depending on the needs of your system, you can configure your 861 with multi-channel audio inputs, a card for proprietary high-resolution audio inputs from other Meridian players, video inputs of various varieties (not HDMI in the 861, however - it's an external solution at this point) and much more. Pricing is around the $20,000 to $24,000 range, depending on which inputs you need, want and/or desire, because Meridian basically has them all. Version 1 units can actually be upgraded to the latest Version 4 units, both in the States and in England. Meridian 861s have kept their value over time, while other high-end AV preamps at one point or another have dropped like a stone.

Sonically, the Meridian 861 is one of the smoothest and most open AV preamps on the market at any price. True audiophiles know to match a Meridian player with an 861, even if it is from the lower Meridian G series line-up, as the proprietary link from player to preamp is the most direct, sexy-sounding way on today's market to get from a disc to your speakers. Meridian's sound is without question British in terms of its poise and lack of sizzle. It's a bit laid-back, but its openness and realistic soundstage transcend geographical stereotypes. The 861's configuration requires you to use a PC to set up the inputs and is quite complex. Most consumers just have their dealer do the set-up and leave it at that. Hardcore enthusiasts learn to love the depth and complexity of setting up a Meridian preamp, as you can basically make it do anything you want it to do once you learn the ropes of the often quirky software.

Read The Downside and Conclusion on Page 2