Merrill Audio ELEMENT 118 Monoblock Amplifiers

We are an Authorized Merrill Audio Dealer located in Bergen County, New Jersey.

Beautiful Demo pair available at a great price or Brand New amps available!

From the brand-new Buyer's Guide to BEST AMPLIFIERS in Part-Time Audiophile:
"We felt that the 118 monoblocks “almost fully eliminated our long-standing bias against class-D amplifiers” by eliminating any hints of grain or an overly analytical sound. With over 400 watts per channel into 8 ohms, the Merrill Audio proved to be the perfect amp to mate with speakers that are exceptionally hard to drive. Definitely one of the best amplifiers we’ve heard that employ this design."

The  innovative Element amplifiers from Merrill Audio are racking up exceptional reviews from every reviewer who gets their hands on them. There’s sonically nothing like them anywhere near their price, and, we’d argue, in many cases, at almost any reasonable price. 

Let’s cut right to the chase, courtesy of David Robinson of Positive Feedback (Issue 105): "Merrill Audio and its Element 118 monoblock amplifiers join the likes of Audionet, darTZeel, and the Pass Labs Xs series, atop Mt. Robinson. Its price does put the Element 118’s in tough competitive company; $36,000 per pair (now $38,000-XF) is definitely in the serious zone, though you can certainly spend a great deal more on stereo amplification than this. But my time spent with the 118’s confirms that it is a peer…with its own unique strengths…with the best that I’ve heard here. Merrill Wettasinghe is definitely onto something really important here."

 

Design:

The first and foremost consideration for true to life music reproduction is speed.

To deal with this demanding level of speed requires stable circuitry with accurate reproduction capability during extreme speed occurrences. Since overshoot and ringing are the most significant obstacles of speed, the Element 118 Power Amplifier Monoblocks are carefully crafted to maintain this high speed and are engineered to eliminate the anomalies that cause overshoot and ringing.

Using the most advanced and newest Gallium Nitride transistors available, the Element 118 Power Amplifier Monoblocks are capable of delivering speeds into the Gigahertz range. Incorporating highly developed techniques, the Printed Circuit Board (PCB) parasitic inductance and capacitance have been reduced to near zero. Since the development of specialized fabrication and manufacturing procedures came with a host of new challenges, implementing the advanced transistors and sophisticated PCBs placed significant time demands on Merrill Audio.

The Element 118 Power Amplifier Monoblocks are audibly the cleanest sounding amplifiers you will hear. These amplifiers have been designed to deliver spacious, airy sound, abundant in vivid detail. Articulated, deep, tight, and powerful bass is an additional strong suit of Merrill Audio’s ZXOL design featuring a completely open loop design that has no feedback whatsoever! 

Eliminating feedback has two distinct advantages. The speed capability is increased significantly and a remarkable gain in the clarity of musical information is achieved. Since there is no signal loop-back, all the feedback loop distortions as well as the attendant time delays are eliminated.

Features:

Only the highest quality components were selected regardless of the application.

For the chassis Solid Stainless Steel Outriggers were chosen to provide stable weight distribution and vibration control, while GAIA II Footers by IsoAcoustics provide isolation and absorption from the ground plane.

Along with the platform isolation, the chassis is designed to minimize external sound vibration disturbances using midpoint diffusers and stabilizers. The Chassis is executed in a very tasteful nickel and Rose Gold. It is plated rather than anodized since plating is a softer, more absorbent material.

The Element 118 Power amplifier Monoblocks use the top of the line Speaker Binding Posts from WBT featuring direct copper posts that will conveniently accommodate spades, bananas and bare wire. These components are the latest designs from WBT and been engineered for the best sound.

It has been firmly established that the quality of AC power connections is a very important consideration. With that priority in mind, the highly regarded Furutech Rhodium Plated 20A IEC AC power inlets were selected for the Element 118 Power Amplifier Monoblocks since the tightest connection is achieved by the more robust 20 AMP IEC connector. This heavy duty connector will grip a weighty AC power cord more firmly to establish an electrically solid connection, and is available as an industry standard. 

Internally the Element 118 Power Amplifier Monoblock PCB boards are manufactured to the highest excellence available and further engineered for sustaining a most stable temperature distribution. Using 8 pounds of pure copper per monoblock, the highly refined heat distribution system maintains a steady temperature environment on the PCB boards, a condition absolutely essential for linear operation.

The element 118 Power Amplifier Monoblocks only use stranded wire that is OFC, silver plated and sleeved in Teflon and was selected for its low parasitics impedance and dielectric characteristics. High Gauge wire is the norm throughout and every audio signal path is hand soldered to provide the purest possible connection.

Reviews:

HiFi+

http://www.hifiplus.com/articles/merrill-audio-element-118-mono-power-amplifiers/?page=3

Enjoy the Music

http://www.enjoythemusic.com/superioraudio/equipment/1018/Merrill_Audio_Element_118_Monoblock_Amplifiers_Review.htm

Positive Feedback

https://positive-feedback.com/audio-discourse/impressions-final-thoughts-on-the-merrill-audio-element-118/

SoundStage Ultra

https://www.soundstageultra.com/index.php/equipment-menu/896-merrill-audio-element-118-mono-amplifiers#most-read-equipment-reviews

Specs:

400 watts into 8 ohms; 800 watts into 4 ohms

SN: 110 dB

Gain: 26 dB

XLR Balanced Input

Dual pair of speaker posts for Bi-Wiring

20amp AC IEC input

IsoAcoustics GAiA III Footers

Weight: 65 pounds

XtremeFidelity is one of the few locations where you can actually hear the flagship 118 amplifiers. Listen through our world-class Tidal Audio Agoria loudspeakers  to 15 ips tape through the new Merrill Audio MASTER tape head preamp.

List price is $38,000.00 per pair for NEW product with Warranty. DEMO UNITS available.  Sorry, no trade ins.

Payment via PayPal or wire transfer; fees are additional. Shipping and insurance charges additional.  Read our feedback and buy with confidence!