I've been running a Luxman L-590aII for the last week with my Merlin VSM-MXR speakers. Love the combo. That "little" (60lb!) integrated is a really fine piece of kit and, if you're looking for solid-state sound, I don't think you could ask for more than the Luxman class A amp sound. Very warm (and not just because of the heat output).
I have to say, the Luxman sure is easy to listen to. Warm, like I said. Fantastic mid and deep bass, but a little congested in the upper mids/treble.
FWIW, I have in the past used Plinius gear (M16p + SA 250 mk4) to drive my Merlins after I sold off my Fila last year and was waiting for the Joule-Electra gear to show. I wasn't blown away by the combo -- it was just okay, but not remarkable -- and have since learned that the big Plinius amps might be have too much damping to really let the Merlin speakers do their thing. If you're going to do solid-state with Merlins, esp the newer ones, you might be best served by going with lower power (and lower damping) amps. Expect that YMMV.
Another side note -- when auditioning my first pair of Merlins, I got a good long opportunity to try out a Red Wine Audio 30.2 amp. IMO, the sound quality was pretty close to the Filarmonia (ie, very good), and Vinnie has since rev'd his lineup with new batteries. As for me, I ultimately went with the Fila over the Red Wine, but that was mostly due to the tubes (which seemed exotic) and the build quality of the Fila, and not really a sound quality decision.
Currently, I'm on a new amp quest. I'd love to try out a solid state solution that had a bit more treble clarity than the Class A Luxman. I hope to try out a L-505u just to see if the Class A/B Luxmans have a more appealing sound, but I'm not hopeful.
I have to say, the Luxman sure is easy to listen to. Warm, like I said. Fantastic mid and deep bass, but a little congested in the upper mids/treble.
FWIW, I have in the past used Plinius gear (M16p + SA 250 mk4) to drive my Merlins after I sold off my Fila last year and was waiting for the Joule-Electra gear to show. I wasn't blown away by the combo -- it was just okay, but not remarkable -- and have since learned that the big Plinius amps might be have too much damping to really let the Merlin speakers do their thing. If you're going to do solid-state with Merlins, esp the newer ones, you might be best served by going with lower power (and lower damping) amps. Expect that YMMV.
Another side note -- when auditioning my first pair of Merlins, I got a good long opportunity to try out a Red Wine Audio 30.2 amp. IMO, the sound quality was pretty close to the Filarmonia (ie, very good), and Vinnie has since rev'd his lineup with new batteries. As for me, I ultimately went with the Fila over the Red Wine, but that was mostly due to the tubes (which seemed exotic) and the build quality of the Fila, and not really a sound quality decision.
Currently, I'm on a new amp quest. I'd love to try out a solid state solution that had a bit more treble clarity than the Class A Luxman. I hope to try out a L-505u just to see if the Class A/B Luxmans have a more appealing sound, but I'm not hopeful.