New Meridian 541 Galley Layout

Creekwood

Creekwood

Well-Known Member
GOLD Sponsor
Apr 26, 2009
5,809
Oakville and Georgian Bay, Ontario
Boat Info
'97 330 Sundancer, Raymarine C80 suite with radar, Mercury 310 Hypalon w/8hp Yammie 2stk
Engines
2X 454 carbs w/ vDrives
This may be blasphemy on CSR, but have you seen the galley layout of the new Meridian 541? The "living room" lounges are up front over top of the staterooms, and the galley is aft on the port side and opens up to the cockpit area. Its like the open concept design of newer houses with the kitchen open to the living spaces. I am sure there are drawbacks, but it looks to me like a great layout for entertaining inside and out.

Anyone else getting antsy for spring? With the warm non-winter we have had I have started my spring boat shopping early. I must be nuts to be buying bottom paint in February in Canada.
 
Frank,
You probably should get crackin' on that bottom paint. We could be launching in early April based on how the winter had gone so far! Nice boat BTW...

Paul
 
No your not crazy, right there with you. Shopping for a new set of wool pads, some applicators , and maybe just maybe a new chartplotter for this year finally. I saw the 54 reviewed in Boating. I liked the layout quite a bit. We were on two Meridians at the Annapolis show and liked the layout a lot. The bridge looked really nice for cruising...
 
Creekwood said:
This may be blasphemy on CSR, but have you seen the galley layout of the new Meridian 541? The "living room" lounges are up front over top of the staterooms, and the galley is aft on the port side and opens up to the cockpit area. Its like the open concept design of newer houses with the kitchen open to the living spaces. I am sure there are drawbacks, but it looks to me like a great layout for entertaining inside and out.
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I'm sure it's not blasphemy to Rusty and the fine employees at Sea Ray's Merritt Island plant where the 541 shares the same production line as the Sea Ray Yachts.

I recently had the great pleasure of spending four days cruising aboard a 541 and found the galley aft layout to be terrific. With the sliding door and retractable aft window open, the cockpit and boat’s interior blend in a very effective way with a natural flow. Having the very comfortable salon forward and raised provides the added bonus of additional privacy when stern-to at a dock. You can be relaxing, napping, watching TV – whatever – without the peering eyes of every passerby. It really works well. And the master stateroom, which I stayed in, is exceptional. After having heard questionable things about the diagonal layout of the master berth in the 47DB I was pleasantly surprised to find, in my time on board the 541, it is a non-issue.
 
Meridian? Really? Should these questions not be asked over on that high-quality bayliner board?
 
Gary, I was thinking that also. But there's a hitch to that. :wow:.

We don't feel it is fair that someone can come in and take, take, take and not give back in the form of their own completed projects, etc. Also locked are Owners lists (you really want Owners Lists for public access?) and the Technical section.
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They went private on most of their threads, They are trying to hide something. :lol:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Four Suns said:
Meridian? Really? Should these questions not be asked over on that high-quality bayliner board?
Click to expand...
You should probably call out Frank W for posting this then...


fwebster said:
...The Sea Ray Group. Sea Ray and Meridian and have common management, but their marketing functions are separate. Both Sea Ray and Meridian products were displayed. The Sykes Creek facility also makes some of the Meridian line. The products are similar, but different. The same personnel who make Sea Rays also make Meridians. It is impossible to train the same personnel to deliver 2 levels of quality, so you will see the same high quality people at work on both lines of boats. The Meridians have their own design and it is different from the engineering and design used on Sea Ray boats. The Meridians are less expensive and there are reasons that is possible. The Meridians employ different construction techniques that allow for a little lighter lay-up schedule, whereas, the Sea Ray boats are more robust. The Meridian line also uses lighter and more economical components than Sea Ray. You will find lighter doors, polycarbonate cabinet doors instead of wood, lighter cabinet hinges and closures, and lighter weight soft trims. You will also see some cabinet and compartment interiors lined with a molded plastic liner on Meridians, where Sea Ray cabinet interiors are finished.

Seeing both lines of boats displayed has caused me to make and adjustment in thinking. I have come to realize that Yacht Expo was for lines under the Sea Ray Group, not just for Sea Ray boats. Each has its place, its own customer base and its own intended use.
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I stand by the above statement.....somewhere in the 3 posts I did on Yacht Expo, I have a photo of a 541 deck and mold in-process in the Sykes Creek factory, and I had the pleasure/fun of running the 541 during a wine photo shoot for an upcoming Sea Ray Living magazine. However, if you assume the same mfg. margin on Meridians and Sea Rays, the price differential leads to only one possible reason.........well, you draw your own conclusion.
 
fwebster said:
... However, if you assume the same mfg. margin on Meridians and Sea Rays, the price differential leads to only one possible reason.........well, you draw your own conclusion.
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No question, Frank. As someone who has pridefully owned Sea Rays and now a new Meridian, I appreciated your original post which essentially pointed out that - the cliched perception that current boats in the Meridian Yachts line are simply rebadged Bayliners - is inaccurate.

And regardless of what I own, I am pleased that the popularity of Meridian means good things for employees working at both Sykes Creek and Palm Coast.
 
It'll be interesting to see if the next gen of the DB has an aft galley layout in one of the models. Not sure if it would work but it might even be feasible to have it as an optional cabin plan.
 
Why do you climb all the way to the top of the mountain for answers and then not even listen to the Old Man (said with respect.) Franks words are absolutely correct in that all Meridians are made, in what used to be exclusive, SR facilities. The name Bayliner is a US Marine product which is also owned by the Brunswick Corp. and those boats were made in the Seattle area until recently. Currently all Meridians are made in Florida at either the Palm Coast plant or the Sykes Creek plant, so this site would be a good place to discuss or find out info on the Meridian Sport Yacht and Yacht line. I agree with all of your assessments regarding the floor plan and head room in the 541, it sure seems like a lot bigger than 54 feet. If I can answer any questions regarding this boat, I will be happy too but it wouldn’t hurt to listen to the Yacht Expo post author, he was all over the complete line-up and drove a couple to boot, including the 541.

Rusty
 
Red Stripe said:
I'm sure it's not blasphemy to Rusty and the fine employees at Sea Ray's Merritt Island plant where the 541 shares the same production line as the Sea Ray Yachts.

I recently had the great pleasure of spending four days cruising aboard a 541 and found the galley aft layout to be terrific. With the sliding door and retractable aft window open, the cockpit and boat’s interior blend in a very effective way with a natural flow. Having the very comfortable salon forward and raised provides the added bonus of additional privacy when stern-to at a dock. You can be relaxing, napping, watching TV – whatever – without the peering eyes of every passerby. It really works well. And the master stateroom, which I stayed in, is exceptional. After having heard questionable things about the diagonal layout of the master berth in the 47DB I was pleasantly surprised to find, in my time on board the 541, it is a non-issue.
Click to expand...

Hmmm, I was at the plant in 2010 for the Expo and remember the Meridians were in a different building altogether... That said, with the open bars all over the place that weekend, I may have been in a slight "fog".
 
Sea Ray is Brunswicks most profitable brand from what I've been told. I could be wrong but I suspect the margins on the two brands are different. It's also interesting that almost 75 percent of Meridian buyers are previous Sea Ray owners. Most of those are express owners moving to bridge boats, a segment of the market where Meridian is really starting to dominate. Not that Sea Ray doesn't make a great bridge boat, they do, but people are leaning towards what they percieved to be a better layout compared to the competition, and a good value. Today, when comparing the 2 brands, it's difficult to see glaring differences in quality.
 
But the quality differences are there..............Acrylic cabinet doors vs. finished wooden ones; thinner interior doors; less sound deadening, blow molded plastic compartment liners vs. finished interior cabinets; Look down the side of a 541 vs. a 520DB and you certainly see the difference in layup. Take a ride on the 2 in the same sea conditions and you hear rattles everywhere on the 541, the 520 DB is whisper quiet. There are also some differences in structure and assembly that are interesting........the cross pieces in the deck cap on the Meridians are part of the structural rigidity, Sea Ray's deck caps are open and are not designed to be part of the structure. It makes for a lighter hull that is less expensive to build, but be sure your bank account is full if you have to remove an engine because you have to saw out then repair the structure over the engines.

Look for the details........the differences are there.
 
It'll be interesting to see if the next gen of the DB has an aft galley layout in one of the models. Not sure if it would work but it might even be feasible to have it as an optional cabin plan.
Click to expand...

Back to the 47 Sedan Bridge discussion, the comments were that it had such a short life because of the layout, which is very similar, so it seems, to the 541. Is Brunswick repeating the same error?
 
My opinion is the 47 Bridge Boat is geared towards a different buyer than the Meridien 54....I almost look at the 54 like a motor yacht......I like the galley being near the cockpit.....The cockpit also has a bar/bar stools right there......I just see a different buyer with this boat....
 
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