As far as titanium goes, it is an awesome material. I sold an aluminum bike to help defray the costs of my Merlin. That being said, I did have a mental block about paying more than about $3K.

One nice thing about Ti for someone looking to buy is that resale prices are low.

Backcountry outlet also has some Merlin models it's getting rid of. The prices are good but not great considering they are being sold on an outlet site.