yea im not sure why you cant meld some materia in the masters rings because without that ability theyre pretty much useless items. aetheryte rings are made from only one gold nugget and one water cluster, have the same cp when theyre hq'd and a spiritbond gain. the spiritbond gain is possibly more useful than durability loss because honestly in my crafting my durabilitly has never really become an issue nor is the gil i spend repairing things. add to the fact you can add on extra craftsmanship, control and cp to the aetheryte and its just obviously a better item overall.

i wish i can put those special masters items to good use but unfortunately once i get them they go straight into storage, forever unused. kinda sad really.