Quote Originally Posted by apfelwein View Post
You can also buy the lvl 55 gear from the merchant at moghome (churing mist) an spirit bind that with gathering high lvl mat (like hardsilver ore). They give 100% tier IV materia when converted.
Not 100%, but pretty high (>75% in my experience with limited actual record keeping. Tier III the rest of the time.) This is still one of the best ways to get materia in bulk though.