MPP

It looks to me like MELF is just the name of the case type, and the rest is just obfuscation to make people think they're some new technology. The benefit is in mechanical rigidity and what's inside depends on what series you buy.

Metal glaze MELF resistors however do have high surge tolerance not unlike carbon composition which is still tougher but prone to moisture and drift.
 
There is one metal-metal contact less because there are no wires.
Generally a bigger resistor of the same type has less distortion when the layout is not compromised.
That is beacuse distortion in a resistor ( mostly 3rd harmonic, the Dales are an exception with second dominating ( why ? )) come from thermal modulation.
The noise besides Johnson noise ( that is not reducible ) is the excess noise.
That comes from the granularity of the base material.
Metal Oxyte is worse then Metal Film for example.
I use the Melfs too from a Geraman maker. They have very low excess noise.
 
............Metal glaze MELF resistors however do have high surge tolerance .............
When I compare the description of a melf type to a metal film leaded type, I see the same.
I can't see anywhere that explains why melf (metal film on a ceramic substrate) can claim this very high surge current tolerance, when the near identical metal film on a ceramic substrate appears no different.
 
I am referring to the apparent NON difference between a metal film melf and a metal film leaded resistor.

I suspect the difference is between metal film MELF and other SMD resistors.
Any resistor that is built on a bulky Alumina foundation and can absorb heat fast will survive a power surge.
Matal Glaze are the most noise producing of all the metal resistors.
 
Why..?? Small signal class a circuits running very very far from any power limits are non subjects to power-surge. Only place I have issues with resistors are en current feedback Amplifers, and off course in Re in big power amplifiers, for those I prefer metal strip resistors, they are as low in induction as you can get, and have close to zero tempco an great power handling too.