  Several improvements in numerical methods and gauge choice are presented that
make it possible now to perform simulations of the merger and ringdown phases
of "generic" binary black-hole evolutions using the pseudo-spectral evolution
code SpEC. These improvements include the use of a new damped-wave gauge
condition, a new grid structure with appropriate filtering that improves
stability, and better adaptivity in conforming the grid structures to the
shapes and sizes of the black holes. Simulations illustrating the success of
these new methods are presented for a variety of binary black-hole systems.
These include fairly ``generic'' systems with unequal masses (up to 2:1 mass
ratios), and spins (with magnitudes up to 0.4 M^2) pointing in various
directions.
