If we are soliciting personal views here, I think the whole thing is an utter joke.
To be clear, I have absolutely no problem with the music itself. However, Devialet is a manufacturer of a relatively high technology digital amplifier, and they choose to showcase this with very old remastered music on a 'play once' format. OK, I get the line about the emotion of hearing something once, but you could play the digital file once and delete it for emotional pleasure. Then there is all this stuff about the lacquer being the ultimate format. It is not. I love vinyl, I play vinyl, but I am under no delusions that it is inherently superior to a modern digital methods of reproducing music. Vinyl can sound good because its shortcomings are euphonic, but shortcoming exist nevertheless and they are not all euphonic.
Consider that Devialet think it is a good idea for you to spend over Euro 6000 for something you can play once. Why? Because it is the ultimate format. Although the 'ultimate format' was converted into 24bit digital during the remastering, so the 'ultimate format' is one step removed from the actual ultimate format.
It is indisputable that the digital file is superior, and it is available here for Euro12.90.
http://www.fondamenta.fr/releases/261?locale=en
For a similar price to the play once lacquer, you could buy 500 of the digital files and delete each one after playing. This would give you the emotional effect of the play once performance, with the superior reproduction quality of a 24bit 176.4 KHz file, and you could listen to it 500 times more than once, and delete the file for pleasure each time.
So I think the entire thing is stupid.
I also note that they still have lacquers for sale for each of the lost recordings. This was a very limited edition, so there are obviously far less stupid people out there with 6K to spend on a lacquer than Devialet were hoping for.
Even the standard vinyl pressings are not cheap, when you consider the CD is Euro 17.
So yes it is great that Devialet are showing an interest in music, and reviving 'lost recordings' is commendable in my view. But not like this, it is far to embarrassing.
To be clear, I have absolutely no problem with the music itself. However, Devialet is a manufacturer of a relatively high technology digital amplifier, and they choose to showcase this with very old remastered music on a 'play once' format. OK, I get the line about the emotion of hearing something once, but you could play the digital file once and delete it for emotional pleasure. Then there is all this stuff about the lacquer being the ultimate format. It is not. I love vinyl, I play vinyl, but I am under no delusions that it is inherently superior to a modern digital methods of reproducing music. Vinyl can sound good because its shortcomings are euphonic, but shortcoming exist nevertheless and they are not all euphonic.
Consider that Devialet think it is a good idea for you to spend over Euro 6000 for something you can play once. Why? Because it is the ultimate format. Although the 'ultimate format' was converted into 24bit digital during the remastering, so the 'ultimate format' is one step removed from the actual ultimate format.
It is indisputable that the digital file is superior, and it is available here for Euro12.90.
http://www.fondamenta.fr/releases/261?locale=en
For a similar price to the play once lacquer, you could buy 500 of the digital files and delete each one after playing. This would give you the emotional effect of the play once performance, with the superior reproduction quality of a 24bit 176.4 KHz file, and you could listen to it 500 times more than once, and delete the file for pleasure each time.
So I think the entire thing is stupid.
I also note that they still have lacquers for sale for each of the lost recordings. This was a very limited edition, so there are obviously far less stupid people out there with 6K to spend on a lacquer than Devialet were hoping for.
Even the standard vinyl pressings are not cheap, when you consider the CD is Euro 17.
So yes it is great that Devialet are showing an interest in music, and reviving 'lost recordings' is commendable in my view. But not like this, it is far to embarrassing.
1000 Pro - KEF Blade - iFi Zen Stream - Mutec REF10 - MC3+USB - Pro-Ject Signature 12
