07-Oct-2014, 11:07
Ok I started this so perhaps I should chime in 
Some great comments so far and I hope we will get a few more!
One of the things that Devialet has achieved spectacularly is to bring reference-level hi-fi to the masses.
I mean for £4,500 (120) audiophiles can have something that sounds seriously good and can take on some of the best amps ever made. Even the 200 at £6,390 is a steal (when you consider what it might be replacing in more traditional setup) and it's no surprise to see most members of this forum opting for this model.
But the reference-level hi-fi market segment is evolving, and evolving fast. It seems that every week we hear announcements of a new groundbreaking DAC or streamer. There is literally a space race going on, particularly in the world of cost-no-object DACs. Even more modestly priced electronics are offering more and more. I mean as an example the latest Nagra HD DAC sports 25 internal power supplies to the unit and two external power supplies, with one feeding the the analog stages and the other the digital ones! Of course it does DSD 128 and comes with a remarkable looking anti-vibration plate. The cost? About £15k. This a smidgeon compared to a Vivaldi stack or Trinity! A Linn Klimax DS is just shy of £13k...
In the space of just a year or two we've seen HD music (i.e. studio masters) become much more readily available with decent offerings from Linn, Qobuz and HD Tracks now accessible. It wasn't so long ago that I was really limited in my ability to buy high definition music. And now we are hearing more and more rumblings about DSD and its supposedly vinyl-like presentation. It's surely only a matter of time until we start seeing DSD material become readily available here.
I think a year in hi-fi is a long time! Particularly digital audio. So I'm intrigued to see how Devialet develop their range, effectively catering for what is quite a wide range of audiophiles.
Over to you chaps!
Guillaume
Some great comments so far and I hope we will get a few more!
One of the things that Devialet has achieved spectacularly is to bring reference-level hi-fi to the masses.
I mean for £4,500 (120) audiophiles can have something that sounds seriously good and can take on some of the best amps ever made. Even the 200 at £6,390 is a steal (when you consider what it might be replacing in more traditional setup) and it's no surprise to see most members of this forum opting for this model.
But the reference-level hi-fi market segment is evolving, and evolving fast. It seems that every week we hear announcements of a new groundbreaking DAC or streamer. There is literally a space race going on, particularly in the world of cost-no-object DACs. Even more modestly priced electronics are offering more and more. I mean as an example the latest Nagra HD DAC sports 25 internal power supplies to the unit and two external power supplies, with one feeding the the analog stages and the other the digital ones! Of course it does DSD 128 and comes with a remarkable looking anti-vibration plate. The cost? About £15k. This a smidgeon compared to a Vivaldi stack or Trinity! A Linn Klimax DS is just shy of £13k...
In the space of just a year or two we've seen HD music (i.e. studio masters) become much more readily available with decent offerings from Linn, Qobuz and HD Tracks now accessible. It wasn't so long ago that I was really limited in my ability to buy high definition music. And now we are hearing more and more rumblings about DSD and its supposedly vinyl-like presentation. It's surely only a matter of time until we start seeing DSD material become readily available here.
I think a year in hi-fi is a long time! Particularly digital audio. So I'm intrigued to see how Devialet develop their range, effectively catering for what is quite a wide range of audiophiles.
Over to you chaps!
Guillaume
Industry disclosure: UK distributor for Shunyata Research
220 PRO, totaldac d1 server with additional external power supply, totaldac d1-seven, Echole PSU for Totaldac, Wilson Audio Sasha 2, Shunyata Research cables, Shunyata Hydra Alpha A10 + DPC-6 v3, Various Entreq ground boxes and cables, Entreq Athena level 3 rack, 2 X SOtM sNH-10G with sCLK-EX + 10MHz Master Clock input + sPS-500 PSU, i5 sonicTransporter w/ 1TB SSD
UK
