Original d'Atelier register

[Zappydev]

#66 - installed and sounding wonderful in Worcestershire

 

Congrats! But where did the change of heart come from Zappydev? I thought from your posts last month you were unlikely to spend any more money with Devialet?

You big tease Zappydev!  No more sofa squishes from me!!    Anyway, congratulations!  Enjoy!

Thanks, guys. I shall miss those squishes !!

Yes, I was reaching the limit of my tolerance with regard to the AIR issues, and the way that Devialet were handling them (or not). Then, a few things happened:

• I saw, and heard, the O d'A during the Sofa-Squish day
  
• I started using AIR3b for Mac, which pretty much solved the issues of the previous releases. The subsequent release of AIR3b for Win has been equally successful for me.
  
• The Expert Pro story is now revealed, so we have a pretty good idea of how things will look for the next year or so
  

I stopped looking at it so subjectively - I didn't really have an issue personally with the upgrade pricing, although I can fully empathise with those that do. Instead, I took on board the many comments and opinions of those folk, on here and elsewhere, who have experienced other systems, and I came to the conclusion that objectively, the D900/D1000 embodies a performance that sets it way ahead of most of the competition. On top of that, the all-in-one technology was one of the key reasons I bought my first D170, and so as a lifestyle choice, that continues to fit the bill now that AIR is working. Finally, whilst it may not be to everyone's taste, I personally think that the appearance is drop-dead gorgeous. As a result, I decided to grab one while I still could - who knows for how long that will be possible ?  I have no intention of ever going back to playing CDs or SACDs, and although I may one day set up my trusty LP12 once again, for now, the O d'A is really all I need. (Although the dcs streamer solution does sound rather compelling . . . . ) 

Do I really need 1000W into my little Duette speakers ? No, of course not - the D400 had oodles of power in reserve. And yet - listening today at -36dB, where yesterday it would have been -25 dB, the sound is clearly more open and controlled than it was before. My biggest limitation today by far is the listening room, both shape and size - hence the Duettes, which I can wholeheartedly recommend, by the way. Come the day that I finally get a better room, then some new speakers will be at the top of the shopping-list, but I think that the electronics will do for now

For the record, I still think that Devialet have a lot of catching-up to do as regards communication and customer satisfaction. I also think that their software efforts are woefully inadequate, but these are things which (hopefully) will continue to improve. In the meantime, I have found their products to be exceptionally well-engineered, and to provide amazing performance from a gorgeous, minimalist package.

Last but not least, this is an amazing forum, and the breadth and depth of knowledge and opinions that are shared here have also played a part in my decision to stay on the Devialet path for a while longer.

Now, I'm off to play some tunes . . .

Zap