Devialet upgrading (bad) policy

[Confused]

From their accountants POV it's probably far more desirable to get between 3K and 5K from every owner, and then make a streamer board for as little as possible to fill the '1,500 euro value', than it is to sell a load of upgrades at 1,500.  

They are also then in the relatively unheard of luxury of having your cash in their bank accounts upfront to fund the device…..(or use elsewhere).  Sort of like a luxury kickstarter, but without any info about what you're investing in, or when its coming beyond the year.  Seems like there's plenty of people not really bothered about it though and will upgrade regardless, and hats off to 'em.

Plenty of people not really bothered about it though and will upgrade regardless?  That pretty much sums up my position!  My interest in the Pro was based entirely on how the sound quality compared to the current model versus the cost to upgrade.  The new streamer board did not come into the equation at all.  OK, I would have preferred a lower cost to upgrade with the option not to have the streamer board, but really it is quite simple, Devialet are not offering that option so why worry about it.  I think the accounting side of it is interesting too, because the final manufacturing cost of each individual streamer board will probably be very low indeed, I'm guessing well under £100, so with economies of scale they may as well provide one to every Pro owner.

[Rodney Gold]

I too view the streamer board as an unexpected bonus if it works.
In the meanwhile, If I have the money when the ug comes to SA anb if reviews are superb , I will pull the trigger on eu7k iro upgrading my 2x d prems to 2x250 pro's (I assume 2 x 250 pros make a 1000 pro)

[Pim]

This is purely speculation but I can't see Devialet building a streamer board that doesn't sound fantastic. So from a purely sound quality point of view the streamer board could easily be a bargain. The app might not be as good as Aurender's but that will get better over time, as Spark seems to have done. I'm looking forward to the O d'A being upgraded   but I'm keeping my wallet in my pocket for the D200 for now.

[GuillaumeB]

This is purely speculation but I can't see Devialet building a streamer board that doesn't sound fantastic. So from a purely sound quality point of view the streamer board could easily be a bargain. The app might not be as good as Aurender's but that will get better over time, as Spark seems to have done. I'm looking forward to the O d'A being upgraded   but I'm keeping my wallet in my pocket for the D200 for now.

Why would you need an app when you have Roon?

That's all the streamer board needs to do. That and UPnP.

Those that enjoy AIR 3 can continue to do so.

The trouble is we want them to hurry up with this since we don't get upgraded to 1000 Pro specs until the streamer board is ready.

Guillaume

[Pim]

This is purely speculation but I can't see Devialet building a streamer board that doesn't sound fantastic. So from a purely sound quality point of view the streamer board could easily be a bargain. The app might not be as good as Aurender's but that will get better over time, as Spark seems to have done. I'm looking forward to the O d'A being upgraded   but I'm keeping my wallet in my pocket for the D200 for now.

Why would you need an app when you have Roon?

That's all the streamer board needs to do. That and UPnP.

Those that enjoy AIR 3 can continue to do so.

The trouble is we want them to hurry up with this since we don't get upgraded to 1000 Pro specs until the streamer board is ready.

Guillaume

If we could run Roon and have class leading sound quality through the new streamer board then I am done. Set for life.
I haven't had the O d'A long enough to feel I need an upgrade yet. It's not even properly run in yet    so no rush from my side. I do understand why you want them to hurry up though.

[mdconnelly]

Where I feel pressured is this upgrade window.   Having purchased my 200 in 2016, I understand that I will be eligible for a discounted upgrade (although I've yet to get an actual confirmed cost in US $$ from Devialet or my dealer) but have been told by Dev support that it must be done by December 2016 to get the discount.

Will I upgrade?  If the feedback by December is highly favorable (which I suspect it will be) and there are no glitches in the product or process, then I suspect I will.  But truth be known, I'm pretty damn happy with my 200 as is.

[octaviars]

If we could run Roon and have class leading sound quality through the new streamer board then I am done. Set for life.

+1

[octaviars]

Where I feel pressured is this upgrade window.   Having purchased my 200 in 2016, I understand that I will be eligible for a discounted upgrade (although I've yet to get an actual confirmed cost in US $$ from Devialet or my dealer) but have been told by Dev support that it must be done by December 2016 to get the discount.

Will I upgrade?  If the feedback by December is highly favorable (which I suspect it will be) and there are no glitches in the product or process, then I suspect I will.  But truth be known, I'm pretty damn happy with my 200 as is.

We have the prices confirmed in Sweden and if I look at the prices for a 400 and compare the prices between USA and Sweden the listprices in USA are about 10% higher in the USA and a 220 to 220PRO is 33500SEK (if it was bought in 2016) here and that gives 3900*1.1=4290$

So around 4300$ is my guess but that is perhaps totally wrong

[Antoine]

Really smart of them to mention the "value" of the streamer board, NOT! Now everyone wants the upgrade for 2k and no streamerboard, which I'm sure will suck..big time. At least compared to most dedicated solutions out there.

[Hifi_swlon]

This is purely speculation but I can't see Devialet building a streamer board that doesn't sound fantastic.

It's more about functionality (which streaming services / protocols are supported and how well they're implemented) rather than SQ per-se, although many seem to think the current USB input is relatively weak in terms of SQ out. I may have missed something but as far as I can tell functionality-wise nothing was added to the current streamer board during its entire lifespan - let's hope that was more technical limitations rather than a sign of things to come.

The possibility of streaming to my 200 as a RoonReady endpoint over Ethernet, with volume control etc, would make me happy (ignoring the fact that that's what I thought I was getting - conceptually at least - with AIR in the first place). Since I use RAAT on a number of devices and it's flawless, I'd know that if it didn't work with the Devialet then it's a Devialet issue. I'd want to know all this and know it was reliable and sounded good before I parted with any money. That's assuming they actually make it RoonReady of course - I get the impression that Devialet's communication skills are the same with partner companies as they are with end users so who knows...

If it all worked and Roon was supported, would I pay 1500 Euros for the privilege? Unlikely, but I would at least consider it - and not because I think it's good value even ignoring the past, but it would be a means to an end and to close a chapter once and for all. Looks like that's a moot question anyway if they're sticking to the 'only available for pro' line. Would I pay 3000 to upgrade (assuming it will be extended), so I can have it. Unlikely again.

Personally, I think it's a bl***y cheek to not let us all have the card for free - at least anyone thats had ongoing support cases for AIR throughout their ownership, and who have spent extra money circumventing the issues. But that's just me.

If you're upgrading anyway and only really care about SQ from the amps and any streamer board would be a bonus if it worked, then that's a pretty good attitude to have really. No chance of disappointment.