Firmware and App Upgrade for 2018 Phantom Gold Speakers + Dialog

[rkelkar]

Hi - I purchased a pair of Phantom Gold speakers in January 2018 in the US along with a Dialog and I am on Firmware Version 1.14.1.3. And Spark version 1.11.3 which dates back to November 2018!

Can Devialet Support or any expert user help me with the following questions:

1. Do I need to upgrade to a different App from Spark? If yes, how?!
2. Do I need to upgrade firmware for the Gold Phantoms? If yes, how?! (Incidentally, are these called "Phantom 1"  now?)
3. Do I need to upgrade firmware for the Dialog? If yes, how?!

[franm]

If you download the new DOS 2 firmware, both Spark and your Dialog will be obsolete. The new Devialet App will replace Spark. The Dialog won't be needed because your speakers will now be paired for a stereo through the Devialet App and the new firmware, and you won't need the Dialog for your Golds (yes, now Phantoms). If you have other equipment running off the Dialog - TV, CD player, whatever - you'll need to connect those directly from one of the speakers, or through WiFi, or keep the Dialog after DOS 2. Make sure your speakers can handle DOS 2 before you begin. With this said, I ran into some issues after DOS 2 playing Hi Res/MQA, but I believe I was in the minority. I've since added Roon a few days ago, and my issues have so far cleared up.

[franm]

BTW, if you keep the Dialog, I believe there's an updated firmware for that also.

[rkelkar]

If you download the new DOS 2 firmware, both Spark and your Dialog will be obsolete. The new Devialet App will replace Spark. The Dialog won't be needed because your speakers will now be paired for a stereo through the Devialet App and the new firmware, and you won't need the Dialog for your Golds (yes, now Phantoms). If you have other equipment running off the Dialog - TV, CD player, whatever - you'll need to connect those directly from one of the speakers, or through WiFi, or keep the Dialog after DOS 2. Make sure your speakers can handle DOS 2 before you begin. With this said, I ran into some issues after DOS 2 playing Hi Res/MQA, but I believe I was in the minority. I've since added Roon a few days ago, and my issues have so far cleared up.

Many thanks - much appreciated. My concern is as follows - one of the benefits I saw of using the Dialog was that the Tidal lossless data feed came thru on Ethernet.

If I switch to DOS2 and the Devialet App, am I right in my understanding that data transmission will be via Bluetooth and the reduced data transmission capability means that lossless will not be truly lossless?

Is there a way to continue to use Ethernet-level data connectivity or does DOS2 mean losing "true" lossless music capability? That would seem to defeat the whole purpose of getting Gold Phantoms in the first place!

[franm]

Not sure where you're getting your information, but Devialet website has a nice Q&A that answers many of these issues. No where does Devialet say to get rid of your LAN (ethernet) connections, in fact, quite the opposite. Whenever your Golds are connected via ethernet, that automatically becomes the primary means of transmission. On the other hand, I also think that WiFi and Bluetooth are capable of lossless transmission, but you should keep your LAN setup. Optical cables are another issue, they might only be supported to CD quality, so stay away from those.

[franm]

Check this out:

https://help.devialet.com/hc/en-us/artic...-I-Premier-