Original d'Atelier

[Pim]

Hi guys,

I've finally had a few days at home and set up my O d'A at last. At Guillaume's recommendation I went straight to V10 firmware and 1000W (into 6 Ohm, so about 1.3 kW into my 4 Ohm little two way speakers but who's counting?)

So how were my findings?

Looks: Well, I wasn't 100% sure about the colour they were going to be. Photos of O d'As have been so varied in colour. Luckily it was close to what I hoped it would be. Not too yellow but for me it could have been a tad darker. Under the right light (dimmed) they look a million bucks though. 


Setup: I have a small stereo in my garage under the house which used to feed off my D200. But because the Master needs to feed from one of the outputs I had to figure out an alternative way. Easily found; just have an output each on Master and Companion.  


Sound: I wasn't sure what to expect but I had some preconceptions. Tighter bass would be one of them but because my speakers are a bit close to the wall it could have easily turned a bit muddy if it was more powerful. No such thing. The bass was much tighter and better defined but also a little lighter. (Firmware 10 perhaps) My hope is that this will get better once it gets some hours on it. This does confirm one thing to me: The D200 wasn't powerful enough for the C1s. Not a huge surprise.   

Mids were soo much clearer. I'm still coming to terms with that. I thought the D200 was quite good and that, if some songs didn't sound 100% musical, it would have been the recording. I remember a mate of mine listening to my D200 setup for the first time. He mentioned that the voices sounded like real voices. Now I know that wasn't so much the case. Voices sound a lot more like real voices through the O d'A. A LOT more.   
On some recordings it can sound a but in your face/harsh still but I'm sure that will mellow over time. 

Highs were very much like the mids. A bit out of step with the bass but unbelievably extended. I've heard decays on cymbals go on for so long it almost felt as if I had my ear on the cymbal itself. 
I forgot what song it was (tried to play is for the missus last night and got the wrong song) but on this song (by Nina Simone) the piano at the end vibrates on until the mastering engineer has completely turned the volume off. I wasn't even aware there was a vibration in that piano when I played it on my D200. Very, very good.    

So, I'm a very happy camper already. My hope is that things mellow out a little over time. Other than that, I've been more overwhelmingly surprised than with any other audio product I have ever heard.   

Pim

Great initial report Pim. Glad that initial listening sessions are meeting (exceeding) expectations . I think that other O d'A owners have reported on a "break in" period which, I think, is to be expected. Look forward to your further reports on how things progress.


David

Thanks David,

I was in a bit of a hurry getting this 'initial report' out because I was about to board a plane. So here's a bit more.

The soundstage: The depth was the same as with my D200. I guess when a guitar appears to be 5m behind and a bit to the right on the recording it's not going to be 7m when the amp gets better. What did change, and by a large margin, was the width. With my D200, there were instances where I found the soundstage to get a little wider than my speakers. Mostly for a short while and with a specific part of a song. With the O d'A, the soundstage was from wall to wall on any recording that had a soundstage on it at all. Even MP3s. Just music floating in space. Pretty spectacular. 

The bass: There we instances that I felt there was really low frequency bass but too low in volume to be easily noticeable. My best guess is that the bass that the O d'A can produce is lower than the D200's. And because it's so low in frequency SAM will kick in with its protection feature to save my woofers. So with the D200 it's easier to hear because it's more in the frequency range of my
hearing but with the O d'A you should feel it IF you have bigger speakers.

[G51]

Hello, Pim. It is interesting to know you upgrade from a le200 to O'dA ( to be more precise, to own both) and compare the two. And it is even more interesting to employ O'dA to push a pair of stand mount loudspeaker instead of those big monsters six feet tall.

[Confused]

Hello, Pim. It is interesting to know you upgrade from a le200 to O'dA ( to be more precise, to own both) and compare the two. And it is even more interesting to employ O'dA to push a pair of stand mount loudspeaker instead of those big monsters six feet tall.

I did have a listen to the Dynaudio Confidence C4's once, very good they were too!  They'd go nicely with an O'dA I'm sure....

[Zappydev]

I can confirm that neither a large room nor large speakers are required to easily discern the differences going from D200=>D400=Od'A.

I found the same as Pim with regard to width of the soundstage. In terms of volume, I am now listening at a lower level, but hearing more, as if the dynamic range had increased somehow.

I am sure that there is a lot more left to be discovered, but I am loving my new toy as well

[Pim]

Hello, Pim. It is interesting to know you upgrade from a le200 to O'dA ( to be more precise, to own both) and compare the two. And it is even more interesting to employ O'dA to push a pair of stand mount loudspeaker instead of those big monsters six feet tall.

I did have a listen to the Dynaudio Confidence C4's once, very good they were too!  They'd go nicely with an O'dA I'm sure....

I first heard the original C1's and was blown away by what those little boxes can do. That's years ago now. So I thought maybe one day I would get C4's for my large living room. Since then I've heard C2's on Parasound JC1 amplification and again was blown away. But I've also heard the C4's a few times and every time with the wrong amplification. They need power to come to life but I've never heard them on a powerful amp. So they are still on my list of possible speakers but I will have my O d'A under my arms when I evaluate them.

[Pim]

I can confirm that neither a large room nor large speakers are required to easily discern the differences going from D200=>D400=Od'A.

I found the same as Pim with regard to width of the soundstage. In terms of volume, I am now listening at a lower level, but hearing more, as if the dynamic range had increased somehow.

I am sure that there is a lot more left to be discovered, but I am loving my new toy as well

I do miss chest thumping bass though 

[G51]

Hello, Pim. It is interesting to know you upgrade from a le200 to O'dA ( to be more precise, to own both) and compare the two. And it is even more interesting to employ O'dA to push a pair of stand mount loudspeaker instead of those big monsters six feet tall.

I did have a listen to the Dynaudio Confidence C4's once, very good they were too!  They'd go nicely with an O'dA I'm sure....

I first heard the original C1's and was blown away by what those little boxes can do. That's years ago now. So I thought maybe one day I would get C4's for my large living room. Since then I've heard C2's on Parasound JC1 amplification and again was blown away. But I've also heard the C4's a few times and every time with the wrong amplification. They need power to come to life but I've never heard them on a powerful amp. So they are still on my list of possible speakers but I will have my O d'A under my arms when I evaluate them.

It is perfect you have the time and space (and of course bucks for spending) for this hobby.

[Pim]

I did have a listen to the Dynaudio Confidence C4's once, very good they were too!  They'd go nicely with an O'dA I'm sure....

I first heard the original C1's and was blown away by what those little boxes can do. That's years ago now. So I thought maybe one day I would get C4's for my large living room. Since then I've heard C2's on Parasound JC1 amplification and again was blown away. But I've also heard the C4's a few times and every time with the wrong amplification. They need power to come to life but I've never heard them on a powerful amp. So they are still on my list of possible speakers but I will have my O d'A under my arms when I evaluate them.

It is perfect you have the time and space (and of course bucks for spending) for this hobby.

LOL, not really:
Time: I spent 4 weeks straight on different projects in the South Australian oil field and had 4 days off before going to Queensland for training. 

Space: The living room isn't finished yet and to do so I need time (See above) 

Money: It all went into the O d'A for now 

[JRIGGS]

As I am going to put my O'dA up for sale, can anyone confirm if the free, "lifetime upgrade" program is transferrable to a new buyer? My logic sais yes, of course, but Devialet are unpredictable in some respects... Anyone heard anything?

[JRIGGS]

As I am going to put my O'dA up for sale, can anyone confirm if the free, "lifetime upgrade" program is transferrable to a new buyer?  My logic sais yes, of course, but Devialet are unpredictable in some respects... Anyone heard anything?

I am reading on this site that it is transferable ot new owners but still would like Devialet to confirm this...