Devialet 400 owners - In need of help setting up please

Devialet 400 owners - In need of help setting up please - Printable Version

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Devialet 400 owners - In need of help setting up please - killergurt - 30-May-2017

Hi all,

I am getting my Devialet 400 this week and wanted to be prepared with the right cables. Reading all the instructions I could find, I still don’t fully understand how to connect it to my setup, and was hoping someone could help me out.

I intend to integrate the Devialet into my home theater system, while also using it as a DAC for stereo music listening.
I know that this must be the most basic thing, but I am having trouble understanding how to connect the main two speakers to it:

I run a Marantz AV8802A as my HT Pre.
The Devialet needs to be connected to the Marantz.
The speakers connect to the Devialet.

The Devialet has 2 AES/EBU terminals which I thought were XLR (they look like it), which I planned on connecting to the Marantz L and R balanced outputs.
When I read the instructions on the Devialet website, it showed that the existing Pre connects to the Devialet using RCA cables that go to "Line 1".
What are the AES/EBU connectors then? What are they for?

I am then planning on telling the Devialet to Pass-through those to the Marantz so that I can control the volume using the Marantz when watching movies.

The second thing that I am unsure of, is what to do when I want to listen to 2-channel music, using only the Devialet. Do I just turn the Devialet on and have my sources connected to it directly?
What if all my sources are connected to the Marantz? Is there a way to keep them connected and still have the Devialet do all the processing?

Sorry about the basic questions, I just want to make sure that if I need to replace the balanced cables that I have, I will buy the right ones.

Thank you in advance for your time.

RE: Devialet 400 owners - In need of help setting up please - Spindrift - 30-May-2017

Congrats on the D400!

The XLR connections are AES/EBU inputs for PCM/DSD 64 input only - they won't accept analog inputs. Line level analog inputs (from your receiver for example) to the Dev are via single ended RCA format (keep in mind the analog signal is converted to PCM before being processed) - so as far as using the D400 for two channel music - two options as I see it:

1. Use a stereo digital out from your receiver and plug into a rca (or AES/EBU or optical . . ) digital in on the Dev or

2. take the analog line level output from the receiver and plug into the rca stereo input - keeping in mind that the Devialet will digitize this . .

my 2 cents would be for option 1 - keep things in the digital domain . .

Cheers

RE: Devialet 400 owners - In need of help setting up please - petrik - 30-May-2017

Welcome to the Devialetchat! Smile

You need to connect Marantz to Devialet by using RCA cables. That's how I have connected my Marantz (SR5007) and it works great.

I would also advice connecting all your 2-channel sources directly to Devialet so that you would use Marantz only for multichannel purposes (movies). This way you will have the best possible sound quality with 2-channel music.

RE: Devialet 400 owners - In need of help setting up please - killergurt - 30-May-2017

Thank you very much for the answers. I need to get new cables then, need to replace 2 XLR cables with new RCA cables. Are those RCA cable supposed to be Digital?
Does it matter if my fronts are going to be connected through an RCA but the rest of the speakers through XLR?

Also, should I bother changing the link cable (SPDIF) and power cords to something higher quality than the stock cables?

RE: Devialet 400 owners - In need of help setting up please - petrik - 31-May-2017

(30-May-2017, 21:02)killergurt Wrote: Thank you very much for the answers. I need to get new cables then, need to replace 2 XLR cables with new RCA cables. Are those RCA cable supposed to be Digital?
Does it matter if my fronts are going to be connected through an RCA but the rest of the speakers through XLR?

Also, should I bother changing the link cable (SPDIF) and power cords to something higher quality than the stock cables?

It might be a good idea to read this article:
https://help.devialet.com/hc/en-us/articles/203402431-How-to-integrate-a-Devialet-Expert-in-a-Home-Cinema-set-up

I have used analog RCA cables when connecting Marantz pre-outs to Devialet. Please also remember to check from your Devialet configuration that you have set a correct "Max level" in the related Devialet input. Initially I was having a value 1.0 Vrms there but everything sounded horrible then. I contacted Marantz support and asked what is the maximum level from the preouts and it was 1.41 Volts. So obviously the value that I had set up to Devialet was way too low. I increased the "Max level" to 1.5 Vrms on my Devialet configuration and sound quality has been totally fine after that.

You can get a better sound quality by using higher quality link and power cables, but if I were you, I would probably start with stock cables now. You can buy better cables also later. I always recommend people to try different cables at home (if possible) before doing any buying decisions. If you don't like the sound of the new cables or cannot hear any difference, then you can return the cables and save your money Smile

RE: Devialet 400 owners - In need of help setting up please - killergurt - 06-Jun-2017

(31-May-2017, 05:56)petrik Wrote:
(30-May-2017, 21:02)killergurt Wrote: Thank you very much for the answers. I need to get new cables then, need to replace 2 XLR cables with new RCA cables. Are those RCA cable supposed to be Digital?
Does it matter if my fronts are going to be connected through an RCA but the rest of the speakers through XLR?

Also, should I bother changing the link cable (SPDIF) and power cords to something higher quality than the stock cables?

It might be a good idea to read this article:
https://help.devialet.com/hc/en-us/articles/203402431-How-to-integrate-a-Devialet-Expert-in-a-Home-Cinema-set-up

I have used analog RCA cables when connecting Marantz pre-outs to Devialet. Please also remember to check from your Devialet configuration that you have set a correct "Max level" in the related Devialet input. Initially I was having a value 1.0 Vrms there but everything sounded horrible then. I contacted Marantz support and asked what is the maximum level from the preouts and it was 1.41 Volts. So obviously the value that I had set up to Devialet was way too low. I increased the "Max level" to 1.5 Vrms on my Devialet configuration and sound quality has been totally fine after that.

You can get a better sound quality by using higher quality link and power cables, but if I were you, I would probably start with stock cables now. You can buy better cables also later. I always recommend people to try different cables at home (if possible) before doing any buying decisions. If you don't like the sound of the new cables or cannot hear any difference, then you can return the cables and save your money

Hi and thank you for the information.

I am still unable to connect my Devialet 400 to my Marantz pre-amp and get a sound.
I am including a diagram of the back of my Marantz AV8802A, highlighting in yellow where my speakers are currently connected. I am connecting LINE 1 on my Devialet to the UNBALANCED pre-out on my Marantz (Front L and R).
My Center and Surround speakers are connected through a different amp to the BALANCED pre-out as shown.

I also configured the LINE 1 on the Devialet for pass through so that I can control the volume with my Marantz when watching movies.

This is what I do:

1. I turn my Marantz on
2. I turn mt Xbox One S connected to it (HDMI) playing a movie
3. I turn on the Devialet and make sure it is set to LINE 1

I get no sound coming from the main speakers.

When I connect a source directly to LINE1 on my Devialet I get beautiful sound.

I don't really know what to do anymore and really hope someone has an idea of what I am doing wrong.

Thank you again!

RE: Devialet 400 owners - In need of help setting up please - killergurt - 07-Jun-2017

UPDATE: I managed to make it work. I now run my Devialet with my Marantz as part of my home theater setup.
I still have one issue though:

When I configure LINE 1 on the Dev to "pass-through" (so that I can control the volume with my Marantz, the front speakers are MUCH lower in volume than the center and surrounds, I can barely hear them.
When I cancel "pass-through", I can increase the volume on the Dev and they sound good.

Any idea what I am doing wrong?

Thanks!

RE: Devialet 400 owners - In need of help setting up please - petrik - 07-Jun-2017

(07-Jun-2017, 05:47)killergurt Wrote: UPDATE: I managed to make it work. I now run my Devialet with my Marantz as part of my home theater setup.
I still have one issue though:

When I configure LINE 1 on the Dev to "pass-through" (so that I can control the volume with my Marantz, the front speakers are MUCH lower in volume than the center and surrounds, I can barely hear them.
When I cancel "pass-through", I can increase the volume on the Dev and they sound good.

Any idea what I am doing wrong?

Thanks!

You could check following things:
1) Is the "max level" set up correctly on your LINE 1 input? I have set mine to 1.5 Vrms but I don't know is that a good value for your Marantz.
2) You can increase pass-through volume on Devialet. You can do it in the configurator. I think I have set it to -15.
3) Increase volume for main channels in Marantz.
4) Decrease volume for all other channels in Marantz.

RE: Devialet 400 owners - In need of help setting up please - sam1000 - 07-Jun-2017

Saw this thread late. I have a similar config with 8802A. Petrik's recommendation is a good one. After doing #1 and #2, you can also run Audyssey calibration again on 8802A and it will balance the channel output.
Depending on your front speakers you can also run a subwoofer for other sources which are directly connected to Devialet. You will need a Y cable for that.

RE: Devialet 400 owners - In need of help setting up please - killergurt - 08-Jun-2017

Thank you for the helpful tips.
I managed to make it work but it is still not perfect. The front speakers now work (in pass-through mode) but still sound slightly "anemic". Like they are not outputting their full capabilities.
The pass-through volume that I set in the Configurator is being overridden by the startup system volume for some reason, not sure how to make it work (for example: I set the pass-through volume to -10 and the system startup volume to -20 and it will always show -20, even though I am in pass-through mode).

When I play directly through the Dev (Marantz is turned off, the sound is incredible). Not sure what else I can do. The only thing I have not done yet is run Audyssey with the Dev connected.

Thank you!