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+--- Thread: Quentin Sannie: Ten Years (/Thread-Quentin-Sannie-Ten-Years)
Quentin Sannie: Ten Years - The Sofa Has Ears - 30-Jan-2018
Fellow Devialites,
what do you think of Quentin's self congratulatory "Ten Years" email.
I saw it just as I was about to get up and unplug my 220 and then plug it back in again in order to get my 220 to work, having received the "Transport In Use" message.
The forward looking parts of Quent's message concentrates on car audio and OEM products like the recent collaberation with Sky. There is no mention of fixing the problems with existing products.
I like the sound of my 220 - when it is working, but am becoming increasingly frustrated by the lack of functionality and the bugs. Eighteen months for this?
Get real Quent. Auto manufacturers will not put up with car parts that do not arrive on time and fail to work as they are supposed to. If Devialet made engine components, the receivers would already have taken over. The dream of everyone owning a Devialet is receding into the distance.
For those who have not yet received the email:
"Dear Friends,
It’s been ten years and a few days since Pierre-Emmanuel, Emmanuel and I set about laying the foundations for Devialet. Beyond the necessary formalities, it marked a first step towards realizing our wildest dreams and projects. We had the crazy idea of revolutionizing audio technologies. We wanted you to feel the extreme exhilaration of concert-level emotion, live in your living room. And have you tear up at the sound of a Lost Recording from Sarah Vaughan. Our aim was to bring people together through music and give hope those who have difficulty hearing. By strengthening our emotional potential, we aspired to build a better world.
Back then, we didn’t have any offices. All we had was a blank page to fill with ideas.
Ten years down the line, our dreams haven’t changed one bit, but our efforts are starting to come to fruition.
2017 marks an important stage in Devialet’s growth, and though I am not usually one for looking back, I’d like you to join me in reflecting on the year gone by.
Phantom fever continues to sweep the planet. The best sound in the world has taken Manhattan, landing at Grand Central and Barneys New York, not to mention the Royal Exchange and Canary Wharf in London, Frankfurt, Munich, Taipei, Hong Kong’s ifc mall, Marina Bay Sands in Singapore… With each new store that opens we come closer to introducing you to Phantom, an experience you can’t unhear or unfeel.
But I’d be lying if I didn’t say the project I’m proudest of is our partnership with the Paris Opera and the opening of the Devialet Area in the heart of the Palais Garnier. Having our name associated with the Opéra national de Paris, the ultimate symbol of excellence, and the Palais Garnier, a visionary masterpiece designed by a true pioneer, had been a dream of ours for almost ten years. Through this project, we hope to help promote musical creativity in every way we can, so that it can be enjoyed all around the world.
It was also a year for change. Core Infinity came to Expert Pro, ushering in a whole new era with our revolutionary intelligent streamer board featuring Devialet OS. “About time!” I hear you cry, and quite rightly so… Believe us when we say we would have liked to move faster to meet the deadlines originally announced. We hope that this new, ultra-open and evolutive age in Expert Pro will make up for the delay.
2017 will also be remembered as the year we initiated several major partnerships with other brands. Devialet and Sky, one of the world’s leading television and entertainment companies, have always shared the conviction that great content deserves great sound. Together, we decided to redefine home entertainment, rethinking the way you experience television through audio. The outcome was the SoundBox, the first ever fully integrated system, delivering the best of video and audio.
And when Renault came to us with a vision for the future of automotive, we were immensely proud and excited to rise to yet another challenge: bringing the emotion of sound to tomorrow’s car by imagining beautifully immersive audio experiences you can enjoy on the road. Our breakthrough audio architecture was designed and built for SYMBIOZ, an electric, connected and autonomous demo car debuted by Groupe Renault. This project enabled us to achieve our dream of furthering audio innovation by taking our expertise and technologies into bold new territories.
We also chose to collaborate with Louis Vuitton on the world’s first fully-equipped DJ Trunk, an object that’s at once modern and traditional, luxurious and extravagant.
As you may have gathered by now, these partnerships grew from an insatiable desire to bring you closer to the best sound in the world and let you feel moments of pure acoustic pleasure.
This exact same rationale led us to collaborate with multidisciplinary artist Xavier Veilhan. His love for exploring creativity in all its forms made our partnership for the Venice Biennale a natural choice. I’ll never forget the very first “Live On Phantom”, a series of concerts streamed live to your Phantom from the Rencontres Musicales d’Évian and National Sawdust in New York, soon to be followed by the Paris Opera. I’m also reminded of “Phantom on the Road”, our mobile immersive room, which gave us unprecedented opportunities to meet you at a range of events from Paris to London and New York to the French Alps. We couldn’t be prouder of how far we’ve come over the last twelve months.
And we’re starting 2018 as we mean to go on: with even more bold new projects designed to surprise and delight you like never before.
We wish you a wonderful and intensely fulfilling new year. And if we can be a part of it any way, then we’ll have kept the promise we made to ourselves ten years ago.
Yours in friendship,
Quentin Sannié
Devialet CEO"
The Sofa Has Ears.
RE: Quentin Sannie: Ten Years - Greg - 30-Jan-2018
I’ve not received that email. Please can you copy and paste it into your thread. Thanks.
<EDIT>
Thanks, @The Sofa Has Ears for adding the email content. Much obliged.
RE: Quentin Sannie: Ten Years - JimSmith - 30-Jan-2018
When I bought my first Devialet D200 now a Core Infinity D220 Pro I knew that this was unlike anything I had before. It looked and felt a bit like a computer with the online web interface configurator, and regular firmware upgrades. The pleasure of unboxing and listening to the D200 was marvellous, the sound was breathtaking. I was and still am in awe of this beautifully crafted exquisite machine, that still has the spellbinding sound.
However I am also a little disillusioned with how difficult the process of developing a stable software has been for Devialet. This might mean two things either a) software is very hard or b) Devialet although being brilliant with electronic design lacks software prowess.
Whenever I get an email form Devialet on the top it starts off with a banner saying "Devialet Loves You", I guess its time to give Devialet a little love back. My way of doing that is by being patient, and hoping that sooner rather than later all bugs are corrected.
As for the email I have not read it. But as a Devialet owner I can only wish the company more success in the future.
Finally I can fully understand the frustration expressed in the original post, however the solution to the problem "Transport in Use" might not be necessarily a purely Devialet issue.
RE: Quentin Sannie: Ten Years - Zappydev - 30-Jan-2018
If they could write software as well as they write hyperbolic, patronising, marketing BS we wouldn’t have anything to worry about.
What incredible arrogance. He should maybe spend a bit less time at the opera, and a bit more reading the pages and pages and pages of complaints and frustrations on DC.
RE: Quentin Sannie: Ten Years - Confused - 30-Jan-2018
Without writing too much, it is fair to say that I am reasonably aligned with the view of @Zappydev above. That said, I see it purely as a marketing email, so I will not be getting upset about it or in any way associating it with Devialet's software issues, communication, and other gripes.
But here is the curious thing.... Even if I accept it as purely a marketing email, it puts me off the brand. I want to read about exciting new technologies and how they are going to push sound quality to ever new heights. I did not see much of that in the email.
The highlight of the email for me has to be the Louis Vuitton DJ Trunk:
https://eu.louisvuitton.com/eng-e1/articles/the-dj-trunk
Now this is something I do have experience of! That is, loading a Ford Transit van full of PA and DJ'ing equipment. Do I think your average traveling DJ would be interested in a "Louis Vuitton DJ Trunk" powering Phantoms? Being as polite as I can muster, the answer is a simple no. If I am honest, when I clicked the link to the Louis Vuitton DJ Trunk, I laughed out loud. OK, maybe someone somewhere might like it, but please Devialet, get serious!
RE: Quentin Sannie: Ten Years - K4680 - 30-Jan-2018
(30-Jan-2018, 19:38)Confused Wrote: Without writing too much, it is fair to say that I am reasonably aligned with the view of @Zappydev above. That said, I see it purely as a marketing email, so I will not be getting upset about it or in any way associating it with Devialet's software issues, communication, and other gripes.
But here is the curious thing.... Even if I accept it as purely a marketing email, it puts me off the brand. I want to read about exciting new technologies and how they are going to push sound quality to ever new heights. I did not see much of that in the email.
The highlight of the email for me has to be the Louis Vuitton DJ Trunk:
https://eu.louisvuitton.com/eng-e1/articles/the-dj-trunk
Now this is something I do have experience of! That is, loading a Ford Transit van full of PA and DJ'ing equipment. Do I think your average traveling DJ would be interested in a "Louis Vuitton DJ Trunk" powering Phantoms? Being as polite as I can muster, the answer is a simple no. If I am honest, when I clicked the link to the Louis Vuitton DJ Trunk, I laughed out loud. OK, maybe someone somewhere might like it, but please Devialet, get serious!
I think I fall off the chair
I still miss the matching LP covers!
RE: Quentin Sannie: Ten Years - petrik - 30-Jan-2018
My favorite part of the email was this:
Quote:And we’re starting 2018 as we mean to go on: with even more bold new projects designed to surprise and delight you like never before.
So probably some good things on the roadmap. Just a bit worried about the word *bold* there... if you know what I mean. I would be delighted (and surprised?) simply just by getting a perfectly working FW and AIR...
RE: Quentin Sannie: Ten Years - GuillaumeB - 30-Jan-2018
(30-Jan-2018, 19:38)Confused Wrote: Without writing too much, it is fair to say that I am reasonably aligned with the view of @Zappydev above. That said, I see it purely as a marketing email, so I will not be getting upset about it or in any way associating it with Devialet's software issues, communication, and other gripes.
But here is the curious thing.... Even if I accept it as purely a marketing email, it puts me off the brand. I want to read about exciting new technologies and how they are going to push sound quality to ever new heights. I did not see much of that in the email.
The highlight of the email for me has to be the Louis Vuitton DJ Trunk:
https://eu.louisvuitton.com/eng-e1/articles/the-dj-trunk
Now this is something I do have experience of! That is, loading a Ford Transit van full of PA and DJ'ing equipment. Do I think your average traveling DJ would be interested in a "Louis Vuitton DJ Trunk" powering Phantoms? Being as polite as I can muster, the answer is a simple no. If I am honest, when I clicked the link to the Louis Vuitton DJ Trunk, I laughed out loud. OK, maybe someone somewhere might like it, but please Devialet, get serious!
Isn’t there too much latency with the Phantoms to DJ? I mean you need the changes to be instant.
I looked into this a while ago when I thought about getting my Traktor S4 decks out again.
Guillaume
RE: Quentin Sannie: Ten Years - Stino - 30-Jan-2018
True... The DJ travel set is in a sense ridiculous.
We can only assume this is a marketing stunt (cf. branding) that may attract some wealthy persons to - why not - spend some 'small cash' on a hi-fi system.
I would say that he more well-known Devialet becomes and the more cashflow it generates, the more features we will receive.
I'll have a small listening session planned later this evening. The D remains great and in the end that's all that matters for me.
RE: Quentin Sannie: Ten Years - aerki - 30-Jan-2018
On the anniversary of a decade, is anyone happy to talk about his boiler problems or the kid's diarrhea?
Reading your complaints makes you feel like you're in France!
I bought one of the first Devialet amps in the past, so I experienced all the upgrades and progress made. At the time it was Quentin Sannié that I was online to talk about the amp, then they grew up and raised millions of euros of capital from investors whose love of music fades away before the love of money and profitability.
It's a compromise, as usual.
Otherwise you end up as one of the British flagships of the Hifi: Naim, acquired by a band of frogs.
Let's not be fooled, it's the high volume deals that finance the HIFI High-end and certainly not the reciprocal, just as it's not the formula 1 that keeps Daimler Benz alive...
And those who forget how the world turns will unfortunately end up as a trophy at Tata.
Of course for us purists, Devialet's marketing is arrogant and insolent, but let's also look at what it allows us to achieve over time.
For my part, having progressed from a first D Premier to the current 1000 Pro core infinity, I have the chance to measure the path accomplished and this gives me confidence for the next few years, whatever the marketing discourse.
Anyway, Thank You Emmanuel, Pierre Emmanuel, Quentin and Devialet team