Devialet Phantom Gold // Reactor 900

[rush_sports_]

After countless emails and attempts to resolve ongoing problems with lip sync and other network issues with my Devialet Gold and Phantom Reactor speakers I have given up. Devialet literally said they will not assist and if I don't like it I should contact their legal department. So... after loving their product for the last 3 years I am now completely alienated as a customer. Take a look at the email excerpt below which was my final request for resolution after 18 months of back and forth communications resulted in nothing.

Hi Océane

I've kept communications to a minimum the last few weeks as I know the whole of Europe is in lockdown with Covid. I hope you are well and safe?

I am still experiencing ongoing problems with my Devialet products. My summary is below:

Phantom Gold:

1. I have now connected this speaker directly to my Samsung TV by means of a Chord Company Lite Optical cable.
   
   
   2. The connection is now at least reliable and there is no lip sync problem as there was previously.
      
   3. There is no ability to control the volume of the speaker through the TV remote, the only way to control the volume is using my phone with the Devialet app. Surely this is not correct?
      
   4. When I turn off the Samsung TV there is a loud electrical sound from the Phantom Gold speaker a few seconds later. Surely this is not good?
      

Phantom Reactor (900 pair):

1. As I have the Phantom Gold now connected directly to my Samsung TV I have moved these Reactors to my home office to use as speakers for my computer.
   
   
2. I have been experiencing a number of problems in their connectivity:
   
   
   2. When connected to a device with a Chord Company Lite Optical / Mini Toslink cable from one speaker to a sound source I have intermittent problems with one of the speakers stopping to play any sound. When I view the app the speaker is "missing".
      
   3. When connected to my computer or iPhone to play via Bluetooth or Airplay I experience the same problem as above where both speakers play initially, but eventually either one or both speakers stop playing completely. There are a few scenario's here:
      
      
      2. Scenario 1: both speakers stop playing but are still visible through Airplay and on the Devialet app.
         
         4. While playing iTunes Airplay from either my Macbook or iPhone both speakers will play for a short amount of time, and then without warning they will stop playing. When I go into iTunes on the device the speakers are still connected and the track / song is still playing but there is no sound coming from the speakers. When I open the Devialet app both speakers are showing as connected and when I open them and click on their respective Left / Right speaker icon they each make the "awake" sound showing that they are online and supposedly connected.
            
      5. Scenario 2: one speaker stops playing but both speakers are still visible through Airplay and on the Devialet app.
         
         4. This is the most strange situation and is happening virtually every time I try to play music through these speakers. In fact for the last three days I have not been able to get sound to play from both speakers at the same time. While playing iTubes Airplay from either my Macbook or iPhone only one speaker plays sound / music. When I go onto iTunes on the device BOTH of the speakers are still connected but the track / song only plays from the left speaker. When I open the Devialet app both speakers are showing as connected, and even more strange is that if I press the volume controls on the speaker that is not playing any sound it controls the speaker that is playing sound. So in fact the speakers are both connected and communicating, but there is only sound playing from one.
            
            5. I have tried powering off the speakers and powering them back on - no improvement.
               
            6. I have tried powering off only one speaker and powering it back on while continuing to play music - no improvement.
               
            7. I have ensured I have the latest firmware update for all products - all up to date and no improvement.
               
            8. I have deleted and re-added the speakers on my app - no improvement.
               

So... without trying to be super negative again I now have one Devialet Gold which only works when plugged directly into my TV, it does not function reliably on bluetooth or airplay. I have two Phantom Reactors which do not work reliably when one is plugged into the source directly, they also do not work reliably on Bluetooth or Airplay. None of the speakers have any volume controls that work when plugged into a source using the Optical cable. The Phantom Reactors still do not connect with the Phantom Gold. Additionally I have wasted $$ on a device which is now redundant (Dialog), I have spent $$ on high end optical cables, I have spent $$ on high end networking equipment (new routers, high speed cables etc), I have spent $$ on professional network installers / technicians, all of which have resulted in no solution to the problems I have and continue to have with the Devialet products.

Please can we try and come up with a solution for these problems as it has now been many emails and calls and a year of problems without any real solution.I cannot connect my Phantom Reactors to my TV with an Optical cable as there is only one optical input which means the other Phantom Reactor is unreliable and often does not play sound. Additionally there is no volume control from the TV remote.


I cannot Airplay my Phantom Reactors to my Samsung TV, iPhone or Macbook as the Airplay connection is not reliable.


I cannot Bluetooth my Phantom Reactors to my Samsung TV, iPhone or Macbook as the Bluetooth connection is not reliable.


I cannot connect my Phantom Reactors to my Phantom Gold as the firmware is not yet available.


I cannot Airplay my Phantom Gold to my Samsung TV, iPhone or Macbook as the Airplay connection is not reliable.
I cannot Bluetooth my Phantom Gold to my Samsung TV, iPhone or Macbook as the Bluetooth connection is not reliable.



It is clear that there are major connection problems with ALL of these products and the only way to reliably play them from any source is using an Optical cable. This however results in a user only being able to play a single speaker as there are not sufficient optical outputs from the device to connect all speakers.

What is your solution? Let's please get this resolved once and for all?

The reply to the above from Devialet was to "trouble shoot". I have no idea what trouble shooting they imagine can be done as I have detailed everything and have worked through every possible problem.

The above has been ongoing since I purchased the speakers, and the response from Devialet was pretty much "take it or leave it".

Is this normal?