Mono & Stereo

[f1eng]

Hi guys,

You might want to read this article in the context it was written in. It's the 'I have a website that posts lots of pictures of extremely overpriced audio equipment that's specifically designed for 'new money Asians who like to show off how rich they are' and I needed to do something against Devialet because my advertisers are rapidly loosing clients to them', context.

I have a quick look at his site quite often and he has NEVER written an article on ANYTHING affordable. He lives in an 'if it's not high priced, it's not high end' world and he's angry because he now has to share his world with people who don't have 7 figure incomes. It's like the Volkswagon Phaeton; How dare an ordinary brand build a high quality car? The snobs won't touch it because of the badge. But when they put a Bentley badge on it then it's ok. Even though it's built on the same platform.

I spent a day going from high end dealer to high end dealer in Bangkok a few years ago. The stuff they have on display is anywhere between expensive and unaffordable. The sound? Not one system could play the song I had chosen without the harsh 's' in it. Not because the systems are no good. It's because they don't know how to set the systems up properly. That's because it isn't about quality sound but all about showing off. I now have my modest system and the harsh 's'? Gone. And it's NOT MUFFLED. It just sound damn good.

Nail on the head.
My Devialet D-Premiers matched a Dac/pre/mono system which cost around 10 times as much.
People making this sort of stuff want their press to damn the Devialet with faint praise.
Plenty of enthusiasts oblige too, since they do not really suit the equipment obsessed and box swappers.