Goodbye to Devialet - after upgrade program

[KIBM]

I would have to agree with Guillaume.  I recall talking to Mathieu Pernot shortly after the launch of the D400.  I asked which was best, the D250 (Which Mathieu knew I owned) or the D400.  I kind of expected Mathieu to be diplomatic about my lovely (and very expensive) D250, but no, his answer was direct, the D400 is better because the dual mono allows much lower distortion.

As for power, a while back I would have agreed with the view that beyond a sensible limit, power is not important.  However, during the 1000 Pro launch Mathieu Pernot explained for about half an hour why in fact it was the most important thing (Ian G posted about this in the 1000 Pro launch thread.)  It is an interesting topic, and far more complex than you might first think, but for sure there is a lot more to this subject than looking at the back of your speakers and seeing the little maximum power label and comparing this with the amplifier power.

I've always been in the Jeremy Clarkson camp - Power! 
But to be serious, you can have all the grunt in the world but if it can't be delivered effectively and essentially instantaneously at low distortion then it is moot. There are some great examples (and prices) of relatively low power amps with stunning sound quality e.g. DartZeel's first amp for example was superb.
I guess I've always had low efficiency speakers such as Wilsons - the low impedances (e.g. 2 ohm in mid-bass) really needed a powerful amp that can double its power when the going gets tough.