04-Sep-2018, 13:15
Hello @Zedeff , welcome to the forum. One key point I would make relates to your plan to run the KEF Blade 2 in the future. I have the original KEF Blade, which I ran for a long time with a Devialet Expert 240, which then became a 250 following firmware update. So your plan to buy a D-premier now and eventually use it to power the KEF Blade 2, should work fine and produce excellent sounding results.
So far so good. One problem I see is with the option to use a 140Pro to power the Blade 2 in the future. This might work fine, but I do have some doubts. I once tried the original Blade with a Devialet 170, and whereas the 240 worked fine with the Blades, the 170 did not. There was a complete collapse in bass accuracy and definition. The 240 sounded great, I could find nothing better for the Blades for the money, in stark contrast, the 170 sounded horrible. For all I know the 140Pro might work fine with the Blade 2, I have never tried it, but based on my bad experience with a 170 and the original Blade I do have some serious doubts.
This then begs a question, could you add a companion and run the 140Pro as a 210pro dual mono with the Blade 2? Again, this might work fine, but it might be a bit marginal, you would need to try it to be sure.
I can see from your OP that you are budget conscious, so what follows next may not be welcome advice, but if it was me, I would be tempted to see if I could find a second hand or ex demo 220Pro. This would allow for a future upgrade to the 440Pro, which would pretty much drive anything, and give you SAM with the Blade 2. In fact, much like the 210Pro, a 220Pro might just work fine with the Blade 2, but if it didn't, at least you have the option to go 440Pro.
Another option might be to seek out a second hand 250 Expert. It is a fine amplifier, it would drive the Blade 2 without issue and give you SAM. Of course, the Devialet D-Premier would offer almost identical performance for less cash, albeit you would not have SAM.
Personally, I think the separate power amp idea is a bad idea. The reason why a Devialet sounds so good is the ADH technology, and with the ultra short signal path between DAC and amp. So to use the Devialet as a pre-amp is a waste of good money in my view. Plus, I have tried the Blades with big Bryston and Chord power amps, and neither sounded as good as a single Devialet 240, so why bother?
So based on your options as listed, I would go with the D-Premier, but maybe there are other options to consider? (Plus the D-Premier looks cool!)
So far so good. One problem I see is with the option to use a 140Pro to power the Blade 2 in the future. This might work fine, but I do have some doubts. I once tried the original Blade with a Devialet 170, and whereas the 240 worked fine with the Blades, the 170 did not. There was a complete collapse in bass accuracy and definition. The 240 sounded great, I could find nothing better for the Blades for the money, in stark contrast, the 170 sounded horrible. For all I know the 140Pro might work fine with the Blade 2, I have never tried it, but based on my bad experience with a 170 and the original Blade I do have some serious doubts.
This then begs a question, could you add a companion and run the 140Pro as a 210pro dual mono with the Blade 2? Again, this might work fine, but it might be a bit marginal, you would need to try it to be sure.
I can see from your OP that you are budget conscious, so what follows next may not be welcome advice, but if it was me, I would be tempted to see if I could find a second hand or ex demo 220Pro. This would allow for a future upgrade to the 440Pro, which would pretty much drive anything, and give you SAM with the Blade 2. In fact, much like the 210Pro, a 220Pro might just work fine with the Blade 2, but if it didn't, at least you have the option to go 440Pro.
Another option might be to seek out a second hand 250 Expert. It is a fine amplifier, it would drive the Blade 2 without issue and give you SAM. Of course, the Devialet D-Premier would offer almost identical performance for less cash, albeit you would not have SAM.
Personally, I think the separate power amp idea is a bad idea. The reason why a Devialet sounds so good is the ADH technology, and with the ultra short signal path between DAC and amp. So to use the Devialet as a pre-amp is a waste of good money in my view. Plus, I have tried the Blades with big Bryston and Chord power amps, and neither sounded as good as a single Devialet 240, so why bother?
So based on your options as listed, I would go with the D-Premier, but maybe there are other options to consider? (Plus the D-Premier looks cool!)
1000 Pro - KEF Blade - iFi Zen Stream - Mutec REF10 - MC3+USB - Pro-Ject Signature 12
