Is there anything wrong with a simple approach to Digital/Computer Audio?
- Thread starter Mdp632
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He said the lowest cost 6ish k Devialet 120 is the best amp for driving Magicos, and the 400 produced the best sound he has heard. Something to that effect, am paraphrasing, for details people can read his reviews.
My Friend brought over the 120. It had surprisingly good bass (I was expecting it to be horribly overdamped) but we did boost it 4.5 db. Where it really feel down compared to the Crossfire III was when the music got complex it got congested in the mids where the Ayon remained wide open and well separated no matter what was coming through. It did remain smooth though and tonality was not this pervasive dryness that I have experienced with nearly all other Class D designs...so there is some progress. The other big fail was image dimensionality and soundstage layering...it was just...flatter and everything had less 3d relief that reduces reality.
A lot! You have to go through the old articles. As far as I remember he showed disenchantment with his past life and wanted a change ...
Do not believe in reviews - get at less the latest well burned-in 220 Pro, a decent power cable and an excellent source - no USB or air, please ... After 48 hours warm-up you will get what was seems to be missing, and an idea of the potential of Devialet's. I can assure you that soundstage and 3D can be great, I am still temporary using one upstairs with the Magico Mini II - it is not my preferred type of sound, but it is excellent - a few people really loved it.
" it is not my preferred type of sound, but it is excellent" what? Not my preferred sound either because my preferred sound sounds like live and this was nothing like that.
As i said, I have heard the latest in monoblock mode and was not enchanted.
The 120 is not the latest model and can not be used as monoblock.
Our view of "life sound" is usually just our preference ... There are no absolutes in this hobby.
You are confusing two people together. A friend brought one over and another friend has the latest monoblocks.
I disagree that there are not absolutes...live music is an absolute and whether or not a believable recreation of that is possible or not is moot, IMO. It exists as the only reference. I do not think your pure subjectivism is warranted when there is a reference. Some are good at translating what they hear live and realizing how close or how far a system is from that...and some are not good at it.
Live music is an absolute. It is possible we might differ in our view of a live sound, or we might not, and we might even agree if one goes to live and another does not.
Thing is – When I sat down with Mike, we agreed with the differences we were listening to between GFS and Anna. With DDK, we agreed with the differences we were hearing in TTs, though at the end, his preference of a TT might differ from mine despite agreeing with the attributes. Ron, Steve, DDK, and I, agree on differences of SME+Zyx vs Graham +Anna. Bill and I, when we sit together, many things are the same. As with Christoph, etc…
Now…one of the reasons is sharing the same experiences…when people do not have the same experience, they cannot communicate easily…I can tell you what I think of the Arc Ref 10 sound, but we can’t agree on a dCS vs Lampi…that does not mean our view of sound is different, should we both go together to listen to the Devialet.
To Brad’s previous post, I have compared the older Ds a lot with Krell Evo, Levinson 33, and the low cost Krell s300i, all on Logans, and Arc Ref on Wilson Benesch. I have also heard them with Avalon Eidolon. I have always found them congested, flat, lacking 3d, and body. Also lack of decay. On Frank’s Anima, I enjoy them but that’s coz of the Anima.
The point is that people should be aware that there was a great evolution in Devialet's and IMHO the 120 - an old model - is not representative of the current Devialet sound. IMHO if some one just reports that a current Devialet had a "rather shiny processed sound" there was something really wrong with the system. We must remember that a Devialet is known for its poor sound quality and excessively loud volume at shows.
Live music is a reference, our perception of it is not an absolute.
Yes, some are very good telling us what are their main objectives in sound reproduction and how and why a system matches their objectives. Others just prefer the negative - they go on telling us why they think other systems are not able to perform adequately based on their experience.
Most people will agree on the detail and its description. The different preferences just prove people valuate differently the similarity to the real , or simply pick what they enjoy more.
I never listened to a Lampi, we surely can't agree ...
Old Devialet's on Logan's or Eidolon's? Pure masochism ...
At work writing software to test software my mantra is; Simplicity succeeds, complexity fails. Learned that the hard way.
Anyway, if you want good sound and simplicity then get a Lumin S1 and use a direct attached USB drive. I have had mine for two years and have zero interest in changing it.
Anyway, if you want good sound and simplicity then get a Lumin S1 and use a direct attached USB drive. I have had mine for two years and have zero interest in changing it.
One more time, the 120 was brought over by a friend and the monoblocks (latest Devialet tech) were at another friend. I did not hear any world beating improvements...period.
I don't know anything about Devialet's show reputation except to say that the Phantom demos I have heard were horrible...I would take a Bose Acoustimass system before a Phantom.
Several of my friends own Devialet, and we had the opportunity to compare different versions and upgrades (several of them are just firmware changes, easily reversed inserting SHCD cards) equipment side be side. Its is one of the very few times we could do controlled comparisons, we could even change without powering down - just swapping the speaker wires. There is a real large difference between different versions.
Recently an acquaintance got Devialet and Sonus Faber speakers for a large penthouse room, built in the loft of an old building. He does not listen to classical, mainly to vocal, jazz, ECM style music and some classic rock. Initial experiences were disappointing. But after we found the proper position to place the speakers (it took a lot of time) it was a fabulous sound - very musical, with a good feel of power, detail enough and 3D space, filling the whole space.
When chatting at an audio event, Paul Miller once told me to try the Devialet using the DCS upsampler and clock via AES/EBU. It is not a fair use - the DCS components cost 6 times more than the Devialet. But, yes, it sounded good!
I still prefer the "classical" approach, but I easily understand why many people have loved and chosen the "other way".
IME even that's overkill when it comes to streaming! I have yet to hear any server or computer based digital to best an iPad streaming over Aiports in a meaningful way!
david
david
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