Devialet Phantom Gold

[nopiano]

I don't think Dev are doing themselves any favours with these ridiculous specs, and now with revising their proper amps every few months.

Next year's Phantoms will be 8Hz and 112dB.

And I'm beginning to think the amps are all the same and the specs are just firmware tweaks. Definitely an 'almost' customer about 24 months ago, now I'm no longer taking them seriously.

 

[lindsayt]

Avole, what do you think of the bass quality from the Devialet Phantom Golds you've heard?

Do you think they make bass drums sound like bass drums and bass guitars like bass guitars?

Or do you think they make an amorphous bass noise?

 

[richardw42]

Blue whales will love them.

 

[Andrew17321]

I am not an audiophile, so I should probably not be on this forum. However, I do like classical music and go to live concerts about twice per month, generally chamber music concerts where I am close to the players. I am not into 'loud' (as in heavy metal) or into emphasised bass, but I do need to hear realistic detailed and distinct clear sounds the instruments, transients such the initial sound of a bow touching a string, etc.

For the last year I have been listening to my music mainly on a couple of white Phantoms. For me, and my kind of music, the Phantoms are by far the best system I have ever had. Just tonight, because the rain was making a bit of noise outside the room where I have my Phantoms, I listened to music on my Arcam – Spendor system (which cost more several years ago) and found it relatively dull, not as exciting or involving as music from the Phantoms.

When the Phantoms appeared at first they were bass heavy, but firmware updates sorted that out about a year ago. When I initially heard Phantoms in a HiFi shop they were badly set up in a smallish room (by a Devialet rep!) so they did lack clarity and the bass was muddied. When put on stands, away from walls in a better room they sounded fantastic.

Audiophiles tend to be rather conservative, sometimes prejudiced against new paradigms. My son, who does work for a renowned (and expensive) HiFi manufacturer, tells me that the firm makes their amplifier boxes several times bigger and heavier than they need to be, because that is what their ultra conservative clients expect and want, and will pay for. So it does not surprise me that few audiophiles will bother to take the time to set up and listen to, what they see as, small, silly shaped speakers. Devialet's hype doesn't help!