Hi Matt, just looking back at you opening comment on the thread, I think you have pretty much suceeded! theres some great detail in there for any body thinking of a Dev.
Thanks, Boggit. I think we've made a couple of converts along the way too.
It's a rainy day in the Cotswolds today. We were going to head in to Cheltenham, but Mrs 49 has decided we can make do in Stroud. So probably won't be bumping into you.
It's a rainy day in the Cotswolds today. We were going to head in to Cheltenham, but Mrs 49 has decided we can make do in Stroud. So probably won't be bumping into you.
No probs, been upto Ullenwood watching the girls riding in the wind and rain, now onto to Hotel Du Vin for a Chateaubriand lunch!. S2 now back built, acoustic foam in tomorrow, the the Santos Rosewood veneer next week, also got M1 on order and the CA CXN so i rekon in 2 weeks all the pieces will be together for your visit, and hopfully some sun. As for the Dev i think it will be high on my list should i upgrade, its beautiful and an extremly clever product.
Good to see the journey continues Matt. Best of luck with finding the right speakers to replace the SFs. I remember your first auditioning the Vivids (it felt like deja vu reading you heading off with your Dev to audition them again) and it seems time hasn't worn what they have to offer. Why did you decide to move on from the SFs by the way, and what are you hoping to improve on specifically as you look for their replacement? You say standmounts or small floorstanders, but if you do go down the 'move the Magtech/MLs to a suitably acoustically treated study', might you then be looking at bigger speakers in the living room? Are there any other speakers from those you auditioned back in 2013 you are hoping to hear again? Looing at the list of SAM-ready speakers, it has certainly grown - lots of options. By the way, do you still have your SF Venere 1.5 (that I think you had plugged into a Peachtree amp at one stage)? Have you tried them with the Dev? I was just wondering how you found SAM works with a speaker like that - sone from a totally different price bracket. I know DocG has found a real synergy with his 120 and the similarly priced KEF LS50.
James, thanks for the suggestions!
When I bought the SFs, I knew that they were temporary. Part of the reason for buying them was that they were a nice ex-demo pair that I'd be able to sell on without much loss.
I really do like the SFs: they sound beautiful. My problem with them is that they're not particularly accurate. Having lived with ESLs for a while, I've come to value clarity and accuracy as well as the euphony that the SFs provide.
Good point re. size. One reason for hearing the PMC Fact 8s again was that they're the right sort of size for our living room. Having said that, I think SAM enables a smallish speaker to fill a bigger room than it might do otherwise. The Vivids sounded very good in the large demo room. Also they're a 22 litre enclosure, so not exactly small as standmounts go.
Good question. I'm afraid I haven't tried the SF Veneres with the Devialet. They're doing TV duty in a different room from the hi-fi, and, as you rightly recall, they're driven by the Peachtree.
Matt
James7 said:
When I bought the SFs, I knew that they were temporary. Part of the reason for buying them was that they were a nice ex-demo pair that I'd be able to sell on without much loss.
I really do like the SFs: they sound beautiful. My problem with them is that they're not particularly accurate. Having lived with ESLs for a while, I've come to value clarity and accuracy as well as the euphony that the SFs provide.
James7 said:
Good point re. size. One reason for hearing the PMC Fact 8s again was that they're the right sort of size for our living room. Having said that, I think SAM enables a smallish speaker to fill a bigger room than it might do otherwise. The Vivids sounded very good in the large demo room. Also they're a 22 litre enclosure, so not exactly small as standmounts go.
James7 said:
Good question. I'm afraid I haven't tried the SF Veneres with the Devialet. They're doing TV duty in a different room from the hi-fi, and, as you rightly recall, they're driven by the Peachtree.
Matt
DocG
Well-known member
James7 said:
*secret* You know what, James? I actually started rereading some of the older threads, like our Devialet Thread, or this one. I've somewhat had it with some (many? most?) of the current threads, and then a good repeat is better than a mediocre new show. Thinking about it: that's rather sad actually, no?
So, where all counting on you now, Matt!
DocG said:
Yes, sad but true. Cable threads are mighty dull.
As far as the systems at home in London are concerned, most of the work is done. There are two things I still have to crack. One is my digital sources. I need to find out whether it's worth going beyond my modded Sonos Connects. I suspect not, but I do plan to mess about with a few more elaborate options. Also I have a Devialet Dialog in the cupboard. As things stand, it's a (small) white elephant: it can't be used to feed the Devialet 'expert' amps. Come Munich in May I expect that to change. We'll see.
The other project, as mentioned above, is acoustic treatment and DSP. I'm happy with my little DSPeaker Anti-Mode in the Montis/Magtech system; I don't have any DSP capability yet in the Dev system. There's been a rumour that Devialet will introduce DSP at Munich. My crystal ball says not. So I may just sit it out for a year or two. Or maybe not.
My other plan is to upgrade the speakers at our holiday cottage. I have a pair of second-hand PMC GB1is which are far too small for the space. The catch is that the speakers have to be less than 1m tall. I've been thinking about going to the other extreme and replacing the PMCs with some second-hand Klipsch Heresys or Cornwalls. Bonkers or genius?
*crazy*
matt49 said:
ARTist 6s are 85cm tall. *biggrin*
If going full-crazy you might as well get a pair of Klipschorns.
EvPa said:
An interesting thought, EvPa.
I have a pair of ARTist 3s in my office. Nice speakers. But they're waaaay too sensible! *wacko*
Unfortunately the Klipschorns are 1.3m tall. In the Klipsch Heritage range I'm limited to the Heresys and Cornwalls. I'm looking out for a s/h pair of either, but they seem to come up very infrequently.
Infiniteloop
Well-known member
matt49 said:
Back from Philly and had a few days to try the SFs in different rooms with different Amps. In my lounge with the Dev, vocals and classical music sound beautiful, with voices being particularly realistic. Overall though, I prefer the Focals with the Dev in the lounge. - They sound more 'open' and involving. In fact, if you're looking for a very neutral sound, it might be worth your while hearing the Dev with Focal 1008Be's - or even the Diablo Utopias. (I have heard this combination and it was very special, I'm still considering them for a future upgrade). There is something very special about that Beryllium tweeter.
However, the real joy came with partnering the SFs with my S8 Valve Amp in the upstairs listening room. Here they are astonishing. Big, deep, bass (I can't believe the bass these small boxes can achieve!). Beautiful midrange and incredibly detailed treble. I agree that the SFs aren't exactly honest, and I wasn't expecting them to be, having had SFs before, but (Jazz, and especially Jazz vocals) through this partnership leaves me emotional..... - Even the usually musically non-plussed Mrs. Loop commented how good the sound is!
Infiniteloop said:
That's excellent, Andrew. Cremonas, valves and jazz. *man_in_love*
I've not had a chance to hear Focals in ideal circumstances. I heard the 1038BEs demoed with Linn amplification in a smallish room. The clarity was there, but there was something very unnatural about the system or acoustics or both.
When I was trying out Maggies at KJ West One a couple of weeks ago, I was tempted to listen to the Diablo Utopias, but I decided against, as they were asking £7K for their ex-demo pair (including stands): far more than I want to spend. I guess you might be able to get a s/h pair for £5K if patient. Would the Diablos be better than the Vivids (at just over £3K)? Maybe.
Anyway, ex-demo Vivids don't come along often, and to my eyes they're more attractive than the Diablos -- plus the pair I'm buying are a really nice colour. Oh dear, how superficial!
Infiniteloop
Well-known member
matt49 said:
I heard the Dev with the Diablo Utopias a few months back and I haven't heard anything since that has blown me away quite as much.......
They were red too! (-if you want to talk superficial!)
Infiniteloop said:
I'm sure they're very very good, esp. in combo with the Dev. However, pricewise they're in main-system territory for me.
They do look great in red though! Very diabolic!
matt49 said:
The deal is done then. Excellent. I was going to suggest that, given the specific things you are looking for over the SFs - speed, clarity, transparency - and also that, while Martin Logan ESLs might offer these things you already know they aren't a synergistic match for your Dev, that you might struggle to improve on the Vivids, not without spending a lot more any way. It seems, though, that you have got to that conclusion ahead of me. Happy listening.
matt49 said:
I wouldn't want to seem envious that your non-main system comprises Vivid V1.5s driven by a Devialet 200 but ... well, just a touch of envy perhaps.
Actually, while I am at it, a second system comprising a Unison Research S8 and SF Cremona Ms, Mr Loop, is proving just a little envy-inducing too. That is a combination I would love to hear! and see too, I imagine - I am sure I am capable of superficiality too given half a chance.
DocG
Well-known member
matt49 said:
In for a penny, in for a pound, Matt! Which nice colour would that be exactly (and did your interior designer approve)? I recently saw the V1.5 in frosted black. May sound dull, but to me they looked the business!
Those cable slaughter fests have dumbed me down enough to really care about the trivial details!
DocG said:
Apparently they're a one-off colour, so there aren't any photos on the web that would correspond exactly. This, however, gets pretty close:
The interior designer hasn't seen them yet. I think she may be a bit miffed, as her design for the living room was done with the MLs in mind. I showed the above pic to Mrs 49 and she laughed. I think that's a good sign. *kiss3*
Anyway, I reckon the Vivids will look lovely in the room, but there's still a way to go till we find out. The speakers are waiting (at the shop) to have a new dust-cap fitted. In the meantime the living room is waiting for new sofas, curtains and a rug (to tie the room together, of course!)
James7 said:
I know I've ended up spending much more than I should have. It was an accident, honest guv! If I'd found the MLs before anything else, I might not have bought the Devialet, which is, as it happens, the only substantial piece of kit that I've bought new. Not that I'm unhappy with the Dev or thinking of changing it, mind you ...
Just received a marketing e-mail from Devialet (quite why they're trying to sell me stuff I don't know ...).
I was interested by this teaser in the e-mail: "This year, once again, we are preparing an extraordinary surprise regarding SAM® for Munich." What on earth could this be? Extending SAM to the full frequency range? Enabling SAM for subwoofers via the pre-outs? Answers on a postcard please!
One slight blemish on Devialet's shiny marketing strategy is their failure to employ native English-speaking translators. So the e-mail ends with this rather odd statement: "With the launch of PHANTOM, the Devialet 120, 200, 400, 800 range now becomes Devialet Expert. Technological foundation of the brand, Devialet Expert is the absolute audiophile system for the most intransigent of music lovers." Now I don't really think of myself as 'intransigent': slightly set in my ways perhaps, even a little dogmatic at times, but hardly intransigent.
I was interested by this teaser in the e-mail: "This year, once again, we are preparing an extraordinary surprise regarding SAM® for Munich." What on earth could this be? Extending SAM to the full frequency range? Enabling SAM for subwoofers via the pre-outs? Answers on a postcard please!
One slight blemish on Devialet's shiny marketing strategy is their failure to employ native English-speaking translators. So the e-mail ends with this rather odd statement: "With the launch of PHANTOM, the Devialet 120, 200, 400, 800 range now becomes Devialet Expert. Technological foundation of the brand, Devialet Expert is the absolute audiophile system for the most intransigent of music lovers." Now I don't really think of myself as 'intransigent': slightly set in my ways perhaps, even a little dogmatic at times, but hardly intransigent.
DocG
Well-known member
matt49 said:
Yeah, just got that e-mail too. Maybe they'll announce "SAM+", or "STORM", the Speaker TO Room Matching?
matt49 said:
Ha, I've had to look it up! Sounds posh to my ears. I guess they meant something like "the no-compromise music lover" or something... Maybe they think this kind of gibber gives them an exotic touch?
DocG said:
Yes, room EQ has been mooted for Munich 2015, and I suppose it sort of makes sense to present it as a SAM-enhancement, even if it's doing something quite different.
STORM is very good BTW!
It does raise the question though what sort of system it'll be and how they'll implement it. My mind is slightly boggled by all the possibilities. I hope it's not too complex and that they don't mess it up; I don't want to end up turning my Devialet into a useless Active Room-Speaker Equalizer.
DocG
Well-known member
CnoEvil said:
Hmmm, that's a pity! It would have added a whole new dimension to the former baseline: "One day, everyone wil own a Devialet"...
You know: a Devialet is like an opinion. Everyone has one (or something along those lines).
Ah, my Silver Phantoms and Dialog have been shipped, in time for Spark 1.1!
I guess that they will likely be here on Monday, I have my pipe (without slippers) organ tracks ready.
I guess that they will likely be here on Monday, I have my pipe (without slippers) organ tracks ready.
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