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Devialet Expert Long Term Experience?

Would love to hear some more long term experience on the Devialet 200 or other of the Expert series amps. Many flattering reviews but few real life stories.

I recently heard two of the 200s as 400W monoblocks with the B&W 800 D3s and was blown away. I will listen to a single Expert 200 soon with some more speakers and am pretty sure I'll like it. I am a bass head and loved the tightness, accuracy and speed but at also loved the resolution and width of the mids and highs.

What I would like to know is how the Devialets feel and behave long-term in daily usage. They seem to run quite hot and some seem to experience some loss in SQ while running hot. Does it, despite the whole running class A/D in parallel thing, deliver class A quality with class D quantity and does it do so reliably at high temps over many hours and years of use? Any other bugs in this rather unconventional approach to an amp?

128x128superpef
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superpef's avatar
superpef OP
5 posts
 
Thanks for the answers guys! I'm trying to decide between a Devialet 200 and a Parasound Halo Integrated. I couldn't audition the Halo yet as it is hard to get in Germany but my feeling is that the Devialet packs more punch than "regular" amps, even with comparable outputs. 

Does it subjectively feel like a reliable component for the long run? Like you just turn it on and have it running all day?


leeagc
56 posts
 
I've yet to hear anything better than Devialet - the D200 is spectacular, the D400 better and the D800/1000 genuinely world class.  For real world budgets the D200 is light years ahead of anything else.  The sound has resolution and detail equal to the very best (Solution and Boulder) with perhaps even better bass.  The musicality and PRAT are again reference class.  All in all, the sonics are without reproach. Then you factor in the cost saving without an ugly mountain of separates and all the power cables and interconnects you no longer need.  Then there's the configurability and ease of use.  Full and complete sub-woofer integration better than a standalone JL Audio CR1 as well as SAM speaker matching with bass time alignment. You can pretty much control it all from ROON over wifi.  The new 220 Pro is even better.
The Parasound isn't even in the same league.
I leave mine on 24/7, sat on a granite slab on Cerabase feet.  Devialet air will run on Windows or OSX and does need a strong wifi - or Ethernet.  USB is pretty damn close but I hear wifi ( no galvanic connection/jitter) as the best of all three.  Powering my Focal Utopia 3 Diablo's with JL Fathom subwoofer, it's damn close to perfect.
One Wireworld Silver Aurora 7 power cable and a pair of Analysis Plus Solo Crystal 8 speaker cables - simple and done.
superpef's avatar
superpef OP
5 posts
 
Thanks guys for your opinions. Only confirms what I found while auditioning and what I keep reading in reviews. Guess I'm sold..
bubba12's avatar
bubba12
190 posts
 
My previous setup is Parasound JC 1 monos with JC-2 pre and an Exogal Comet plus Dac. i can't say my Devialet 400 blows it away. I can say they are pretty equal. I guess long term I will have a better answer. I can say that I am happy to make the swap considering all factors.
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