Prince

That article was pretty accurate. OK sound for what it is, but nothing to write home about. Devialet seems to be selling a lifestyle and there's nothing wrong with that. Just think it can be done at a much lower price point and without all the purple prose.

That sounds smart. Can you describe your setup?

I didn't hear any change in mid-range resolution when adjusting the amplifier output. Midrange does get better as volume increases. The mid-bass and bass sounds more dynamic as you lower amplifier output, but I thought the bass was good at pretty much every setting and volume. Mid-range just didn't sound good to me. I felt like I was listening to a piece of equipment and not music if that makes any sense.

Bass and dynamics are quite good on the 200 as expected. The difference was very subtle, but some of us noticed the change in the lower bass when playing with the amp output. Did you hear any difference in the midrange? I'm curious what speakers you're using. I'm using very efficient 98db sensitivity/12ohm nominal impedence speakers. It's a VERY easy load, but can reveal warts. My friend likes the 200 on his B&W 802, but he also noticed the difference in midrange which was not subtle in a straight and blind comparison. The 200 is so many things and does most of them well. It's hard to tell exactly what was affecting the midrange and how to fix it or even if it can be fixed. I suspect it's a step up for most people in sound quality, but if you already have a well thought out system, you may be disappointed as I was. Luckily the dealer network is good and some will even let you borrow a unit for in home auditioning. Many professional reviewers tend to see things through rose-tinted glasses.

Dr Tone, A quiet background and resolution are not the same thing. The 2oo is indeed very quiet, but I had a very different experience than yours. A few friends of mine did blind A/B testing and 6 out of 7 of us could identify the D200. Our test is hardly scientific, but it does say something about this particular device. It does have a very "digital" sound signature in my opinion. ecwl, I tested the 200 primarily as a dac/preamp/amp. The fact you can play records on this machine is a welcomed feature since I have a lot of vinyl. I'd like to know if the phono signal is converted to digital as well. I don't believe there's anything out there that offers the same amount of customization. You can literally use any cartridge on the 200. My preference is for a phono stage works well with just one type of cartridge. kenreau, I tried several digital sources. Jriver on a mac is my main source, an old Tascam studio CD player and a 3rd gen iPod through a Luxman digital dock. My speakers are from a company called Tonian Labs which I use with tube amps of my own design. I didn't compare the 200 to the tube amps (not a fair comparison), but I did do an a/b against an Audiolab 5000 integrated and an NAD Integrated (both from the 90). The Audiolab/Berkeley Alpha DAC combination sounded better to me and this isn't exactly the most resolving system in my opinion. In Chris's review he had a similar experience to mine when listening at low levels, but I guess i'm more critical. I would say there's a fall off in resolution below 65db.

Of course. How can someone make a judgement without first hand experience? I had it in my home for a week. The aesthetics and interface are beautiful. I liked the small footprint and the phono connectivity, but the amplifier and phono stage was coarse and lacked low level detail. I'm not good at describing sound, but the 200 was basically fatiguing with none of the associated micro detail. I may not have been so critical if the unit was half the price or if it made bad recordings sound palatable.

Other than the price and versatility in regards to customizing, what is high end about these two products? I can list off a dozen systems in this price range that offer far better sound fidelity, especially when it comes to resolution. These glowing reviews, at least when it comes to sound quality are unfounded in my opinion and makes me question the integrity of this website which until today, I viewed at a high level. I'm absolutely mystified...