Meet the Devialet Dione, a brand spanking new speaker from high-end speaker producer Devialet. With this new product, the corporate is getting into a brand new marketplace — house cinema sound programs. The Devialet Dione is an all-in-one soundbar appropriate with Dolby Atmos 5.1.2 and it prices $2,400 (€2,190).
“We’re on the excessive finish of the marketplace however we now have a product this is an all-in-one audio machine,” Devialet CEO Franck Lebouchard advised me. What he approach via this is that you simply shouldn’t examine the Dione with a mean soundbar.
As an example, in case you’re looking for an similar tool in Sonos’ lineup, Lebouchard says you will have to examine Devialet’s speaker with the Sonos Arc soundbar paired with two Sonos One audio system and a Sonos Sub. And that package deal these days prices greater than $2,000 as smartly.
“The tech fulfillment is that we controlled to place the entirety in one tool. It implies that we needed to make 17 audio system have compatibility, which is extraordinary,” Lebouchard added.
The corporate arrange a trying out room in its place of job in Paris and I may just pay attention to the Devialet Dione with a big TV. We attempted the speaker with the primary few scenes of Mad Max: Fury Street. We additionally listened to a couple tune.
And, positive sufficient, the speaker sounds nice. It produces some immersive sound and it feels such as you’re sitting in a film theater slightly than in entrance of a TV.
This isn’t a complete assessment. I’m no longer an audio skilled, so I don’t know the way the Devialet soundbar sounds whilst you examine it with the present probably the greatest soundbars. I’d suggest paying attention to the Devialet Dione in a shop ahead of purchasing it anyway.
“In a Sennheiser soundbar, you’ll to find 12 audio system. We put 17 audio system. It’s no longer totally magical, but if you’ll have compatibility 5 extra audio system in it, you’ll listen it,” Lebouchard stated.
The tool itself is a dense soundbar. It weighs 12kg and it’s slightly lengthy — 1.2 meters. You will have to take into accounts getting a speaker like that if you have already got an excessively huge 55-inch TV.
In terms of design, it is a little more discreet than earlier Devialet audio system. The signature egg-shaped Devialet design has been changed with a extra conventional polygon with sharp edges and corners.
The one factor that stands proud is a tiny sphere on the middle of the tool. There’s a speaker within that sphere and it pivots. This fashion, if you wish to repair the soundbar to the wall, you’ll rotate the field in order that it’s all the time dealing with you.
Within the tool, there are 17 other audio system — 9 full-range drivers and 8 rectangle subwoofers. The ones subwoofers were designed to suit the specs of a soundbar. Once more, what makes the Devialet Dione stand aside is that you simply don’t desire a separate subwoofer (or satellite tv for pc audio system).
The tool additionally has its personal digital-to-analog converter. In truth, the Devialet Dione makes use of the similar machine on a chip that you’ll to find within the corporate’s flagship merchandise, the Phantom product line. Devialet has a couple of patents for this particular chip and guarantees a legitimate with 0 background noise, 0 saturation and nil distorsion.
And in case you’re taking part in a film that doesn’t make stronger Dolby Atmos, the Devialet Dione can “upscale” the sound sign to five.1.2 audio. There’s additionally a are living steadiness characteristic that is helping you listen discussion.
In terms of connectivity, you plug the Devialet Dione for your TV the usage of an HDMI cable with make stronger for eARC and CEC. You’ll be able to additionally use the soundbar as a standalone speaker to hear tune.
The Devialet Dione connects for your native community the usage of Wi-Fi or Ethernet. It additionally helps Bluetooth 5.0 and makes use of the similar Devialet app. You don’t essentially have to make use of the app to play some tune, as you’ll use Spotify Attach or AirPlay 2.
No longer only for audiophiles
The corporate thinks there’s a marketplace alternative with the Devialet Dione as streaming products and services unencumber blockbuster films on their products and services from day one. “We learned that it’s a marketplace this is starting off,” Lebouchard stated.
“Our standard consumer is somebody who has a fantastic 55-inch TV or larger. And they would like sound high quality to be as excellent as symbol high quality. It’s a little bit other from the everyday Devialet consumer, who’s somebody who listens to a large number of tune,” he added.
In twelve months, if the corporate needs to achieve its industry targets, the Devialet Dione will have to constitute 20% of the corporate’s income. And each time the startup launches a brand new product, it will probably lean on its dense community of issues of sale. There are these days 1,900 Devialet issues of sale all over the world.
Whilst the corporate has stopped speaking about investment rounds since its Series A in 2015, Devialet has raised any other €70 million throughout two rounds. The final investment spherical was once a €50 million spherical with the corporate’s current traders in January 2020.
Devialet is launching the Devialet Dione these days in France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Switzerland. Pre-orders additionally get started these days for different markets.