Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Amazon reviews have been incredibly helpful for my family as we purchase equipment. I trust the collective consumer reviews far more than most online professional reviews. Thank you!! This review is done in the spirit of contributing back to the community. After an extensive audio search involving over a dozen speakers in systems valued at up to $10K, the Phantoms have changed our paradigm for music reproduction. In addition to the original pair of Silver, I have a pair of Gold for multiple rooms. This review will end with a comparison of Silver versus Gold. I do find the Gold a worthwhile upgrade in particular with better treble extension, faster transients, increased resolution, and more natural sound - though with a touch of the metallic edge. (I predict that Devialet will eventually have a Beryllium tweeter - perhaps they can tap into Focal, another fine French audio company, for their expertise in Beryllium and call it the Platinum Phantom. :) For us, after a year with the Phantoms, both Silvers and Golds now merit 5 stars though the Gold is better. They are a serious audio system which looks wonderfully elegant while staying unobtrusive in our home. The performance to cost ratio exceeds the other systems we tested. Update January 11, 2017 on Golds Regarding whether to get the White, Silver or Gold, after over a thousand hours with the Phantom Silver and Gold and auditioning a dozen systems in my home before the Phantom, my recommendation if your budget allows: Gold. While the Silver offers good value, the Gold offers superb value. Over Christmas, I finally sat down with two other enthusiasts for extensive audition over three days. Each of us independently assessed that the Gold is much better than the Silver. The increase in price of the Gold actually felt like a bargain compared to the not insubstantial improvement in clarity, resolution, transient speed, 'air', and trebles/mids. The two enthusiast were skeptical when I invited them over but after our audition is done, both are considering the Phantoms to their surprise. Updated December 2, 2016 To see two other reviews of hifi enthusiast for whom Phantom Golds competes with or replaced substantially more expensive and larger speakers up to $50,000 in their system, google: 1. Steve Huff Phantom Gold 2. Srima Phantom Gold Review Each own fine systems that cost multiples of the Phantoms, but are now commending the Phantoms. Updated November 18, 2016 (First review on Nov 13, 2015 plus 6 previous updates) QUICK NOTES ON PREVIOUS REVIEWS: My first review was on November 13, 2015 and I have added six updates. Given the length limit Amazon imposes for reviews, I am moving my earlier reviews into Comments section below as listed at the very end of this review. I keep them all for a history of how Phantoms continues to MATURE as a system. Given the level of investment, it is reassuring that Devialet is committed to the Phantoms long term. CURRENT REVIEW - November 20, 2016 All of my family members play an acoustic instruments and we value high fidelity audio reproduction. In our extensive search, we went through over a dozen speaker systems up to about $10K in value and ended with the Phantoms. For my family, the Devialet Phantom has grown from a 2 stars (Nov 2015) to a 5 stars (Nov 2016) system. Why? Because Devialet continues to update the system firmware and software. QUICK SYNOPSIS BASED ON OUR CURRENT EXPERIENCE AFTER ONE YEAR 1. Audio value for price: 5 stars. For a specific need, one can possibly do better for less dollars, but it requires a tremendous amount of work, complexity and much larger overall size. 2. Audio quality for size: 5 stars. Currently, absolutely nothing of this size can remotely reproduce the volume, bass extension and overall audio quality regardless of whether it is wired or wireless. 3. Audio quality for wireless multi-room system: 5 stars. Regardless of cost, currently, no wireless system beats the Phantoms. 4. Audio quality at all volumes: 5 stars. Many systems sound poor at low night level listening and require a particular level to 'wake up'. Phantoms do well. 5. System Flexibility in placement: 5 stars. The Phantom dramatically changed our paradigm for how flexible a stereo system can be. 6. Visual Aesthetics: 5 stars. 7. Ease of setup out of the box: Currently, 5 stars. Experience does range widely from user to user with recent firmware versions much matured. 8. System Stability & Improvements: 4 to 5 stars. Note that different users have different experiences. 9. Devialet Spark Software: 3-4 stars. I really like the continual upgrades including excellent integration with the likes of Spotify and internet radio. (Also integrated with Tidal, Deezer, Qubuz) 10. Devialet warranty support. 5 stars 11. Devialet Tech Support: 1 to 5 stars. This is based on other reported experience as we have not needed to contact Devialet in the past months. 12. Expectations set by Devialet: 5 stars. Devialet has changed its slogan from the original 'Best Speaker Ever" to "Best Wireless Speaker in the World." This is now in line with the Phantom's performance. It is better than even many wired systems in its price range even if size is no object. EXTENDED SYNOPSIS AFTER A YEAR Around Christmas 2015, I finalized on the Phantoms as our primary speakers, a decision 2 1/2 years in the making. We decided after having over a dozen speakers in my room, many which received top accolades in recent press reviews and here on Amazon. Like many enthusiasts, I pored over reviews by professionals and forum amateurs alike. After all that actual testing where one manufacturer even personally came to my home hauling a few pairs of speakers, I am very confident that the decision is the right one for our family. Because the Phantom is groundbreaking and hews out a new paradigm, it took a while for me to grasp the Phantoms' strengths and know how to leverage its capability. After a year, I am understanding how remarkable this system is in its price range, without even considering its size. Considering its size, for us, the Phantom is a new paradigm in speakers. Here are the reasons: 1. Value Value is subjective to what one seeks. My family is very careful with our budget and make substantial purchases only after extensive research. For us, audio systems in the range of the Phantom qualify as a substantial purchase. Compared to other systems in its price range, I believe that the Phantom offers remarkable value - better return than any other system I have tested. I've seen many sneer at the Phantom, noting that one can setup a 5.1 theater system for substantially less. True. At the same, I have read of a number of audio enthusiasts who have systems costing multiples of a stereo Phantom setup (north of five figures) who rave about the Phantom as replacing or coming near their systems. Also true. In short, if one simply want music reproduction and are satisfied with widely available consumer systems such as found in most big box stores, the Phantom may be overkill for one's needs. However, if you seek better systems which then scales up considerably in cost, then the Phantom can be a very good value. My family is in the latter category as everyone plays at least one musical instrument and we seek a level of fidelity that lower cost systems could not quite achieve. 2. Audio Quality for Price Before the Phantom, in our family's search for a stereo system, we tested over a dozen speakers in systems up to $10K. The systems we tested were either multi driver systems, electrostatics with woofers, or full range single drivers. To get down to 20hz, all required subwoofers. Each speaker system has a particular presentation and strengths. For example, in a small room, with a pair of bookshelves with a pair of dual driver sealed subwoofers, one can get a sense of space by separating the subwoofers away from speakers. Electrostatics gave a larger scale but a very narrow listening sweet spot. The Phantom is unique and different from all other systems we tested because it acts as a point source down to below 20hz! The treble and mid drivers are concentric and the side bass woofers oppose each others. It reminds me of the design behind the likes of the KEF Blades ($30+K) in terms of presenting music as a point source. (KEFS are, of course, better speakers at over 10 times the price.) The point source design gives extremely focused and precise stereo placement. After extended listening I appreciated that the Phantom is simply more accurate without the artificial bloom in the music. Interestingly, my wife who doesn't care much for system comparisons has always been very quick to make conclusions about my systems - and she nails it 90% of the time. After a quick listen between the Phantom and my other favorite system, she said, "I prefer the Phantoms. They just sound more natural." What took her five minutes, took me weeks to figure out. The Phantom IS more natural than the other systems. By natural, I mean that it is relatively neutral. It doesn't color the music as much as my other systems. I had some systems which added a wonderful 'bloom' to the music and it made all recordings sound more engaging. In others words, these systems color the music more than the Phantom, but in a pleasant manner. Phantom does not do that much. If the recording is excellent, it will sound excellent. If the recording is poor, the music will sound poor. Many audiophiles value neutrality and invest heavily to achieve the accurate neutral sound. A superb advantage of the Phantom's audio quality is its superb bass extension without needing subwoofers or large and heavy full sized speakers. With my other systems, if I wanted to reach to the lower bass range, I had two sealed subwoofers with two drivers each. The Phantoms' ability to reach that low in one small speaker really is stunning! One thing of being point source is to superb focus to solo vocals. From day one, I noticed that the Phantoms present vocals with better focus and presence than any other system I've had. Pinpoint, focused, precise, warm, clear. At first, I thought it must be because the Phantoms exaggerate the midrange where vocals reside. But checking my spectrum analyzer, I found that is not the case at all. Also, at a low listening levels, a point source speakers sounds small in scale. In return, you get a very precise stereo placement. However, as you turn the volume up to normal listening levels (70-80db), it does sound larger in scale as music reflects off the room boundaries. There's no right approach. You system serves you. But I will say that after time, I appreciated the Phantom's more neutral, accurate and precise imaging. To some extent, I retrained my ear simply by spending extended time with the Phantoms. It is also worth noting that the Phantom's bass frequency reproduction is cleaner than my pair of subwoofers due to its placement. When I ran my subwoofers, I found that I got a cleaner sound when I suspended them off the ground like a traditional speaker on stands. The Phantom is designed to be on speaker stands which automatically lifts the bass driver off the ground. I believe this is one reason why the bass is clean on the Phantom. CAVEAT: Yes, there ARE systems out there that are better. More resolving, faster transients, larger scale etc. ( There always will be better systems - even if you invest half a million dollars.) I believe overall, most systems equal to the Phantoms will cost more, making the Phantoms a very good value. CAVEAT 2: My evaluation is for a stereo pair. I find that stereo reproduction is essential over mono for serious listening. However, others have reported being satisfied by a single mono source. YMMV. 3. Audio quality for wireless multi-room systems. Not much to add here. I believe that no other wireless system scales up to Phantom's performance. That it is capable of multi-room is a bonus. Currently we run two pairs in two rooms via wireless. One pair is 25 feet away from the dialogue through two walls and it generally perfectly stable with an occasional one second drop out once or twice a day. CAVEAT: I do note that my home is in an environment with low Wi-Fi pollution from neighbors. Others have reported need to resort to ethernet cable connection for stable performance. I have not had to do that. 4. Audio Quality at All Volumes One of the staggering quality of the Phantom is the capacity for a prodigious amount of sound - and doing so without breaking up. Though I do not need such volumes, I tested them at 70 of 100 and they were stunningly loud. I put them in a bedroom with the door shut and even so, it was almost unbearably loud and the house vibrated a fair bit. (By the way, they did sound better after a couple of the break in sessions.) The bass is astounding. The reason the volume is staggering is because they never lose composure. The bass, mids and trebles stayed under control - you simply get a lot more of it. With most system, once they are pushed to the limit, they become irritating because they audio is no longer linear. Some frequency range become irritatingly over emphasized. That's when they feel unbearable. A number of users note that they tend to turn the Phantoms louder than their other system because they just stay pleasantly linear when the volume rises. This is a VERY important quality if you like to listen loudly. I have absolutely no need of for such high volume capability but it is good to know they are capable if I ever move them to a much larger space. However, as impressive is it's sense of clarity and full range of information when playing at very low volume. Many speakers seem to need to hit a certain volume to 'wake up'. Many owners including myself have noted that the Phantom fares well even at very low volume. 5. Ground Breaking Flexibility and Capability. (Value Multiplication) With all other systems, I have had to choose: a. Small and movable - but with compromised audio quality. b. Large and semi-permanent installation - but providing better audio quality. The best system I had before the Phantoms consist of six good sized pieces, AND weighed 225 lbs (100kg). Moving the pieces to a different room require an challenging hour, a lot of sweat equity and four outlets plus six cables. Basically, as with most audiophile systems, once you set it up, you never move it. Phantoms transcends this traditional barrier - it changed my paradigm for speakers. Once the system is set up, and as long as they are within the distance of the Dialog, I literally unplug both Phantoms, move them to my new location, plug them in, and the Dialog reconnects automatically. TWO MINUTES. This is a RADICAL advantage. It literally changes the PARADIGM of how you can enjoy your music. Lets say one has $5K for an audio system. Traditionally there are two options. One, you can sink it all into one system for maximum audio quality - but it works only in one room. Two, you can split it into multiple systems to populate various rooms, but at reduced audio quality for each lower cost system. Essentially I have to choose between maximum audio quality or maximum flexibility in listening location. The Phantom changes that equation. You can now put all the funds into one system, BUT also move it around like a portable system. Basically my Phantoms reside in a modest work/audio room. But when we want to do serious listening with the sonic advantages of a larger space, we can pop it into a living room or larger area in five minutes. Last week, we had a sing-a-long at a friends home for almost 20 people. I took one Phantom along, plugged it into an outlet and connected via bluetooth. It worked like a charm and they were amazed at the volume, quality and bass extension from such a small speaker. Traditionally, I could not have lugged something to a friend's home that provide this quality, volume and bass extension. One no longer has to choose between quality and flexibility. It is as if I have $5K system in EVERY room I care to occupy. Sure, I am making up a term but really, this is VALUE MULTIPLICATION. For those with careful budget such as myself, this really redefines how flexible an audio system can be. c. That this is a wireless system is a bonus. I currently run my system as two pairs in two rooms separated by 35 feet between the two pairs. I am about to set it up so that one pair runs in one room, and then two others run as mono source on two ends of a large area that spans the living room, kitchen and dining area for full coverage. 6. Visual Aesthetics Admittedly, to a degree, aesthetics is subjective. We find the Phantoms to be the most beautiful speakers we have ever had in our home. The beauty is due to two factors: a. Organic rounded modern shape is very pleasing to our eyes. It does not scream the traditional boxy speaker look - and seem more like an art piece. b. Unobtrusive small size. A good traditional system capable of the same audio performance generally dominates at least one edge of any room. The absence of speakers, subwoofers, DAC, amplifiers and the accompanying racks really cleans up the environment. Overall, we prefer the look of the White and Gold version with the white bass drivers making the entire speaker look like an orb. However, if you want the most unobtrusive look, the Silver does look slimmer and blends into the background better. 7. Ease of Setup Out of the Box - Achieving Maximum System Quality. I do not consider myself an audiophile but audiophiles know of what I describe next. Setting up a quality traditional system can be a very VERY time and energy consuming process. System synergy is critical. This means that you have to match audio source to amp to speakers along with the right interconnects and power cables. That's the minimum requirement. Others have preamps, power conditioners, special racks, audio tweaks, and the list goes on. Many audiophiles agonize for hours just picking out one pair of cables. Even after all of that, there's often the problem of the system having hum or hiss, requiring more trouble shooting. I have gotten my traditional system to be rather quiet but even then, there is a very light hum at close distances. I know, I've been playing around with this type of set up and connected with dozens of audiophiles online for help. Most have gone through the process described. It finally dawned on me why I see audiophiles purchase and resell the components over and over again in search of the holy grain. In the end, you do get rewarded. But I found the process tedious and at times, mentally exhausting. The Phantoms cuts through all of this in one purchase. The audio stream, if you use the Devialet software, is done digitally bit perfect STRAIGHT to the Phantom system. And the system is QUIET. When there is no music, there is no hiss. You plug it up - and if it sets up properly without much fuss - and it is good to go. In short, I wish the Phantoms were around when I began this journey a few years ago. 8. System Stability & Continued Improvements. When I first began last year, the Phantom was, to put it bluntly, very unstable and difficult to set up. I gave it two stars. However, Devialet continue to released many firmware and software updates. The commitment to continue to support the Phantom has been most impressive. Some of the improvements for the latest Gold version will be ported for free backwards to the White and Silver. Bravo! Currently, with all the releases, the Phantoms are very stable in my environment. I am running an Apple Airport EXTREME Base Station for my primary router. I then added an Apple Airport EXPRESS Base Station acting as a bridge. I connect the Devialet Phantom Dialog the Base Station. I can connect wireless through two walls at distance of 25 feet without problems. 9. Devialet Spark Software & Firmware Upgrades I really like the continual upgrades including excellent integration with the likes of Spotify and internet radio. (Also integrated with Tidal, Deezer, Qubuz) I cannot say enough about the integration such as with Spotify where one can connect and control volume either by the Spark or the native Spotify application whether on Android or IOS Phone, and PC or Apple computers. Very smooth. Also, they added Internet radio some months back which has been very useful for exploration. While I agree with those who feel that the Spark can be improved upon and is not fully polished, I also am impressed by its steady improvements. For example, Devialet added radio stations, allows individual volume control (PC and Mac Spark) of each room, and shows whether the Phantom is connected via wireless or PLC (their physically connected protocol using the home power line). The steady improvements have impressed me. However, there remains room for improvement. Full control and understanding of Spark's function is not always intuitive, thus requires a learning curve. I hope in time that Devialet will streamline Spark's design so that its full abilities can be used more intuitively. If I had a choice of either genius hardware or genius software to begin with, I choose hardware. I can get software later, gratis. Fortunately, Devialet has been upgrading the software with good effect. Hardware cannot be upgraded without additional cost from physical modification or replacement. Software can be delivered via your browser, and provided for free if the manufacturer so chooses. Devialet does. In short, in hardware, Devialet is unquestionably genius. In software, Devialet has room to grow - and they show commitment to do so. 10.Warranty Support. Reading online, I have been impressed by Devialet's warranty support. Easy five stars. 11. Technical Support. Reading online, technical support has been a mixed bag. Experiences that I've read would range between one to five stars. My recommendation is that you get your system up and fully running within the first 45 days trial period. COMPARISON BETWEEN SILVER AND GOLD Put simply, the Gold and Silver Phantom are much more similar than different. If your budget allows, get the Gold. If not, the Silver remains very good and should satisfy most. I have no experience with the White. Here are the advantages of the Gold over the Silver: 1. Better more extended trebles. 2. Faster transients, especially in the trebles. This is its largest advantage. This is likely due to the new tweeter which happens to be made of titanium. 3. More open sounding. Again, probably due to #1. 4. Slightly higher resolution. 5. Overall, more natural audio - a noticeable improvement. However, the Silver we have does sound warmer somewhere in the lower mids or upper bass range because the trebles are not quite as prominent as with the Golds. We compared both with the volume equalized using a meter. This is important as the Gold sounds a few db louder at the same volume setting. During listening tests, which we prefer depends on the piece with the majority of the time preferring the Gold. My wife has good hearing and she almost immediately identified the Gold as being more open and spacious sounding along with sounding a bit more natural for most pieces. Within a minute, she said of the gold in a BLIND test - "This one is better." However, occasionally, a piece that would benefit from more lower mids such as Josh Groban's vocals sounds better to her on the Silver. For me, I do notice the Gold's somewhat better trebles articulation. However, in the first few hours, I experienced a bit of listener fatigue which has since gone away because of drive break in. AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT 1. I believe that Devialet will do well to incorporate user controlled equalization into the Spark software. Given how deep the Phantom plunge into sub 20hz, room modes come into play. Fortunately in stereo there are two pairs of drivers which are also raised off the floor. Both smooth out room nodes compared to traditional single floor standing subwoofer. 2. Spark Software's execution can be more intuitive. 3. Tech Support can continue to be improved. 4. Wi-Fi stability. While I have had stable Wi-Fi, others report continued struggles. Perhaps Devialet will have to improve their Dialog with a new version as this does not seem to be resolved via software updates. CONCLUSION I do highly recommend the Phantom system in stereo as long as you can get it to work reliably in your environment. Most can. If your budget allows, and you want a high quality two channel system, I give the Phantoms a very strong TWO THUMBS UP. Go get it. I also recommend the wireless remote control as nice little luxury. There's nothing quite a nice as a silky smooth analog knob. It does change the 'feel' of the system from being digital to analog. Bonus Tip - if you have a small room but want a deeper and wider soundstage, and have four Phantoms, set your Phantom at lest 3 feet from the wall. Place a pair normally towards the front. Place the second pair pointing towards the wall for reflected sound. Of course, this is overkill and I doubt that any would invest in such a setup. However, the effect is very musical as the soundstage expands considerably. ******************* ORIGINAL REVIEWS 11/13/15 - Original 2 stars review (This dropped off due to Amazon's word limit. I reposted in COMMENTS #9. 12/3/15 - List of pros and cons. I reposted in COMMENTS #23 12/13/15 - Updated on my second experience on the Phantoms and reasons for changing the rating from 2 to 4 stars. I reposted in COMMENTS #24 12/15/15 - THREE ways to bypass Spark software so that you can port your audio directly to the Dialog/Phantom system AND/OR completely bypassing Dialog/Spark by using Chromecast which also works for multiple room setups. This allows additional services such as Spotify. You can also use other audio sources with optical outs such as CD players. I reposted in COMMENTS #25 12/20/15 - Notes on Phantom & Spark firmware + software update as an example of Devialet's client requests, commitment to the Phantom ecosystem and significant system capacity for growth. I re-posted in COMMENTS #26 1/19/2016 - Why I pick Phantom as my final system after over a dozen different speakers. I reposted in COMMENTS #27 2/15/2016 - See Comment #17 below for a comparative review I found to be helpful and revealing of Phantom's value. I reposted in COMMENTS #28