Devialet has just announced the replacement for its Expert.
https://www.devialet.com/en-gb/amplifiers/
The cost for a dual mono is £28,000 in the UK and it is offering up to 35% off for trade in.
There is also an Opera de Paris version for £34,000.
Should I be tempted to upgrade from an existing Expert Pro 1000?
What benefits do you hope to get through this upgrade?
Without any great thought, improved technology, better sound and fresh warranty.
I shouldn’t ignore the pleasure of a shiny new toy.
Forget about better sound (compare technical specifications - Astra is a downgrade from Expert Pro 1000).
If these advantages are enough to motivate your investment, then go for it and enjoy your music.
I won’t be shopping in a hurry. If the current unit stopped working, that might change the equation.
If you are happy, stay with what you have. I see no specific details on their site to what is exactly improved.
Shiny new “second generation” isn’t much of a selling point.
The Astra has Bluetooth and USB-C. The new remote app looks nice too (about time that got updated). 35% trade in is also pretty nice. Why not try a 14 day trial, and then tell us how much better it sounds?
The Astra is quite new so there is little to read online. There is one short user-review on the devialetchat forum here. It’s in German so you may have to use Google translate (or similar) to read.
Please note that the poster only has this single post on devialetchat. Quite unusual that an audiophile will not comment further on a new purchase.
The photo of dual Astras is just the amps unpacked, not connected and could even be from somewhere else.
I still trust what he says about the Astra though, but I look forward to impressions and reviews from others.
Devialet Support has confirmed that MAT (conversion of DSD to PCM) is also present in Astra even if there is no mention of MAT in the Astra information. The internal DSP (native) sampling rate of Astra is 192kHz. Dsd64 (DoP) is supported on all inputs.
MAT is probably still converting dsd to 384kHz, but this (and any 384kHz PCM via the USB C port) is then down/re sampled to PCM 192/32 before entering ADH.
The good news is that one can input dsd128 via the USB C input (presumably also as DoP). This means that Devialet has upgraded MAT to handle dsd128. This was talked about but never realised when MAT was introduced.