Integrated Amplifiers

Since the original D-Premier, Devialet has made use of the digital ‘brain’ inside its integrated amplifier to offer a remarkable level of setup flexibility, managed by its ‘Configurator’ software. For the network-attached Astra, though, this is no longer a case of making settings on a web browser and uploading them to the hardware via an SD Card. Instead, adjustments made either via a computer [pics, below] or smart device app [pics, bottom] are sent ‘over the air’.

An interactive image of the Astra’s rear panel handles calibration of its RCA connections, including the unusual facility of assigning input or output status to the sets labelled ‘Line’ and ‘Digital’. Specifically, one of the RCAs can operate as either a digital line-level input, a subwoofer pre-out, or a digital output. Meanwhile, highlighting the speaker outputs opens settings for delay and low-pass/high-pass filters, plus a menu for browsing all the loudspeakers that are supported by Devialet’s proprietary Speaker Active Matching. This is not an exhaustive list, but there are hundreds of models here, every one sourced and measured by Devialet to determine the ideal SAM parameters.

The Configurator’s MM/MC pick-up loading, again with options from a long list of brands and individual cartridges, is based on the manufacturer’s recommended values. Of course, the user can also ‘tweak’ input loading and capacitance to taste, plus choose from the Astra’s selection of legacy equalisation curves (inc. RIAA) and 1.0mV to 10mV phono input sensitivities.