DEVIALET DIONE Review – Science of sound
With the standalone soundbar Dione, speaker manufacturer Devialet brings an extraordinary all-in-one solution to the market, excelling in both design and sound quality.
POSITION: Devialet’s only soundbar model
PEERS: Sennheiser Ambeo; Bowers & Wilkins Panorama 3; Bang & Olufsen Beosound Stage
WEBSITE: www.devialet.com
Even if you’ve tested numerous soundbars, this model will surely surprise you. Devialet’s Dione reduces the height and complexity of settings while aiming for maximum sound quality. The case uses not only plastic but also aluminum, with individual speaker groups hidden by a fabric covering. This gives the Dione a more elegant appearance than comparable soundbars without being overly flashy. However, not all design elements are flawless: the rough surface shows fingerprints clearly, and the spherical center speaker with its necessary recess is a dust magnet.
Striking Center Speaker
The center speaker stands out with its uniquely designed spherical shape. In addition to the built-in tweeter, the center sphere includes two passive membranes, completing the sphere and enhancing sound quality. The sphere’s rotation ensures the integrated tweeter always faces forward, regardless of whether you place the soundbar lying down or hanging on the wall. The sphere rotates clockwise or counterclockwise.
The package includes the necessary cables (optical audio cable and HDMI) and wall-mounting accessories. The soundbar automatically detects its position (lying down or wall-mounted) to ensure correct speaker orientation, except for the manual rotation of the center sphere.
Wall mounting is recommended for the Dione: in a lying position, two tweeters are available for the left and right main channels, while in a wall-mounted position, 2 × 2 tweeters for the main channels face forward. The center sphere delivers consistent sound regardless of the soundbar’s orientation, provided it is correctly positioned.
Surprisingly Powerful
Instead of relying on additional surround speakers and a subwoofer, the Dione aims to deliver a full and powerful sound on its own. The flat design of the Dione is deceptive; Devialet integrates eight bass drivers to provide a rich and powerful bass. Four bass drivers are arranged oppositely and face forward and backward or up and down when wall-mounted. Nine other tweeters handle the front, side, and height channels, with Devialet mounting the drivers at right angles to maintain versatility in different positions. This compromises the effectiveness of the soundbar in creating a convincing surround sound experience in various rooms.
In our tests, the surround sound and Atmos height effects were often too subtle. However, with careful positioning of the soundbar and seating area, the Dione’s sound significantly improved, benefiting from an optimal setup.
There’s a remote and you can also control the Dione with Devialet’s app, but the panel also has a line of subtle touch controls as a backup.
Bawl together now
The soundbar has eight long-throw subwoofers in a SAM (Speaker Active Matching) configuration to provide beefy bass with no separate sub.
Wish you were hear?
The Dione doesn’t work with voice assistants at present, but Devialet tells us the company will support Alexa if customers demand it.
Orb’s yer uncle
The sides of the central sphere vibrate, just as with Devialet’s Phantom speakers, and it adapts acoustically to the position of the bar.
Spiritin’ the Sky
Some of the tech that Devialet developed for the great-sounding Sky Soundbox TV speaker has also been used for the Dione.
King of the mode
Audio is auto-upscaled into 5.1.2, while it also uses Adaptive Volume Level trickery to raise up dialogue in the mix. There are four listening modes.
Unusual Compromises
The Dione soundbar does not come with a remote control, so the touch panel is the primary means of direct control. The HDMI-CEC control works flawlessly, allowing volume adjustment via the TV remote. However, the soundbar remained on even when the TV was turned off. Convenient control is possible through the Devialet smartphone app, which can turn the soundbar off but requires manual activation using the device’s button.
The app provides access to key settings, including room calibration. The soundbar integrates all microphones for room calibration, but the process involves only a brief frequency sweep, offering limited room acoustic adjustments. The microphones do not support voice control but can be muted using a button on the soundbar. Sound modifications are limited, with predefined modes (Cinema, Voice, Music) dictating internal frequency tuning and surround sound upsampling (Music mode uses classic stereo playback). Despite processing Dolby Atmos and multi-channel PCM signals, DTS signal input is not supported; DTS sources must be converted to PCM for multi-channel sound with the Dione.
Powerful Sound
In most presets, the Dione is very bass-heavy, ideal for electronic music. Multi-channel sources with a subwoofer signal sound more neutral with bass reduction (adjustable via the Devialet app), but this diminishes the Dione’s bass advantages. With stereo signals, bass reduction is less necessary, but it reduced overall dynamics in our tests. The Dione soundbar requires specific sound adjustments via the app depending on the input signal (stereo or multi-channel). Devialet provides no extensive EQ corrections, manual dynamic compression, or AV delay adjustment. Instead, most processes are automatic, leading to slight audio delays and significant heat generation in the connection area due to the extensive signal processing. Nonetheless, the Devialet Dione delivers an engaging sound experience at high volumes, with automatic dynamic reduction preventing speaker overload, ensuring clear and powerful sound even at maximum volume.
Impressive Design and Sound
The unique design, high-quality construction, minimalist concept, powerful bass, and flexible center sphere orientation are the hallmarks of the Dione soundbar. While we hoped for better surround sound, our main criticism lies in the limited adjustment options and room calibration. The manufacturer’s 14-day trial period helps decide whether to bring this exceptional design and sound experiment into your living room. If you can optimally place or wall-mount the Dione, an emotional home theater experience awaits.
Amplifier power is rated at 950W via Devialet’s custom ADH technology
SPECIFICATIONS
| DRIVE UNITS | 9 x 1.6in diameter full-range aluminium drivers; 8 x 5.25in-wide aluminium long-throw bass drivers in push-push pairs |
| ONBOARD POWER (CLAIMED) | 950W, via analogue digital hybrid (ADH) technology |
| CONNECTIONS | HDMI eARC connection; optical digital audio input; Ethernet |
| DOLBY ATMOS/DTS:X | Yes/No |
| SEPARATE SUBWOOFER | No |
| REMOTE CONTROL | No, Devialet app instead, or optional Devialet Phantom controller |
| DIMENSIONS | 1,200(w) x 88(h) x 165(d)mm |
| WEIGHT | 12kg |
| FEATURES | Dolby Atmos/Dolby Digital Plus decoding; wall-mounting; rotatable Orb centre driver; Apple AirPlay 2; Spotify Connect; UPnP; Bluetooth v5.0; Movie/ Spatial, Music, Voice and Night listening modes; SPACE upmixing; Adaptive Volume Level (AVL); Speaker Active Matching (SAM); ‘Advanced Dimensional Experience’ beam-forming; 24Hz-21kHz claimed frequency response; 24-bit/96kHz DAC; app control; room calibration |
Gaming Features: None
Audio Calibration: Automatic sound calibration based on soundbar position via Devialet smartphone app, auto-calibration with brief frequency sweep (microphones in soundbar), audio presets for cinema, music, or voice determine sound balance and surround playback, optional bass reduction
Operation: Power-on time about 20 seconds, LED on top indicates operational status, no display or on-screen indication, touch panel for operation, no included remote control (optional), control via Devialet smartphone app, limited manual adjustment options
Sound Impression: Very good level stability and particularly rich bass, voice reproduction mostly clear but dependent on sound preset, sound balance not very balanced, bass reduction helps achieve more neutral playback depending on the input signal but reduces sound volume, limited manual adjustment options, surround sound performance highly dependent on setup and seating position
Verdict
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Is EPIC BASS Enough? DEVIALET DIONE Sound Bar Review
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