I'm curious. So what are the limitations on their use as a replacement for "old style hifi"?
Sound quality?
Connectivity.
The sound quality is fantastic, particularly in view of the price, I am listening to mine as I type, but the only connection from one to another as a stereo pair is via the proprietary Dialog wireless protocol.
The Dialog has ethernet, USB, and optical digital connections. It connects to the house network using Ethernet and to the Phantoms via its aforementioned proprietary network.
Each Phantom has an Ethernet and an optical digital input too.
Neither the optical nor the USB connections on the Dialog have yet been implemented in firmware.
I have the optical output of a CD transport connected to one of the Phantoms and the stereo is superb, so the Dialog effectively uses that input as well obviously.
Any analogue inputs one wanted to use would have to either be digitised by a device with an optical digital output or by linking it to a normal Devialet amplifier using the USB connection which is not due to be implemented until later this year. The Spark software used to control volume and input is buggy still.
That is why I say it is unsuited to technophobes.
What I get from your excellent response, is that there are some temporary issues, that should be sorted sooner or later, but the sound quality is excellent.
Setting aside the limitation on analogue sources, which for most would be that last vestige of analogue, the phono pre-amp, the Phantom sounds very much like it it would be a very capable replacement for a conventional quality HiFi system.
Is the sound quality good enough to displace a conventional (whatever that now means) amp, DAC, speaker set-up, costing a few thousand £££'s ?