Article: Dutch & Dutch 8c Loudspeaker Review

[hifi_swlon]

Was there any reason Kii Threes were used as a main comparison, and not the Devialet Phantom Golds which I read your review of? I’m just curious since no one seems to compare the 8c to the Phantoms, yet your Phantom review was favourable and they’re quite a bit cheaper.  The Phantoms aren’t for me but just curious as there’s not much ‘pro’ feedback. 

 

Does anyone have more info on D&D plans to make a proper physical volume control? I’ve heard rumours but nothing solid. On paper these speakers are perfect for me and I’d love to demo a pair, but that would be a deal breaker for me in a home environment where there’s no mixing desk! Using an outboard DAC or digital volume control seems counter intuitive since the speaker has everything built in already. 

 

As a general question, are there custom stands and can they be fixed to the stands? I have a young child and would be worried about them getting knocked over and hurting someone or worse (or no doubt damaging the speaker)

[hifi_swlon]

Mitch seemed impressed with Phantoms and their measurements?

 

Yes I think had the Kii Control been wireless, and the inputs on a hidden wired box somewhere else  (a far more elegant and domestically friendly solution IMO) I’d probably have bought kii’s earlier in the year! 

 

In a way glad I didn’t as there’s at least one other option now. 

 

Would really just love a beautiful remote and input selector on something like an 8c. Am spolit with my Devialet Expert remote which is beautiful and perfect and frankly one of the best things about the hardware. Hard to go back to something ‘worse’.....

 

 

 

 

 

[hifi_swlon]

Great to see you contributing here @mensink. I love the look of these and planning to demo them very soon (having a very challenging home living room space) as soon as a demo pair become available and I have a spare weekend!

 

I have a few questions that I can’t find answers to on the D&D website if/when you have time (apologies if have already been asked above):

 

What bit depth/sample rate does the internal DAC/DSP run at? 

 

Are the DAC, streaming module and amps proprietary or third party? Can you tell us a bit more about each?

 

Whats the max input rate that can be fed in via AES and network (assuming RoonReady).

 

Do you know whether they will be true RoonReady (ie be able to be grouped with other RoonReady devices) or a specific setup for D&D only. 

 

The website mentions a native native app for volume etc (which one would hope could run within a local LAN only), but all reviews point only to a very basic looking web app. 

 

How do the electronics keep cool?  Many actives have large heat sinks even for class D, but these appear to have only a very small fan. I guess I’m thinking electronics lifespan being as they’re quite expensive and have a relatively short warranty. 

 

When a lower max volume is set at the speaker level, what’s happening? Is it a DSP reduction or are the amps running at lower power. 

 

How does servicing/repair work? Again, just thinking about longer term ownership. 

 

Would love to see a beautiful hardware wireless remote (Bluetooth or radio) for volume and input, and an ‘input box’ for additional sources to make them more family friendly (airplay etc). But this can all come later. 

 

Exciting times.

 

[hifi_swlon]

6 hours ago, mensink said:

We feel the frequency at which the DSP runs is irrelevant engineering information. I'm reluctant to the share that information, because it is often misinterpreted. Some people believe a high DSP frequency to reflect higher sound quality, which is not true. 

 

Yes I agree in general, I was more curious in the technical workings and also at what  sample rate the internal mechanism runs to understand the ‘best’ or native rate to send them. 

 

I have a Devialet so am limited to its internal sampling rates but personally I play most music at 44.1 because that’s most of my collection. I experimented with upsampling and couldn’t tell it apart blind so abandoned it with my setup. But still I like to know how things work and it’s a pretty well published spec for any DAC/active setup these days. But I appreciate your reasoning especially in the audiophile world. 

 

Great news on the App, the stands (and bolting ability) and physical controls. May they all be beautiful.