Planned to upgrade to DeVore Gibbon X, but concerned about comment of base leanness

No bass leanness in my room or another Gibbon X owner's that I know well.

So much more information is required before taking any review seriously. It doesnt help that the review is from Stereophile. 

I have not heard them. You can stop reading there, if you want.

Any speaker whose woofer is far off the floor will be subject to floor-bounce cancellation, which typically occurs in the 100-300 Hz range. This can cause leanness and necessitates careful positioning, which still can’t always overcome it.

That effect is very much in evidence in Fig. 3 of the Stereophile review. One thing one should be aware of is that JA1 is really, really good at positioning speakers for best response. (His graphs often compare response in the reviewer’s room to his, and he always gets a better result.)

Some people like a suckout in this range, as it adds perceived "clarity" and "tightness." I for one do not like it. My advice is, listen carefully before writing any nonrefundable check.

I auditioned them 18 months ago with Sugden amp/pre and Line Magnetic CD player and Audience wire. Huge bloom with excellent mids/highs. But, the bass integration left me wanting, a lot. I had high hopes because I wanted a speaker with some efficiency. Had to walk away from that. I think I read the review you mention. Nevertheless, I didn't like the speaker because of the bottom end. The rest was very convincing. If you put this speaker in contention, you owe it to yourself to go and hear them. Then have the dealer place them in your room to see if they will actually work. They are not an inexpensive proposition.

Good luck.

@pokey77 what did you end up getting, or what did you hold on to?

@mindlessminion

TAD Evolution System - E-1 speakers, M2500 amp, C2000 pre/dac. Also Aurender N10. On another planet better than Gibbon X, but also 2X cost and total system cost significantly more.

The Gibbons are an excellent speaker with a lot of attibutes but they have never been a very bass heavy speaker.

At the price point there are a ton of great loudspeakers that will offer similar attributes with far deeper bass. 

If you are stuck on the Gibbons consider a good fast subwoofer like a Rel or look at other speakers.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ

Actually, the Gibbon X is quite a bass heavy speaker.  Read for instance the review at parttimeaudiophile.

I auditioned the Gibbon X in what was a pretty generous sized space and found the bass region very deep but unfortunately over-bearing.  Just too much.  Wheres in the same space the O/96 speakers sounded rich but pretty well controlled in the bass.   The Gibbon X's bass response left me with the impression it would be one of the trickier speakers to integrate in to a room (especially one that wasn't large).

The mids and soundstaging were very nice though.  Clear and warm-toned, with I think a bit of that upper bass/lower mid leaness.

I would agree with @prof that the X isn't bass shy at all - in fact, too much on certain cuts in my 14x18' room. The Super Nine would probably be ideal but wasn't released yet. The Xs need space.

I have a set of the Devore Gibbon X in a 19 x 20 x 9 foot room and have no issues with the bass control in the room. If anything I will say that a lot of people don't realize how much of an affect an amplifier can have in this regard. I went from a smaller CJ stereo amp to a set of Merrill monos and the difference in bass weight and control was huge, almost startling.

Late to this thread. I've owned a pair of Xs since early 2019, paired with a Bel Canto Black Ex integrated, and haven't had any issues with the bass. If anything, the bass is a strong point ... well-controlled, firm, dare I say supple? I have a 14 (deep) by 25 (wide) room with the speakers along a long wall. Obviously room size, amplifier and positioning also make a difference. 

I have owned the Gibbon X for over 1 year. I had a total absence between 100 and 300 hz. and too many high frequencies (and I love the mid high and the high frequencies). Unfortunately I had ti sell them

Any high resolution speakers, when poorly set up in a given room or paired with the wrong amplification, can produce incomplete or undesirable results. The higher the resolution of the speakers, the more care that needs to be taken with set up and amp matching. The Gibbon X's are high resolution speakers. You hear what is fed to them.

I've owned mine for about 4 years. When I first got them, I had a 25' x 17' room. I moved house and now I have a listening room half that size (about 15 feet x 16 feet). With a bit of care and experimentation, I have been able to get the X's working as well in this much smaller room as they did in the previous larger room. And I have also listened to a number of other speakers in both rooms.

The X's are not at all bass light or bright when properly set up. The bass is powerful, deep and extended (more extended than the O96's for example). It's in the upper bass (100Hz - 150Hz) where many smaller speakers have a slight hump that the X's can seem ever so slightly lean, but you only notice that in direct comparisons. And when you put on a high quality recording with true low bass and hear the X's bass extension, that thought is gone! And what you notice next is how clean and detailed the midrange is. How boxless the overall sound is. The cohesion between the mid unit and the tweeter is remarkable.

All this assumes sensible set up, decent quality sources, good equipment isolation and appropriate amplification. I've achieved great results with an ARC REF 75SE. And btw, the X's are no fussier than most other equivalent speakers when it comes to set up. 

This is a very subjective Hobby, and we should all know this by now! As a former Professional Musician, in another life LOL!! And who has worked with some of music industry's Best, sound signature in this hobby can and is very personal, to the minimal and maximal budget. IMHO; #1.Speakers #2. Amplification #3. Sq FT (Dedicated listening Rm or Studio) and Music Genre (type) can make or break your listening pleasure no matter what the cost, thank you much.