Design and Construction
The 650's deck plan features flush side decks, a raised handrail, and a completely clear foredeck anchor, details that serve both the secure circulation the builder promises and the fluid, secure movement throughout the boat on long offshore passages. The cockpit has been lowered to ensure a smooth connection with the nacelle anchor, and the result is a protected and refined living space that maintains a seamless connection with the sea. The flybridge was significantly enlarged compared to the 640, offering a large U-shaped lounge with a table and a fully equipped helm station to starboard anchor. In the nacelle, the overall glazed area was increased, and the front windows were set further forward with an angle closer to the vertical anchor — a change that raises headroom in the owner's suites to nearly 6 feet 7 inches and admits more light without the worst of greenhouse heat. The hull carries CE certification A, confirming its rating for unrestricted ocean service.
Rig and Handling
Under sail, the Signature 650 delivers confident performance through an optimized rig that provides balance, power, and effortless handling over long distances anchor. Multihulls World notes the rig is more powerful than the 640's by an additional 97 square feet, achieved through a fractional sloop plan with a 1,505-square-foot mainsail, a 990-square-foot genoa, a 345-square-foot staysail, and reaching sails up to a 2,585-square-foot Code 5 anchor. The helm station combines excellent visibility with a high level of protection while remaining fully connected to life on board, and the twin 82 kW engines give precise maneuvering for dock work. Passages are smooth, quiet, and remarkably reassuring even in demanding conditions, a quality the builder attributes to the platform rather than any single component.
Accommodations
Designed as a private retreat, the 650 combines comfort, serenity, and intimacy for extended time at sea, with carefully selected materials and soft light creating a quiet, refined atmosphere. The central owner's suite set within the nacelle offers outstanding volume and natural light enhanced by panoramic forward-facing views — a rare feature on a catamaran of this size anchor. The boat is offered with four or five cabins, and the enlarged glazed nacelle area keeps the saloon bright without sacrificing the protected cockpit connection to the exterior. The wide, protected cockpit and the flybridge lounge extend the living space outdoors, while circulation remains fluid and secure from bow to stern.
The Verdict
The Privilège 650 is a thoroughly considered ocean cruiser that trades the raw minimalism of earlier bluewater cats for a refined, light-filled retreat without abandoning passage-making capability. The Lombard/Darnet design team's enlargement of the rig and flybridge, together with the vertical-forward windows and lowered cockpit, make the boat feel both more powerful and more livable than the 640 it replaced. For a couple or family planning serious offshore distance, the central nacelle suite and CE A certification are meaningful; for those who prize a protected helm and quiet motion, the 650 delivers on its brief.
Pros
- True ocean-going catamaran with CE certification A for unrestricted service
- Central nacelle owner's suite with panoramic forward views, rare at this size
- More powerful rig than predecessor 640, with effortless long-distance handling
- Enlarged flybridge and increased nacelle glazing improve livability
Cons
- Substantial 64,000-pound displacement demands full use of the powerful rig in light air
- Predecessor 640's used-market presence may complicate direct value comparisons
