[tradyblix]

It depends on your music. You can't just use one filter or what someone else likes. YOU need to spend the time to listen and decide.

 

[Docharsha89]

I use the white filter with x-PhD on Green colour with my AQ Nighthawks. It gives the most neutral sound signature, with perfect warmth due to the cross feed Level 2 effect.

 

[rkt31]

Green has high frequency cut off so it should be used with samples rates higher than 48khz. With cd quality material white is better choice. Green filter with cd quality makes music a bit dull. I use tt2 with HMS so green is my default choice. With headphones xphd 1 is the best imho.

 

[miketlse]

So, what is the most used and recommended filter and crossfeed setup?

For the filters, there is no-one 'correct' setting, because a users preference is very determined by music genre, is the track hi-res, users ears, etc.
Rob explains more here
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/cho...official-thread.831345/page-830#post-14209157
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/cho...official-thread.831345/page-125#post-13354117
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/cho...official-thread.831345/page-669#post-13964813
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/cho...official-thread.831345/page-297#post-13546609

I listen to RBCD almost exclusively, and find that the white filter seems to make transients from instruments like the piano, slightly sharper, but I struggle to detect any difference between the other 3 filters.
So I tend to try and select the white filter for jazz or classical with piano, but there are other days when I glance at the filters and realise that I have been using one of the other filter settings, but not noticed because I was enjoying the music so much.
Consequently I have learnt to not lose sleep over which filter I use.
Rob says that the filters are much more noticeable with hi-res recordings, but I rarely listen to them, so can't offer an opinion.

Regarding crossfeed - no single setting suits all albums/tracks.
When I experiment with it, there are tracks where instruments seem to move position from Ieft/right, to just one cm in front of my forehead, which feels even more strange, so I tend to return to the default setting.

Overall just my personal view, so other owners do post differently.

 

[Chikolad]

Can someone please give me a technical explanation?
The Hugo2's output power is rated at:
94mW 300Ω
740mW 32Ω
1050mW 8Ω

If my headphone's impedance is 110Ω, what is the output power?
I use an LCD-3 and in its specs it says the recommended power is >250mW, but it doesn't say at which impedance. Does it mean it's at the headphone's impedance?
I own the Hugo2 and I think it matches wonderfully with the LCD-3, and to my ears it's powerful enough to produce good transients. The sound is very dynamic.
The LCD-3 impedance is ~110Ω. I can't do the math but logic says at 110Ω the Hugo's output will be above 250mW.

Can anyone shed a light please?

 

[JaZZ]

I can't do the math but logic says at 110Ω the Hugo's output will be above 250mW.

It's not entirely a mathematical issue, you would have to measure to get the exact value. But interpolating between 94 and 740 mW is accurate enough – it's probably around 260 mW.

BTW, Audeze use the Hugo₂ for demonstrating the LCD-4, saying it drives it perfectly (although that contradicts their own power-reserve recommendation).

 

[Chikolad]

It's not entirely a mathematical issue, you would have to measure to get the exact value. But interpolating between 94 and 740 mW is accurate enough – it's probably around 260 mW.

BTW, Audeze use the Hugo₂ for demonstrating the LCD-4, saying it drives it perfectly (although that contradicts their own power-reserve recommendation).

Does it contradict it though? doesn't the 250mW recommendation already take power reserve into account?

 

[miketlse]

As a first pass, @JaZZ is right that around 260 mW is a good start point.
You have to consider also the difference between max power (for a given % of level of distortion), and the rate at which the level of power can be changed, for instance at a transient such as a stop/start of a note. The analogy is the between the top speed of a car, and the acceleration that it can produce to go go from 0 to the top speed.
So if you already use a Hugo2 and LCD-3 and find everything ok, and Audeze find the Hugo2 and LCD-4 is similarly good, then I suggest that you have little to worry about.

 

[JaZZ]

Does it contradict it though? doesn't the 250mW recommendation already take power reserve into account?

I was talking of the LCD-4, for which Audeze recommend >500 mW. Its 200 ohm and a sensitivity of just 97 dB/mW (compared to 101 dB/mW for the LCD-3) make it a considerably harder to drive headphone.

 

[betula]

There will be debates about drivability on these forums forever.
The fact is, a lot of devices won't give you a satisfying sound even though on paper they can drive a certain headphone.
Part of this is personal sound preference, another part is data on paper doesn't always reflect reality.
The thing is, you'll have to try for yourself and just go with what you like, what sounds best to your ears.
Numbers and recommendations only give a very vague idea.

 

[miketlse]

There will be debates about drivability on these forums forever.
The fact is, a lot of devices won't give you a satisfying sound even though on paper they can drive a certain headphone.
Part of this is personal sound preference, another part is data on paper doesn't always reflect reality.
The thing is, you'll have to try for yourself and just go with what you like, what sounds best to your ears.
Numbers and recommendations only give a very vague idea.

I differ in opinion slightly, in that the numbers are measurable and quantifiable.
The unquantifiable elements (ie qualitative) are personal sound preference, bias, etc which are not accurately measurable, even with a load of electrodes attached to ones scalp.
The numbers give a very precise idea, but human mindsets introduce the vagaries, and that is the world that we have to live with.

 

[betula]

I differ in opinion slightly, in that the numbers are measurable and quantifiable.
The unquantifiable elements (ie qualitative) are personal sound preference, bias, etc which are not accurately measurable, even with a load of electrodes attached to ones scalp.
The numbers give a very precise idea, but human mindsets introduce the vagaries, and that is the world that we have to live with.

Numbers are numbers. All brains are different, all ears are different.
With audio gear we are talking about reproducing sound. And that sound is music in most of the cases. Music is very close to love. Can you measure and quantify love?
Only the accuracy of sound reproduction can be measured.
My point is, there are too many variables here in the final equation. Numbers only cover one variable.
It is a personal hobby afterall, isn't it?

 

[miketlse]

Numbers are numbers. All brains are different, all ears are different.
With audio gear we are talking about reproducing sound. And that sound is music in most of the cases. Music is very close to love. Can you measure and quantify love?
Only the accuracy of sound reproduction can be measured.
My point is, there are too many variables here in the final equation. Numbers only cover one variable.
It is a personal hobby afterall, isn't it?

Numbers are the quantifiable part, and cover many variables, and so can be measured. Everything else is qualitative, and one mans love is another mans hate, so i don't debate that.

 

[Chikolad]

I was talking of the LCD-4, for which Audeze recommend >500 mW. Its 200 ohm and a sensitivity of just 97 dB/mW (compared to 101 dB/mW for the LCD-3) make it a considerably harder to drive headphone.

Gotcha, good point. Is it a consensus that the Hugo2 drives the LCD-4 to or close to its full potential?

 

[JaZZ]

Gotcha, good point. Is it a consensus that the Hugo2 drives the LCD-4 to or close to its full potential?

Certainly not. There are people who use a power amp for driving the (easy-to-drive) HE1000se or even the Utopia and swear by it.

A while back I have auditioned the LCD-4 with my original Hugo and had no complaints. The extremely unsensitive Susvara (which according to some definitely needs a speaker amp) sounded better driven directly by the DAVE than via the powerful HiFiMan EF-1000 amp designed for it.

I suspect in some cases it might also be a psychological effect in that having to turn the volume regulator almost to max feels like underpowering. And in some cases people simply like the added harmonic distortion leading to increased authority and «bass control».

In any event you will lose transparency and resolution by adding an amp to the Hugo₂. In turn it may provide some forgivingness with respect to tonal flaws (from the notoriously nonlinear sound transducers).