[musickid]

the volume ball did not change colour no matter the rotation. my dealer has let me keep the unit to enjoy my music while a replacement is sorted out. i'm sure this is just a small blip that has been nipped in the bud. remote controls volume fine with no issues.

 

[thePhones]

I don't know, my aging father insists that oversaturated colours and clamped blacks and boosted gamma look better on his television than a proper calibration, no matter how I try to explain it to him. He also loves frame interpolated 'clear motion' which I can't stomach. Not so different from audio IMO and each person has their preferences.

That´s why I said most people
For me the clear motion looks ok until it tends to look unnatural. Maybe if the TV´s just would hit a speed of reproduction where the brain can´t tell a difference to the real world it would be insanely good, but as long as they stay in this realm where it´s not real but also not cinematic art (24 fps) than it becomes annoying. But as you said could also be just a matter of taste.

 

[Peter Hyatt]

After Saturday's Can-Jam I went back to my hotel and watched F1 qualifying on the TV. I was struck by how amazingly good the picture quality was, and how much visual standards has clearly improved over the past 30 years. And similarly with audio; but whereas video is easy to appreciate (nobody would say a modern TV looked worse than a 90's TV), in audio plenty of guys would claim that their (often silly money) DAC was much better - but to me it clearly looks like the equivalent to a 90's TV.

Why is there often a complete lack of objectivity when assessing audio, when to me major differences sound so clearly and obviously better? Or am I guilty of hyper sensitivity? Having said all that, my daughters claim that they can see no difference between SD video and 1080p HD video on my projector; but I suspect they are trying (successfully) to wind me up....

I think it is helpful to close one's eyes.

In difficult interviews, I must concentrate on the words chosen, not upon inflection nor facial communication. I often look away.
In listenig to H2 critically, I routinely close my eyes to shut down further brain interpretation.

 

[Whazzzup]

You are blessed if you can't hear differences in sq that appeals to your preference. You probably have less loyalty rewards on your credit cards as a by product tho.

 

[bluenight]

What I am trying to say is that you don't need to be listening to audiophile approved music, to net substantial improvement in SQ with Hugo 2.

One thing what hi fi review mentioned is that hg2 isent as picky as hg1 when it comes to playing lower quality files like 320kbs spotify stream. So hg2 will dig out more details with them and be able to sound really great even then. Any one else notice this? Im not into highres files my self.

 

[Whazzzup]

the source matters a lot.

 

[audi0nick128]

One thing what hi fi review mentioned is that hg2 isent as picky as hg1 when it comes to playing lower quality files like 320kbs spotify stream. So hg2 will dig out more details with them and be able to sound really great even then. Any one else notice this? Im not into highres files my self.

Can't really comment on this, since I mostly listen to EAC rips or Tidal Hifi and a few high res recordings.

 

[musickid]

can confirm that even within tidal the hifi lossless tracks sound better than those "non-hifi" tidal tracks. more dynamic, fuller with more "energy".

 

[514077]

After Saturday's Can-Jam I went back to my hotel and watched F1 qualifying on the TV. I was struck by how amazingly good the picture quality was, and how much visual standards has clearly improved over the past 30 years. And similarly with audio; but whereas video is easy to appreciate (nobody would say a modern TV looked worse than a 90's TV), in audio plenty of guys would claim that their (often silly money) DAC was much better - but to me it clearly looks like the equivalent to a 90's TV.

Why is there often a complete lack of objectivity when assessing audio, when to me major differences sound so clearly and obviously better? Or am I guilty of hyper sensitivity? Having said all that, my daughters claim that they can see no difference between SD video and 1080p HD video on my projector; but I suspect they are trying (successfully) to wind me up....

Is it not the nature of the beast? When the average human receives 87% of the brain's input through the eyes, what can one expect? The eyes have always been given more shrift than the ears. People trust eyes more. How many pics are posted on Head-Fi to give credence to an audio report? How many times are people slagged for hearing a change in an after-market cord or other product, just because not everyone can hear it? People seem to be more upset over pretty lights than blown away by the immediate uptake in clarity from the H2. I think, Mr Watts, that you're banging your head against the wall in trying to get people to trust their auditory acuity over what smacks their eyes. But keep banging. I, for one, believe in your ears. It was apparent from the moment I listened to a 44.1k track from my out-of-the-box Hugo2.

 

[Wyd4]

Agreed.
It is easy to associate a good image with clarity.

I think another problem for some when actually taking notice when listening is they don't listen consciously for long. Meaning they tend to like that exciting heavy hitting bass and sparkly exaggerated highs and attribute that to being what sounds 'good'.

It is also exposure. It is everywhere in mainstream stores and advertising. HD this, qhd that. Stores are full of accessible TVs etc.

Flip side, the same 'hifi' stores pitch iPod touch and sony x-bass or beats Bluetooth headphones as being hifi. Consumers just don't have exposure to true hifi.

From my experience when allowing people to audition my gear (people open to it but not necessarily exposed to it) have been blown away by how good headphones can sound.

So to that end Mr Watts never stop doing what you do. When I get a promotion... Or two... I will be partaking in your line of products.

Already fighting the urge to sell my Alo cdm and sons bicycle to pick up a hugo2

 

[uzi2]

I've not seen her around vinyl but a few times and each time it was background and she wasn't listening.

She loves live music. We got season tickets to Bangor Symphony Orchestra this year and she loved it. We sat close and she concentrated. The only thing is she cannot answer a question or even acknowledge a whispered comment while listening to the music.

We also went to Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes concert (horns) and sat near the front. She loved it. Her only distraction was looking to see if the kids were enjoying it (they were).

When we saw Bob Dylan, we were in a crowd, outdoors, standing. She was also watching the kids, so she was not concentrating on the music. She was distracted but did not report any discomfort.

Before you posted this, I have not thought of her reaction to analog music; only data. This is worth exploration.

The AA didn't impact grades (4.0 in college) nor professionally, until two people speak at once. She often gets no information from either when it happens.

I was going to ask the same question as @Christer . I am wondering whether it is the unnatural sound of headphones that may be the cause of the problems and whether crossfeed may help. The other thing is that listening via headphones makes you concentrate more on the music, so that could be the cause in itself.

 

[514077]

That´s why I said most people
For me the clear motion looks ok until it tends to look unnatural. Maybe if the TV´s just would hit a speed of reproduction where the brain can´t tell a difference to the real world it would be insanely good, but as long as they stay in this realm where it´s not real but also not cinematic art (24 fps) than it becomes annoying. But as you said could also be just a matter of taste.

Interesting; I forgot. Visual acuracy is to 24 F/Sec. According to Hans Veekhuisen, hearing comes down to around 7 microseconds.

 

[514077]

the source matters a lot.

Yes, but what can be done with source material also matters. H2 seems to pull a bit more out of MP3 than other DAPs and DACs I've tried. (Hugo1 included).

 

[Peter Hyatt]

Compatible DAPs for Hugo 2:

Mojo is a Digital to Analogue converter device, so it takes in a digital signal, converts it into an analog signal and outputs the analog signal via the Headphone Out. The DAP/Transport being paired with the Mojo, must be capable of sending digital signal out to Mojo for the device to work. Some DAPs do NOT send Digital Signal Out.

DAPs that CAN be used with the Hugo 2:
- Apple iPod Touch 5th Gen, 6th Gen (USB)
- Astell & Kern AK100, AK120, AK240 (Optical)
- Astell & Kern AK100ii, AK120ii, AK300, AK320, AK380 (Optical and USB)
- Astell & Kern AK70 (USB)
- Audio Opus #1, #2 (Optical)
- Cayin N5, N6 (Coaxial)
- Caying I5, N3 (USB)
- Cowon Plenue 1, Plenue 2, Plenue M, Plenue M2, Plenue R, Plenue S (Optical)
- Fiio X3, X3ii, X3iii, X5, X5ii (Coaxial)
- Fiio X5iii, X7, X7ii (Coaxial and USB)
- Fiio X7ii
- Hidizs AP60 (USB)
- Hidizs AP100 (Coaxial)
- iBasso DX50, DX90 (Coaxial)
- iBasso DX80, DX100, DX200 (Coaxial and Optical)
- Lotoo Paw 5000 (Optical)
- Luxury & Precision L3, L3Pro, L5Pro (Coaxial)
- Onkyo DP-X1, DP-X1A (USB)
- Questyle QP1, QP1R , QP2R (Optical)
- Pioneer XDP-100R, XDP-300R (USB)
- Shanling M1, M2S (USB)
- Shanling M2, M5 (Coaxial)
- Shanling M3 (Optical)
- Sony Walkman A15, A16, A17, A25, A26, A27, ZX100, ZX1, ZX2 (USB)
- Soundaware Esther, M1 Series (Coaxial)

Uncertain List - Please check in the respective threads if these DAPs can do Digital Out:
- Hidizs AP200
- Hifiman Megamini, Supermini, HM650, HM802, HM802S, HM901, HM901S
- Onkyo DP-S1
- Pioneer XDP-30R
- Sony NW-A35/A37, WM1A, WM1Z

DAPs that CANNOT be used the with the Mojo:
- Apple iPod Nano, Classic
- Astell & Kern AK Jr
- Cowon Plenue D
- Fiio M3, X1, X1ii
- Lotoo PAW Gold
- Luxury & Precision L5
- Sandisk Sansa Players
- Sony E Series Players

Will Update Later:
- Astel and Kern Kann
- A&Ultima SP1000
- Sony A45, ZX300

hey thanks for this. Will the dig aud players own internal DAC interfere with Hugo 2? sorry for beginner question. I went to fiio website and it talks about how good their players dacs are

 

[514077]

hey thanks for this. Will the dig aud players own internal DAC interfere with Hugo 2? sorry for beginner question. I went to fiio website and it talks about how good their players dacs are

In general, the digital out bypasses the internal DAC of the player. So there shouldn't be any interferance.