I’ve had my Hugo2 for 3 days now. I have done a good session of A/B back and forths with my Hi-Fi system as well as some headphones in a shop. From what I have heard the brain can’t remember the quality of sounds for very long, so for me switching between products in quick succession is how I have gathered my findings.
I’ve compared it to my 2Qute. My speakers are ELAC BS244 and my amp is the Yamaha A-S2100. The Hugo2 is slightly more resolving in this system. This is a compliment to the 2Qute, in that the Hugo2 didn’t wipe the floor with it, and it takes concentration to hear the differences for me in this system, though they are noticeable enough once I pick what parts to listen for. The Hugo2 has, to my ears, the same tonal signature with a bit more depth and separation, mid/upper frequencies have a bit more clarity (I especially noticed this on guitars sounding slightly clearer and this is where I am most pleased). When I first bought the 2Qute, I auditioned it to next to the Qute and Audiolab M-DAC and settled on the 2Qute. The margin between the Qute and 2Qute is a similarly slight leap in quality that took the same concentration to identify. These margins aren’t so huge they would impede my enjoyment of the music to me, I just like to know I am getting the most I can with the system I have. With the Hugo2 in my system however, I can’t say I noticed a difference in the presentation of bass. Not to say I am at all disappointed in that, I’ve never considered the 2Qute’s rendering of bass to be anything other than super pleasing. That may say something about my system (or ears) because when some people compare the Hugo1 (same taps as the 2Qute) to the Hugo2 they report better bass and that would likely come down to the right headphones revealing that.
If it was just to be used solely as a desktop solution I wouldn’t have bothered making the leap due to the high expense involved, I would still be pleased with the 2Qute. But now can sell it and delve into headphones/IEMs and have the versatility to take it with me with headphones (or plug into friend’s systems easily) as I did with my now sold Mojo. It is a more versatile product with improved sound, I have to say I am super impressed they could fit it all in the size it is. I consider it portable on the go audio, I use a backpack and my legs shall not break with the addition of 400g for when I choose to walk around with it with IEMs, I am pretty strong I know. I shall use a neoprene mesh style pouch to keep it scratch free. It is a very well designed and implemented machine, I got the black one and the finish is excellent.
It took a moment to get used to the sound on my Sure 535 IEMs. The new detail in the mid/upper regions made me think for the first time they lacked bass. The brain adjustment thing seems real. I don’t remember thinking this with the Mojo. This was an unusual experience, because I never considered them to be lacking in that department before. I think this is an interesting addition to what other people have been saying about the Hugo2 which boils down to it makes you hear your headphones as they are.
I found my Sure SE535 the most resolving I have heard them, but I learned they could be more fun. I auditioned of the Campfire Vega and the Dorado. More fun. The Vegas were the warmest, as Currawong has said on youtube the bass on the Vegas is “thunderous". Any basshead who wants more bass from these is probably a basehead. Cohesive is a word I've also heard of them. True. The Dorado IEMs had similarly fun bass and a certain crispness that may or may not be preferred to the tone of the Vega, they have balanced armatures only for the upper ranges for more resolution. I also heard the Sennheiser HD800s and the HiFiMan HE1000. They both sounded similar, great detail with nice air. The HE1000 having a slightly different tone, like slightly more mellow, in the high frequencies to my ears. They both have pleasing well balanced bass to my ears and I enjoyed them both. I didn’t get the feeling from my headphone/IEM auditions that the Hugo2 was lean. The comparison between them all just let me know my SE535 IEMs are leaner than I previously thought but still a pleasing listen through the Hugo2. This might be a takeaway a previous member posted about thinking the Hugo2 was too lean with the HD800s. There are headphones with a bassier sound signature if equalisation doesn't work.
For my purposes, I am steering towards the Vegas unless the Andromedas are compelling over them when I get to hear them (they were out of stock at the time). Anyone who owns the Campfire Vege IEMs, does the bass get too much over a while? May be a preference thing, that is my only thought against them but I imagine listening at lower levels whilst still getting great bass is something that would be better for my long term hearing.
