[GreenBow]

This was posted over on the 2Qute thread today by @panditji :

Here we go...The Qutest is launched at CES

https://www.speakershack.co.uk/articleResult.php?subject=2&record=2439

Qutest; I think it's stunning. Based on the Hugo spec wise, it's going to be great.

 

[dmance]

No volume control on Qutest. So I guess it means using source control over the USB 32-bit audio samples. ...Just like on the original 2Qute. Flexible output line level is nice though.

 

[ray-dude]

No volume control on Qutest. So I guess it means using source control over the USB 32-bit audio samples. ...Just like on the original 2Qute. Flexible output line level is nice though.

Curious that the portable product has a remote and that the desktop product does not. I wonder what output power it can support.

Inclusion of 768kHz support is killer, and reflects a commitment to mScaler up and down the line, which is fantastic!

 

[Light - Man]

Yes, the new Qutest should be successful with the versatility of having 3 output options of 1v, 2v & 3volts with a handy 5volt input supply.

I think that Chord would have shot themselves in the foot if they had variable volume output like the H2, etc.

It does not have crossfeed but has filters like the H2.

It could have been worse - as it has increased from £1000 to £1200 which I hope is not too cheap for our @Christer ?

Makes us wonder what amps guys will use with it or if it is powerful enough to use with digital volume control.

 

[Triode User]

Curious that the portable product has a remote and that the desktop product does not. I wonder what output power it can support.

Surely the point is that it doesn't support any power output, it is a DAC without a headphone amplifier.

 

[dmance]

...reflects a commitment to mScaler up and down the line, which is fantastic!

Ray,
Your Blu2 review inspired a lot of people (and settled the mystery of what's going on with USB) ... thanks!.
There are perhaps a dozen DAC s now with pcm768/dsd512 input. At this high rate, the heavy lifting of upsampling magic can be performed by external software ...leaving the hardware in the DAC to finesse the analog output.

I'll try hard to save up for an M-Scaler but I think $1500 for a powerful source laptop able to run high tap count filters may be also likely for many Qutest owners who listen to digital only content.

 

[Triode User]

Ray,
Your Blu2 review inspired a lot of people (and settled the mystery of what's going on with USB) ... thanks!.
There are perhaps a dozen DAC s now with pcm768/dsd512 input. At this high rate, the heavy lifting of upsampling magic can be performed by external software ...leaving the hardware in the DAC to finesse the analog output.

I'll try hard to save up for an M-Scaler but I think $1500 for a powerful source laptop able to run high tap count filters may be also likely for many Qutest owners who listen to digital only content.

"the heavy lifting of upsampling magic can be performed by external software"

Ah, but if only that were true. How many external software processors do you know that weave the MScaler magic? Yep, that's right, none (well none that I have found).

 

[musicday]

Hopefully there will be another product released at CES 2018 , such as 2 Go

 

[Peter Hyatt]

Hopefully there will be another product released at CES 2018 , such as 2 Go

I am checking online for updates. The new home DAC looks terrific. Poly bugs seem to be now rising to the surface and being addressed nicely. A "poly" device for Hugo 2 would be magnificent. I agree with others who are praising the sound of poly/mojo combo.

I also wonder if Chord will surprise us with some announcement (or even just talk) of some interesting future product that hasn't been discussed here.

 

[ray-dude]

We'll know soon enough. My kingdom (and credit card) for a Hugo2TT!

 

[ray-dude]

"the heavy lifting of upsampling magic can be performed by external software"

Ah, but if only that were true. How many external software processors do you know that weave the MScaler magic? Yep, that's right, none (well none that I have found).

There's definitely a place for both!

I found it a lot of fun to be play with software upsamplers. I learned a HECK of a lot about digital music, and what I enjoy and don't enjoy in musical reproduction. I've never been a tube guy, but it was my personal version of tube rolling (at least in the digital realm), playing with different variants to see what things sound like and what works better for me. Great experience!

That being said, with the WTA, it's all about removing as much as possible before and after the WTA, not adding to it. Any tweak or component I've tried may add some things, but it takes away a lot of the magic in the process.

 

[jarnopp]

We'll know soon enough. My kingdom (and credit card) for a Hugo2TT!

I think the Qutest is the Hugo2 TT. It will need to be paired with a digital amp (coming soon?) and a streamer front-end (also coming, along with 2Go?).

 

[Whazzzup]

I doubt it, the analogue components, milled chassis, supercapacitors isn’t no Qutest. Or Qutest ain’t no TT. I figure which is fine by me, you have over a year before a tt2 is launched.

 

[514077]

I don't remember; was the Hugo2 announced at CES last year, or at some canjam later in February? CES seems to be moving away from hi-end audio and focusing on gimicky new tech. Makes me think we might still be in for some Chord surprises later on.

 

[miketlse]

I don't remember; was the Hugo2 announced at CES last year, or at some canjam later in February? CES seems to be moving away from hi-end audio and focusing on gimicky new tech. Makes me think we might still be in for some Chord surprises later on.

The first post in this thread, was dated 5th Jan.