[Music Alchemist]

I'm new to head-fi and still reading up but I actually haven't seen someone stating the opposite.

Out of the dozens of comparisons I've read, only a few preferred the Hugo over the 2Qute. Check out the 2Qute thread for lots of impressions.

 

[jayz]

,

Hi Adrian,

I have to disagree with you here. I did an A/B comparison between Hugo 1 and 2Qute, where the only changed part in the system was the DAC. The 2Qute sounded warmer while the Hugo was much more natural and had very noticable increase in detail and depth.

The issue is that the interpretation of what exactly "detail" means is different. In our mission to improve detail and resolution of our audio systems, we try to seek more of a certain aspect of the sound signature that we like. If you've been to any hifi show, just pick a few brochures of new models of speakers and I can guarantee a majority will claim the new version features more detail in the top or bottom compared to outgoing model. The trouble is, if you were to put all these different brands in one room and critically compare them against each other, it will be a very confusing picture as to which one has more details.

This is why it may help sometimes to explain why a certain component sounds more detailed. For example, someone might say a particular speaker has a very fast and detailed bottom-end because the many strands of harmonic resonances as they peak and decay, are easy to follow in a particular solo piano track featuring a steinway grand.

Even a brief explanation will help IMO.

 

[dawktah2]

Out of the dozens of comparisons I've read, only a few preferred the Hugo over the 2Qute. Check out the 2Qute thread for lots of impressions.

I am purchasing the Qutest on reputation and impressions alone. I am not concerned about the loss of transparency that Mr. Watts talked about when I use my tube amp. I have briefly listened to the Mojo and the different is dramatic compared to the two DACs I have. I was warned against the 2Qute because of its 3v output so I am overjoyed the Qutest comes with variable output. I originally was looking for balanced output but realize that low noise isn't a concern of mine with my age. I will need interconnect cable recommendations that are not custom made but are high quality. I will however get or make a custom power cable for the amp.

 

[elviscaprice]

Interesting indeed... Aside me and my friend on that one audition, I also know someone who has had both the Hugo and 2Qute and he sold the 2Qute for the same reason. I'm new to head-fi and still reading up but I actually haven't seen someone stating the opposite. Just for clarity: my A/B comparisons where made with the Hugo 1 and 2Qute as DAC in a hi-fi system with speakers only.

I have had both these DAC's, Hugo and 2Qute. I think it really depends on implementation and system synergy. With a good LPS, the 2Qute was easily the winner over the Hugo. But I don't know if this will be the case with Hugo 2 and Qutest. The Hugo 2, feature wise is a far bigger upgrade over Hugo than the Qutest over the 2Qute.
Regardless, the Qutest and Hugo 2 play to different feature needs and really are no competition to each other. In fact, when the time is right, I may go with Hugo 2 over Qutest or remain with 2Qute until a new Chord DAC hits all my needs.

 

[Currawong]

Hello Rob or anyone else: I'm still at least a little confused. Should I assume that
Macs should be avoided for upsampling to dsd 256 or 512? If so I would appreciate
some recommendations for a reasonably priced plug and play server that would
be Qutest compatible for upsampling/playback of at least dsd 256. Assuming
this does not exist, and a Mac is a no go, what PC solution simple enough for a
computer semi illiterate would you recommend?

Thank You-

Personally, I wouldn't try and up-sample to DSD. It is not going to give you any benefits. Not to mention, once you get up to DSD256, you're sending over 2MB/sec to the DAC using USB Audio, which is significantly large. I can get this reliably working with the Hugo 2 and Audirvana Plus on a Mac with 16GB RAM and the memory limit set well, but not too far above the size largest track I'm going to play (currently a 9 minute DSD256 file which is about 1.5GB in size). Now also, I'm using good-quality USB cables, an iUSB 3.0 and the Mac does nothing other than play music. But it doesn't surprise me that people are having issues. Asking a USB 2.0 interface, which is designed to share up to 127 devices and assumes interrupts to provide real-time transmission at DSD256 and above is definitely pushing your luck.

 

[Rob Watts]

Up-sampling to DSD 256 from PCM will sound very much worse than just feeding the original PCM to Qutest - and this is for a number of reasons.

 

[Music Alchemist]

For those in the US:

http://blog.moon-audio.com/chord-qutest-dac-need-know/

"Want to Preorder the Chord Qutest?

Sign up below and you’ll be the FIRST to know once pricing is finalized and its available for purchase."

 

[miketlse]

For those in the US:

http://blog.moon-audio.com/chord-qutest-dac-need-know/

"Want to Preorder the Chord Qutest?

Sign up below and you’ll be the FIRST to know once pricing is finalized and its available for purchase."

They also have $200 of the Elear, which I remember you used to own.

 

[Music Alchemist]

They also have $200 of the Elear, which I remember you used to own;

Well, $200 off the original retail price...but it's available new on Amazon for as low as $740 now, so it's not like it's a deal you can't get elsewhere.

 

[miketlse]

Well, $200 off the original retail price...but it's available new on Amazon for as low as $740 now, so it's not like it's a deal you can't get elsewhere.

Moon Audio recently did have some good deals on open box Focal headphones. They would have interested me, if I had lived in US.

 

[Music Alchemist]

A few thoughts on the CES video with Rob and John...

I noticed it was pronounced Qutest (emphasis on second syllable and with an E sound instead of I) rather than how one would normally pronounce the word cutest. I wonder if this is how they intend it to be pronounced or if it comes down to personal choice. (Most will pronounce it like cutest anyway, of course.)

It was nice to see the product being handled.

I'm especially glad to know there will be more affordable M-Scalers in the future. (All of which should be Qutest-compatible.) So we can look forward to sound quality that is (presumably) equal or superior to the Blu MkII at a (hopefully significantly) lower price. I'd certainly prefer a standalone M-Scaler without having to pay for other features I wouldn't use.

 

[AndrewH13]

A few thoughts on the CES video with Rob and John...

I noticed it was pronounced Qutest (emphasis on second syllable and with an E sound instead of I) rather than how one would normally pronounce the word cutest. I wonder if this is how they intend it to be pronounced or if it comes down to personal choice. (Most will pronounce it like cutest anyway, of course.)

It was nice to see the product being handled.

I'm especially glad to know there will be more affordable M-Scalers in the future. (All of which should be Qutest-compatible.) So we can look forward to sound quality that is (presumably) equal or superior to the Blu MkII at a (hopefully significantly) lower price. I'd certainly prefer a standalone M-Scaler without having to pay for other features I wouldn't use.

Haha, I noticed that. I expected 'qutest kitten in the basket' pronounciation. Maybe John and Rob were forgetting Chord's Kent roots, and using their posh voices for the interview

 

[miketlse]

Haha, I noticed that. I expected 'qutest kitten in the basket' pronounciation. Maybe John and Rob were forgetting Chord's Kent roots, and using their posh voices for the interview

Their audience for videos is global, so talking with british regional accents can confuse many potential customers around the globe.

 

[Music Alchemist]

Haha, I noticed that. I expected 'qutest kitten in the basket' pronounciation. Maybe John and Rob were forgetting Chord's Kent roots, and using their posh voices for the interview

Their audience for videos is global, so talking with british regional accents can confuse many potential customers around the globe.

I await the Queen's review.

(Sorry, couldn't resist making this. I hope it's found in good taste.)

 

[miketlse]

I await the Queen's review.



(Sorry, couldn't resist making this. I hope it's found in good taste.)

No offence taken.
The difficulties with accents apply to many cultures/countries.
I find it much easier to understand parisien accents, compared to the accents of SW France.
Many french youngsters speak english with a US accent, because they partly learn the language from watching US films.