[Gibson59]

Zeos can certainly be entertaining (and equally annoying) but I would never buy something based on his “review”. I can only watch for a little while before his shtick gets old. I couldn’t agree more with @Wildcatsare1 that he’s got very little credibility in his approach. I’ve only been into this hobby for a couple years and it’s readily apparent to me.

 

[Arniesb]

Zeos can certainly be entertaining (and equally annoying) but I would never buy something based on his “review”. I can only watch for a little while before his shtick gets old. I couldn’t agree more with @Wildcatsare1 that he’s got very little credibility in his approach. I’ve only been into this hobby for a couple years and it’s readily apparent to me.

Its hard to trust anyone when lot of reviews are bought or almost anyone fanboying over certain brand or just simply do quick swaps or listen few hours on meet and make reviews.

 

[turbomustang84]

Anyone basing a purchase on any YouTube Review is making a mistake .

Although I don't claim to know everything but I've been into the high end audio hobbie well before most of these YouTube reviewer's were born ,so I watch reviewer's like Zeos because he makes me laugh .

I do look at reviews of verified purchasers on Amazon which is mostly for build quality and durability and those are what made me shy away from the only Chord purchase I actually was considering the Mojo .

There are a bunch of purchasers that had their mojo quit working ,
so that being the most talked about chord product I am unlikely to buy the Qutest unless I can find evidence that it will be better than the mojo .

Because paid reviewer's will not sway me but people that actually bought an item only to have it fail in a short time will .

I do own the Geshelli Enog2 Dac ,anyone own both the Geshelli and the Qutest ?

 

[betula]

Anyone basing a purchase on any YouTube Review is making a mistake .

...

I do look at reviews of verified purchasers on Amazon which is mostly for build quality and durability and those are what made me shy away from the only Chord purchase I actually was considering the Mojo .

There are a bunch of purchasers that had their mojo quit working ...

That's a big truth. The problem is youtube reviewers and 'influencers' have become nowdays half gods. A lot of inexperienced people follow them blindly and think they speak THE truth. They forget that's just one persons opinion even if it has 10K+views.

I also try to find every available information before purchase and then try to audition which isn't always possible. By now I have come to a state where I don't believe anyone. All the information can only give you a very vague idea how something might sound. The only real test and review is your own ears.

Regarding Mojo I wouldn't worry. It is one of the most successful portable DAC/amp ever made. Chord sold 60.000+ it is inevitable you will read about problems (mostly battery). The happy 59.867 Mojo owners won't post as much as the unhappy 133. And even for them Chord has most likely solved the issue. (I was one of them, got a replacement immediately.)

Chord products are one of the best built products I have come across. My Qutest is like a solid brick, you could use it as a lethal weapon and it would keep working. Also, there isn't much in it that can go wrong... No moving parts, no battery.
Don't shy away from this (IMO) revolutionary sound because of a few Mojo battery failures (which often can be the user's fault).

 

[turbomustang84]

That's a big truth. The problem is youtube reviewers and 'influencers' have become nowdays half gods. A lot of inexperienced people follow them blindly and think they speak THE truth. They forget that's just one persons opinion even if it has 10K+views.

I also try to find every available information before purchase and then try to audition which isn't always possible. By now I have come to a state where I don't believe anyone. All the information can only give you a very vague idea how something might sound. The only real test and review is your own ears.

Regarding Mojo I wouldn't worry. It is one of the most successful portable DAC/amp ever made. Chord sold 60.000+ it is inevitable you will read about problems (mostly battery). The happy 59.867 Mojo owners won't post as much as the unhappy 133. And even for them Chord has most likely solved the issue. (I was one of them, got a replacement immediately.)

Chord products are one of the best built products I have come across. My Qutest is like a solid brick, you could use it as a lethal weapon and it would keep working. Also, there isn't much in it that can go wrong... No moving parts, no battery.
Don't shy away from this (IMO) revolutionary sound because of a few Mojo battery failures (which often can be the user's fault).

Chord has been around a long time and although ive never purchased any of their products they have a fantastic reputation .

But as far as home Amplifiers go I am kind of a a Nelson Pass fan boy so I've got that end of my system covered.

But I really would like to have a hands on listen to the Qutest to see how it compares to what I already have tried but it has a price that it would have to be considerably better than my Geshelli Enog2 which is awfully good in my opinion but from a design perspective the Qutest is in a different league .

But now i might take another look at the Mojo because I need a portable just wish it was balanced

 

[betula]

Chord has been around a long time and although ive never purchased any of their products they have a fantastic reputation .

But as far as home Amplifiers go I am kind of a a Nelson Pass fan boy so I've got that end of my system covered.

But I really would like to have a hands on listen to the Qutest to see how it compares to what I already have tried but it has a price that it would have to be considerably better than my Geshelli Enog2 which is awfully good in my opinion but from a design perspective the Qutest is in a different league .

But now i might take another look at the Mojo because I need a portable just wish it was balanced

These days there is too much to read about balanced/single ended. It is because more and more people are getting into this hobby and on less-expensive gear (below £/$1000) balanced has obvious advantages vs. SE. More power will almost always sound better: more space, better separation, enhanced tightness. It is easy to achieve this on lower-end gear.
When you move to higher-end gear balanced or SE output become meaningless. Implementation is all that matters. Hugo TT2 has SE out only as default (yes, I know it can output balanced at the back) but that SE out humiliates most of the balanced amps under £3000.

 

[Roybenz]

Hi Guys,
Sorry if I am asking in the wrong thread, can any kind souls please help. My current setup is: Amp: Simaudio HAD 430 (DAC model), Source is SP 1000, I also have a ALO CDM. Should I invest in a Qutest since I basically have three different DACs ie, My amp has a ESS Sabre 32bit 9018, my source SP1000 has dual AKM chips think its AK 4497EQ which I can use as a DAC and my ALO CDM has Wolfson DAC on board which I can also use as a DAC using Line out.

Will I see a significant increase in sound reproduction to all of the above combos I have in hand or should I just invest in something else. Thank you for your times guys.

Hi did you go for the qutest? Was it better than the one in 430had?

 

[betula]

Qutest might be expensive, especially in the US. (Same way US products like Headpamp are more expensive in Europe.)
I bought my Qutest brand new for £1000/$1300: I am done with DAC purchases for many years. Until I can afford TT2 which will be a good 2-3 years I guess.
Having the best possible DAC under $2000 gives me the freedom to experiment with the best amps I can afford.
The amp can only amplify the signal it gets from the DAC. IMO quality of DACs are underestimated in this hobby.

 

[Arniesb]

Qutest might be expensive, especially in the US. (Same way US products like Headpamp are more expensive in Europe.)
I bought my Qutest brand new for £1000/$1300: I am done with DAC purchases for many years. Until I can afford TT2 which will be a good 2-3 years I guess.
Having the best possible DAC under $2000 gives me the freedom to experiment with the best amps I can afford.
The amp can only amplify the signal it gets from the DAC. IMO quality of DACs are underestimated in this hobby.

I would say amp 65 and dac 35 percent importantce for me. With great amp and average dac music can still sound great, but good dac wont add dynamics, drive, punch and kick like amp do. I dont think dac can make or break headphone, but certainly help to reveal even more potential.

 

[Deftone]

Qutest might be expensive, especially in the US. (Same way US products like Headpamp are more expensive in Europe.)
I bought my Qutest brand new for £1000/$1300: I am done with DAC purchases for many years. Until I can afford TT2 which will be a good 2-3 years I guess.
Having the best possible DAC under $2000 gives me the freedom to experiment with the best amps I can afford.
The amp can only amplify the signal it gets from the DAC. IMO quality of DACs are underestimated in this hobby.

It seems that everyone wants a TT2, including me lol.

 

[DMax99]

Hi all,

I already love the sound of my Qutest heaps. Will the M Scaler take it to the next level? Is it worth the $$$ investment since it's much more $$$ than the Qutest?

Cheers

 

[Macaron]

Qutest might be expensive, especially in the US. (Same way US products like Headpamp are more expensive in Europe.)
I bought my Qutest brand new for £1000/$1300: I am done with DAC purchases for many years. Until I can afford TT2 which will be a good 2-3 years I guess.
Having the best possible DAC under $2000 gives me the freedom to experiment with the best amps I can afford.
The amp can only amplify the signal it gets from the DAC. IMO quality of DACs are underestimated in this hobby.

I fully agree, Linn always said "source first" and I completely agree after having invested into the source here.
The amplifier nor the speakers/headphone can reproduce something they never received
The source is the foundation of the system.

I'm also ok for a TT2 or a Dave later

 

[jwbrent]

I fully agree, Linn always said "source first" and I completely agree after having invested into the source here.
The amplifier nor the speakers/headphone can reproduce something they never received
The source is the foundation of the system.

I'm also ok for a TT2 or a Dave later

It all begins with the source component. The downstream components cannot improve upon the source, so I’m not surprised by your findings.

 

[Nik74]

This weekend I m expanding my headphone rig with the addition of a pair of Audio Note AX-2 standmounts Very excited to hear what the Qutest will sound through speakers !

 

[Zzt231gr]

This weekend I m expanding my headphone rig with the addition of a pair of Audio Note AX-2 standmounts Very excited to hear what the Qutest will sound through speakers !

Lucky you!

Post some pictures!