[genotabby]

This is a good cable for people in the UK https://www.qed.co.uk/cables/hdmi-digital/qed-reference-optical-quartz-digital-audio-cable.html#tab1

A few chord owners using this here including myself. I decided to purchase one after my cheap and cheerful kabeldirekt optical was loosing connection and making popping sounds regularly.

This is a good cable for people in the UK https://www.qed.co.uk/cables/hdmi-digital/qed-reference-optical-quartz-digital-audio-cable.html#tab1

A few chord owners using this here including myself. I decided to purchase one after my cheap and cheerful kabeldirekt optical was loosing connection and making popping sounds regularly.

Hi I am experiencing some popping sound regularly through the supplied usb. How did you figure it was the optical cable and not the interconnect?

 

[Zzt231gr]

Guys,has anyone tried installing ferrite on the DC power cable?Before the usb input of the power supply?

I don't remember anyone doing so in this thread...I am very curious!

Bump!

 

[miketlse]

Bump!

I think there have been posts about using ferrites on power cables, but much of the experimentation/talk about using ferrites happened on the Mojo and Blu2 threads, so you may find what you are searching for on those threads.

 

[Zzt231gr]

I think there have been posts about using ferrites on power cables, but much of the experimentation/talk about using ferrites happened on the Mojo and Blu2 threads, so you may find what you are searching for on those threads.

Thank you.

I am aware of that but that doesn't mean Qutest behaves the same!

 

[alphaman]

No that used 1 bit PDM or 64FS DSD. And the measurements indicate no feedback; DDFA is high resolution and incorporates high order feedback and is capable of very low levels of THD and N.

Yeah, that Sharp has some issues with jitter! Still, not a bad first attempt given all that was praised about it 20 years ago. As the Munich presentation noted. In the 90s, Sharp created a dedicated ASIC to implement this "new" technology.
It's curious how the HiFi Munich 2018 presentation on DSD amps (see prev. post), made no mention of other direct-digital amps such as TacT or NAD or DDFA -- it was only Andrus Aaslaid, speaking about orig. Sharp and his new Estelon direct-digital speaker.

Speaking of "direct-digital" ....
Mr Watts, is this what your Pulse-Array d/a conversion is based on? That is, a digital stream is fed into the P-A fpga's that can drive amps "directly" (apart from the simple output R-C filter immediately following)?

 

[Icenine2]

Why are these frequently for sale? Do listeners feel a need to upgrade to Hugo @ TT or Dave? Seems like a fair amount sell these fairly new. I'm going to listen to this and the Hugo 2 TT next week. I can't imagine needing the TT and using the Headphone amp as well and replacing my Cavalli Liquid Fire but I've been wrong mucho times before!

 

[Jon L]

Why are these frequently for sale?

Really? When I was looking to buy one, there may have been 1, maybe 2 on sale on the used market in the whole world; and even then, they were asking for like $100 off MSRP, so I ended up with a new unit.
If you consider how many thousands of these popular units Chord must have sold by now, the percentage seems very low...

 

[Icenine2]

Two on eBay right now. Check the Forum here for DAC's and check how many have sold.

 

[Icenine2]

Forum listings

 

[Icenine2]

Audiogon

 

[Qute Beats]

Thank you.

I am aware of that but that doesn't mean Qutest behaves the same!

Hi, I moved my system about and ended up having to route rca cable near power cable, so put ferrites on the power leads to both Qutest and amp, as normally keep those well separated. There was no negative to this, as to positives, hard to say, but no harm. I basically have ferrites all over the place now as I like to think they help. They certainly did on my USB cable, but using optical now. Very cheap so experiment.

 

[betula]

@Icenine2 What are you trying to prove? Qutest is a popular DAC. If a product is popular and is sold in relatively large numbers, you will find more of it on the secondhand market too.
The fact Qutest hardly loses anything on the secondhand market from the retail price compared to other DACs speaks for itself.

 

[Qute Beats]

Why are these frequently for sale? Do listeners feel a need to upgrade to Hugo @ TT or Dave? Seems like a fair amount sell these fairly new. I'm going to listen to this and the Hugo 2 TT next week. I can't imagine needing the TT and using the Headphone amp as well and replacing my Cavalli Liquid Fire but I've been wrong mucho times before!

I would only sell mine if buying a TT2! But, as I posted a few pages back the improvement between the two was I thought quite small, though definitely there, but price is the factor. However if folk are considering an expensive headamp with the Qutest, then the amp on TT2 is very good and there may not then be much in it cost wise.

 

[Icenine2]

I would only sell mine if buying a TT2! But, as I posted a few pages back the improvement between the two was I thought quite small, though definitely there, but price is the factor. However if folk are considering an expensive headamp with the Qutest, then the amp on TT2 is very good and there may not then be much in it cost wise.

That's what I would think. Thank you. What I was wondering is if some buy the Qutest, love it and jetison their preamp or headphone amp to get an all-in-one w/the Hugo 2TT or Dave instead.

 

[Qute Beats]

That's what I would think. Thank you. What I was wondering is if some buy the Qutest, love it and jetison their preamp or headphone amp to get an all-in-one w/the Hugo 2TT or Dave instead.

I've not done this yet obviously, but yes that would be my next move. I personally don't think the increased tap count is the major contributor to improved SQ, but having a better quality analogue stage with shortest possible path to output is.