Chord Hugo 2 desktop alternative

[doraymon]

What about the Gustard X20pro DAC, there is a lot of enthusiastic feedback online and it's almost half the price of the Hugo.
Some wrote that it rivals the Yggi...

 

[MacedonianHero]

What about the Gustard X20pro DAC, there is a lot of enthusiastic feedback online and it's almost half the price of the Hugo.
Some wrote that it rivals the Yggi...

I prefer the H2 to both personally. I prefer the Yggy to the Gustard FWIW and its not close to my ears.

 

[doraymon]

I prefer the H2 to both personally. I prefer the Yggy to the Gustard FWIW and its not close to my ears.

What is it of the H2 sound that you prefer over the Yggy?

 

[MacedonianHero]

I really like the Yggy, but don't love it. I find it a bit too laid back and the H2 seems to sound more transparent and dig into the recording a bit deeper. Plus you can power pretty much any headphone / IEM with it (not named the LCD-4 or Susvara) brilliantly. It will drive the LCD-4, but not with much head room left over. The H2 measures better with lower distortion too FWIW.

EDIT: Forgot to mention that the USB implementation of the Yggy left me wanting more, but with their Gen 5 release, I'll need to give it another try to see if things have improved.

 

[doraymon]

I really like the Yggy, but don't love it. I find it a bit too laid back and the H2 seems to sound more transparent and dig into the recording a bit deeper. Plus you can power pretty much any headphone / IEM with it (not named the LCD-4 or Susvara) brilliantly. It will drive the LCD-4, but not with much head room left over. The H2 measures better with lower distortion too FWIW.

In this case I expect that the pairing of Yggy with my LC2 amp won't be ideal.
I owned the first Hugo (now sold) and the pairing with the LC2 was an interesting one.
Sometimes the LC2 tended to slightly veil the super detailed sound of the Hugo but other times not only the full details was there but the LC2 added energy, liveliness and 3D effect to the music making the Hugo sound much more involving.
I'm not sure why this behaviour was so track-dependent but it was indeed a little bit weird and difficult to manage (plugging and unplugging the cans)

 

[MacedonianHero]

In this case I expect that the pairing of Yggy with my LC2 amp won't be ideal.
I owned the first Hugo (now sold) and the pairing with the LC2 was an interesting one.
Sometimes the LC2 tended to slightly veil the super detailed sound of the Hugo but other times not only the full details was there but the LC2 added energy, liveliness and 3D effect to the music making the Hugo sound much more involving.
I'm not sure why this behaviour was so track-dependent but it was indeed a little bit weird and difficult to manage (plugging and unplugging the cans)

Sorry, LC2?

 

[robm321]

I really like the Yggy, but don't love it. I find it a bit too laid back and the H2 seems to sound more transparent and dig into the recording a bit deeper. Plus you can power pretty much any headphone / IEM with it (not named the LCD-4 or Susvara) brilliantly. It will drive the LCD-4, but not with much head room left over. The H2 measures better with lower distortion too FWIW.

EDIT: Forgot to mention that the USB implementation of the Yggy left me wanting more, but with their Gen 5 release, I'll need to give it another try to see if things have improved.

Having the DAVE, why even bother?

 

[MacedonianHero]

Having the DAVE, why even bother?

Portability. Can't listen by my pool with the DAVE...or take it with me on travel and pair it with my FiiO X5 Gen 3. That's the great thing with the Hugo 2. Hope you're doing well Rob.

 

[doraymon]

Sorry, LC2?

Cavalli Liquid Carbon 2

 

[MacedonianHero]

Cavalli Liquid Carbon 2

Thanks, I wasn't sure.

 

[watchdog507]

I have a Mytek Brooklyn. It's fully featured and is a great DAC that will drive headphones and has a phono section for analog. It comes with a half rack form factor. I only use mine as a DAC. The only DAC I would consider is a Dave to replace it.

 

[doraymon]

Having the DAVE, why even bother?

The Dave as a desktop alternative to the Hugo 2... Of course, how come I had not thought about that?! Lol!

 

[Currawong]

There's the Audio-gd R2R 7 as well. My impressions so far have it at about Yggy level. My suggestion would be to stick with the Hugo 2 if you have a USB isolator or similar though. I agree though, cable management is a PITA. What would be nice is if they made a $1k dock you could drop it into, rather than making a TT 2.

 

[doraymon]

There's the Audio-gd R2R 7 as well. My impressions so far have it at about Yggy level. My suggestion would be to stick with the Hugo 2 if you have a USB isolator or similar though. I agree though, cable management is a PITA. What would be nice is if they made a $1k dock you could drop it into, rather than making a TT 2.

I have a Hugo and was considering upgrading to the Hugo 2.
I just invested in the USB cleaning as you say: SOtM sMS-200 and tX-USBUltra.
Now I'm in the market for an upgrade to my Hugo 1st generation, I'll check the R2R 7 you mentioned, thanks

 

[doraymon]

The Holo Audio Spring Level 3 is getting my attention as some of you suggested.

I was wondering if @Currawong auditioned it and how does it compare with Yggy and also the new Audio-gd R2R 7.
I bought gear before upon Currawong suggestion (when I wasn't able to audition myself of course) and I was always happy with the results!