[ken6217]

The TT didn't come out until over a year after the Hugo. The Hugo 2 just came out, do the math.

Which math are you referring too? Newer doesn't make it sound better to everyone. Not sure if you were responding to my post but from everything I've read, there is a different sound signature to the TT, Hugo, Hugo 2.

Company's put out newer versions and firmware updates where technically you would think it sounds better. Maybe to the engineers it does. However some people may still like the original sound. For example, I used to own the PS Audio DirecStream. They give you the ability to go back and forth and try different firmware. To me, the newest firmware is too forward and clinical sounding, and the previous version had a more analogue sound.

I always like to get the newest generation of a product but I think the Hugo 2 might be too forward sounding for the sound that I like. However I would appreciate of anyone can chime in that has heard these DAC's.

Thanks,
Ken

 

[reeltime]

I was hoping I could get some direction.

I am looking to replace the DAC I just sold. I've had many of the usual suspects of DAC's in the $3k-$5k range, but never considered Chord.

I know that the TT is due for an update, but is still worth getting the TT now? Prices are down, but that is secondary to me to sound quality. I really enjoy something that is musical, full sounding, not overly clinical or sterile sounding, but still has lots of detail. Does this seem to fit the TT over the Hugo 2, or no?

Also do most of you use the TT's amp, or do you use analogue out to an external headphone amp? Is that universally a better sound?

Thanks,
Ken

Some thoughts...

I use my Hugo TT through a Woo Audio WA5LE v2. Is it necessary? No. Does it sound better? Unquestionably. But the TT serves a 2nd purpose-- I have Genelec powered speakers. They are XLR. I can drive them and the subwoofer through the TT. I can't do this with the Chord Hugo.

Any of these Chord products are about as good as it gets in the DAC world. I have heard and auditioned the Schiit Yggy. It's a nice, musical DAC. But it doesn't decode DSD files. I won't even consider it. DSD is the pinnacle of audio source (for now). How a top-tier $2000+ dollar product can't handle the industry's current best standard source-- is unacceptable. Garbage in-Garbage out (GIGO). Not to say a 96k file sounds bad, but compared to a DSD file of the same material, the difference is immediate through even an average pair of headphones.

As far as price- I never buy new. The prices drop too fast in this hobby to be shelling out the mega prices this gear costs from the factory. When the TT was just a few months old, I picked up a pristine copy for $2700, almost half price. My WA5LE cost $1800 with upgraded tubes, then Woo offered an upgrade at a discount to V2 for V1 owners. It made sense. I got a free upgrade on my HifiMan HE-1000 from V1 to V2 through a manufacturer program. The Hugo 1 is so good, I would try to find one used for around $1000. Or find a TT for $2000-$2500 used. The TT to my ears is better than the regular Hugo. I haven't spent enough time with the Hugo 2 to give a fair assessment, but it's probably better than the TT or on par. This is fine with me, I can wait for used Hugo 2s to pop up, then sell and buy used. The TT is an amazing DAC. I would buy it used if I could find the right deal. If you're looking for a portable? I'd buy a Hugo 1. They sound amazing, and they're a desktop caliber product in a portable form factor.

 

[Whazzzup]

I'm very happy with my TT feeding gsx mk2 and have decided to keep my ch1 even after testing ch2.

 

[reeltime]

I'm very happy with my TT feeding gsx mk2 and have decided to keep my ch1 even after testing ch2.

Epic combo.

 

[Jawed]

but from everything I've read, there is a different sound signature to the TT, Hugo, Hugo 2.

I'm glad I'm not faced with the same choice.

TT may be the closest to DAVE out of these three in tonal signature, but I think Hugo 2 will be closest to DAVE in terms of sheer speed and musical insightfulness.

I think I would go with Hugo 2, since it's fairly easy to adapt to tonal signature, and musical expressiveness is something I value more highly. Hugo 2 does have a "warm" filter, sometimes called the Mojo filter (orange) - but you are losing some transparency when you set it like this. Some people start with orange and after a while change to white (most transparent).

It's worth warning you that pretty much all DACs are sensitive to radio frequency interference (if not using an optical connection): this can add a brittleness to the sound, which may simply sound like brightness or hyper-detail. Hugo TT's galvanic isolation helps at least a little, but TT still benefits from the use of things like the Audioquest Jitterbug and USB cables that are designed for good RFI rejection. The galvanic isolation in TT could easily contribute to or be the major factor in the reported tonal difference between TT and Hugo 2, especially if the person doing the comparison wasn't aware of the problems caused by RFI and how to minimise them.

While it would seem that TT is clearly preferable solely because of galvanic isolation, it's not actually perfect, so the solution you would choose to use with TT would also work very well with Hugo 2. This may negate the value of TT's galvanic isolation. I don't know of anyone who has investigated this: TT with extra RFI filtering versus Hugo 2 with the same RFI filtering.

Hugo 2 does have RFI filtering on the USB input, so it may be similar to TT with its own galvanic isolation. In other words, there may not be a meaningful advantage with TT, when solely considering the problems caused by RFI.

Now playing: Novak - Lord of the World

 

[doraymon]

I was facing the same difficult choice. And eventually placed an order for the Yggy.
I didn't like the idea of buying the TT only to see the new TT being launched a few weeks later (supposedly...) and I can't cope with the Hugo 2 being so desktop unfriendly.
It has been hard for me to leave Chord products given how much I enjoyed my actual Hugo, but I will give Schiit a chance this time!

 

[rgs9200m]

Reetime, thanks for the great post. As I said, I love my TT, but mainly with my Rudistor RP010B amp. My LCD4 really shines with the Rudistor, along with my ZMF headphones.
But my first love is absolutely SACD. I have not gone down the route of converting my SACD discs to files (maybe someday).
I have an EMM XDS cd player for SACD, and the sound with SACD is out of this world.

I tried some sample DSD files through my TT, and they do sound better, less glare-prone than PCM, but nothing sounds like native SACD (and I guess DSD).
I'm happy to hear someone appreciates DSD like I do.

(A store called soundliason.com has some free DSD samples with PCM counterparts you can use to test things out.)

Are there any native DSD-capable DACS for a desktop out there perform well? I can only think of the Luxman DA-06 and the Holo Spring.

I've been in love with SACD/DSD since it's dawn from Sony back in 2000 when I tried the Sony player and was floored by it. So transparent and non-fatiguing with super solid true bass and unbeatable sweet vocals.

Thanks.

 

[kennyb123]

It's worth warning you that pretty much all DACs are sensitive to radio frequency interference (if not using an optical connection): this can add a brittleness to the sound, which may simply sound like brightness or hyper-detail. Hugo TT's galvanic isolation helps at least a little, but TT still benefits from the use of things like the Audioquest Jitterbug and USB cables that are designed for good RFI rejection.

Well said. My TT surely benefited from the addition of an ISO REGEN. Even the additional galvanic isolation this can provide improves sound quality.

 

[Mediahound]

I'm glad I'm not faced with the same choice.

TT may be the closest to DAVE out of these three in tonal signature, but I think Hugo 2 will be closest to DAVE in terms of sheer speed and musical insightfulness.

I think I would go with Hugo 2, since it's fairly easy to adapt to tonal signature, and musical expressiveness is something I value more highly. Hugo 2 does have a "warm" filter, sometimes called the Mojo filter (orange) - but you are losing some transparency when you set it like this. Some people start with orange and after a while change to white (most transparent).

It's worth warning you that pretty much all DACs are sensitive to radio frequency interference (if not using an optical connection): this can add a brittleness to the sound, which may simply sound like brightness or hyper-detail. Hugo TT's galvanic isolation helps at least a little, but TT still benefits from the use of things like the Audioquest Jitterbug and USB cables that are designed for good RFI rejection. The galvanic isolation in TT could easily contribute to or be the major factor in the reported tonal difference between TT and Hugo 2, especially if the person doing the comparison wasn't aware of the problems caused by RFI and how to minimise them.

While it would seem that TT is clearly preferable solely because of galvanic isolation, it's not actually perfect, so the solution you would choose to use with TT would also work very well with Hugo 2. This may negate the value of TT's galvanic isolation. I don't know of anyone who has investigated this: TT with extra RFI filtering versus Hugo 2 with the same RFI filtering.

Hugo 2 does have RFI filtering on the USB input, so it may be similar to TT with its own galvanic isolation. In other words, there may not be a meaningful advantage with TT, when solely considering the problems caused by RFI.

Now playing: Novak - Lord of the World

The TT has a lot more going for it than just the galvanic isolation. Think supercapacitors, a better internal architecture, balanced out, heavier chassis, etc.

 

[rgs9200m]

Has anyone compared the TT with the Yggy with the Gen 5 upgrade (in USB mode for both, of course)?

 

[fixated]

Some thoughts...

I use my Hugo TT through a Woo Audio WA5LE v2. Is it necessary? No. Does it sound better? Unquestionably. But the TT serves a 2nd purpose-- I have Genelec powered speakers. They are XLR. I can drive them and the subwoofer through the TT. I can't do this with the Chord Hugo.

Any of these Chord products are about as good as it gets in the DAC world. I have heard and auditioned the Schiit Yggy. It's a nice, musical DAC. But it doesn't decode DSD files. I won't even consider it. DSD is the pinnacle of audio source (for now). How a top-tier $2000+ dollar product can't handle the industry's current best standard source-- is unacceptable. Garbage in-Garbage out (GIGO). Not to say a 96k file sounds bad, but compared to a DSD file of the same material, the difference is immediate through even an average pair of headphones.

As far as price- I never buy new. The prices drop too fast in this hobby to be shelling out the mega prices this gear costs from the factory. When the TT was just a few months old, I picked up a pristine copy for $2700, almost half price. My WA5LE cost $1800 with upgraded tubes, then Woo offered an upgrade at a discount to V2 for V1 owners. It made sense. I got a free upgrade on my HifiMan HE-1000 from V1 to V2 through a manufacturer program. The Hugo 1 is so good, I would try to find one used for around $1000. Or find a TT for $2000-$2500 used. The TT to my ears is better than the regular Hugo. I haven't spent enough time with the Hugo 2 to give a fair assessment, but it's probably better than the TT or on par. This is fine with me, I can wait for used Hugo 2s to pop up, then sell and buy used. The TT is an amazing DAC. I would buy it used if I could find the right deal. If you're looking for a portable? I'd buy a Hugo 1. They sound amazing, and they're a desktop caliber product in a portable form factor.

I would have to agree about just getting a used Hugo TT instead of shelling out that much cash for a new one. I bought mine used for around 2300$ and I use it mainly with my V281.

On the note of being concerned with the Hugo TT getting an upgrade, I've never been the fan of newer is always better and such and I have heard the DAVE side by side with the Hugo TT and to be frank I'm fairly happy with my Hugo TT. That's not to say that the DAVE is not better than the Hugo TT, the point is that I did not feel the need to save up more the DAVE. I am perfectly happy with my Hugo TT even knowing that there are "better" sounding DACs out there. I guess its just a matter of finding the perfect DAC for you even if there are newer ones going to be released in the future. YMMV

 

[Whazzzup]

I can't say enough about the addition of antipodes audio roon core server, that made the TT even better, almost all it can be, lol.

 

[fhuang]

Reetime, thanks for the great post. As I said, I love my TT, but mainly with my Rudistor RP010B amp. My LCD4 really shines with the Rudistor, along with my ZMF headphones.
But my first love is absolutely SACD. I have not gone down the route of converting my SACD discs to files (maybe someday).
I have an EMM XDS cd player for SACD, and the sound with SACD is out of this world.

I tried some sample DSD files through my TT, and they do sound better, less glare-prone than PCM, but nothing sounds like native SACD (and I guess DSD).
I'm happy to hear someone appreciates DSD like I do.

(A store called soundliason.com has some free DSD samples with PCM counterparts you can use to test things out.)

Are there any native DSD-capable DACS for a desktop out there perform well? I can only think of the Luxman DA-06 and the Holo Spring.

I've been in love with SACD/DSD since it's dawn from Sony back in 2000 when I tried the Sony player and was floored by it. So transparent and non-fatiguing with super solid true bass and unbeatable sweet vocals.

Thanks.

have you tried using your sacd player or any sacd transport to feed the tt with the rudistor?

 

[AlanYWM]

I would have to agree about just getting a used Hugo TT instead of shelling out that much cash for a new one. I bought mine used for around 2300$ and I use it mainly with my V281.

On the note of being concerned with the Hugo TT getting an upgrade, I've never been the fan of newer is always better and such and I have heard the DAVE side by side with the Hugo TT and to be frank I'm fairly happy with my Hugo TT. That's not to say that the DAVE is not better than the Hugo TT, the point is that I did not feel the need to save up more the DAVE. I am perfectly happy with my Hugo TT even knowing that there are "better" sounding DACs out there. I guess its just a matter of finding the perfect DAC for you even if there are newer ones going to be released in the future. YMMV

Congrats on the TT. Try using the TT coupled with ISO Regen and perhaps the new ifi Galvanic3.0. I believe it will make your TT sound much nicer. The galvanic isolation on the TT is not well implemented. It could do with some "external help"

 

[Rob Watts]

Congrats on the TT. Try using the TT coupled with ISO Regen and perhaps the new ifi Galvanic3.0. I believe it will make your TT sound much nicer. The galvanic isolation on the TT is not well implemented. It could do with some "external help"

Nonsense.