[Delivery]

  On a slightly different note, I have just heard from a good source that this years Blue Murder will include a really good price on some USB cables that fit the Hugo if anyone is interested. People just need to subscribe to the list to get the price!
 
Subscribe | Blue Murder 2014

Hi Phil
The link is not working and just sent you an email
Cheers
Steve

 

[verber]

  Why not comparing it to GSX mk2, WA5, EC 2A3 mk4, LG and everything under the sun while at it as well perhaps?

 
Because I only own a GSX mk2 

.  Seriously though, I don't think anyone should expect the amplifier in a unit like the Hugo to compare to top end headphone amplifiers which typically cost north of $2k.  I only bring it up because some of the early reviews I read said that the Hugo was competitive to the best systems (DAC + amplifiers) they have heard and there have been several people on this thread who have indicated that they didn't see the amplifier section holding the Hugo back.  I had hoped that would be my experience, but it wasn't... disappointing but not unexpected.  If headphones strait out of the Hugo were within spitting distance of Hugo + GSX I would be a super happy Hugo owner. Instead I am working to arrange head to head between Hugo, PWD, m51, gd m7... hoping that the Hugo is my favorite because then I not only have a great DAC for my reference system, but a very compelling portable system as well.
 
--Mark

 

[PhilW]

  Hi Phil
The link is not working and just sent you an email
Cheers
Steve

 
Try now

 

[Audiowood]

Oh wow..  I am impressed from what I read so far, that Hugo has been compared to some of the very best & most expensive headphone amps out there of all time with separate power supply & full tubes, Now you guys are really saying a lot already. I don't think the HUGO was design to replace those legendary desktop amps, what impress me even more so was the DAC section is IN THE SAME LEAGUE with some of the most respected DAC out there. So I think, for $2500 (same price as AK240) its really worth it.
 
I wonder how is the AK240 amp section? anyone?

 

 

[seeteeyou]

.

 

[jacal01]

   
Ah, gotcha.
 
I have a few questions to calibrate my own context/discussions/knowledge.
 

1. Have you listened to either amp?
2. Did you do an A/B comparison?
3. What tubes did you use in the Liquid Fire? That's pretty important.
4. To frame your opinion, have you discussed with other people that have heard both amps, how the two amps compare?
5. Have you discussed with other owners of just one of the amps how they feel about a given headphone's synergy?
6. Do you own one or both amps in question?
7. If any of the above is applicable, I'm truly interested in what headphones you used to conduct your testing? That would be monumentally important. Driver type: Dynamic? Planar? Balanced Armature? I'd like to know the resistance, power handling capacity, frequency response, impedance/spikes across the FR, and other non-trivial details about the headphones you used to do your comparison. This is vital information for me.
8. We could get in to interconnects, power supplies, and sources quite easily, but I'll just leave it to the basics here for now!

 
Thank you sir.

 
OK, by point:

1. Yes. I own them both.
2. No. My Liquid Fire has been retired to its box to make room on my audio rack for some later amp acquisitions, including the Bakoon HPA-21. Moreover, since the Liquid Fire is now a discontinued product, I don’t see much point in trotting it back out now to do a direct A/B comparison.
3. I’d upgraded my LF with NOS Siemens E88CC Pt matched quads, even tho Alex said that the LF hybrid amp topology was not particularly sensitive to tube rolling.  It’s a large part why he introduced his Liquid Glass product.  I even added Ti ring dampers to reduce tube glass resonance.  I can say with fair confidence here that I’d pretty much optimized the LF’s performance.  I will say that the E88CC tubes added significantly to mids bloom.
4. No, pretty much my own experience.
5. To date, I’ve not had too many conversations with myself in the mirror on that particular subject. 
6. See 1.
7. I don’t particular care to do rigorous blow-by-blow A/B comparison for you, which I find somewhat tedious and rather mundane at this point in my audiophile trajectory.  I will, however, share with you some of my impressions.
8. I don’t agree with your assessment concerning the Bakoon HPA-21 lack of headphone versatility.  On the contrary, I think that the Bakoon’s current driven topology, and particularly its current controlled output, is suitable for a wide range of headphones, by means of its elimination of system and speaker impedances influence on output signal response.  I find that the Bakoon has paired well with every headphone in my stable.  And indeed, my early (first) favorite headphone match with the HPA-21 was the TH900.  However, because of the Bakoon’s superior mids analog like body and pacing, even tho SS, I find that the highly analytical HD800 offers the best overall synergy with the HPA-21, since it rather complements the relatively full bodied Bakoon sound and showcases the amp’s remarkable crystal clarity and transient response, and is my current favored pairing with that amp.
9. I listened to my Liquid Fire mainly with LCD-2.2s, which were Audeze’s flagship offering at that time, and which pairing prompted the LF’s SOTA pronouncement at the first Can Jam show.  So I think I can safely say that I evaluated the LF with its accepted top headphone synergy.  And the Liquid Fire is a very good amp, lending very little color itself to the overall musical fidelity.  However, I experienced distinct sibilance sometimes with it, which I found annoying.  And while faithful to the amplified signal, it was nowhere at the level I experience with my current driven amps, including the Bakoon HPA-21, by reason of their absolute minimum distortion THD+N and TIMD specs, linear gain and rapid response to signal change.  
10. You can rest assured that my interconnect cabling is all upscale, including digital and power.  Sourcing is/was via Redbook CD transports.

 

[Delivery]

   
Try now

Won't accept my email address??

 

[nOtEcH]

I could be wrong, but afaik the RCA's are line level.

The RCA's are line level (same level as the QuteHD DAC) when swiching on the Hugo "in a special way". But if you adjust the volume control the output will change. So the RCA's are not a "true" line level.

 

[SoundFreaq]

Very nice response!
 
Agreed the tubes are a good call. I don't need you to do an A/B test for me, but I think it's important to have at least done a casual comparison on the same day, with the same headphones, as there are so many physical, psychological, and other variables in play. I still maintain that the headphones you have described are known to be good pairings for the HPA-21. Many have not found the synergy to be great with cans outside your stable. But you chose well, and you're happy with it, and that's what is important. It's all subjective at this point. There are people that prefer the LF. Some don't. That's fine. But the Liquid Glass that is in production now, and at the same price-point as the Bakoon, for most, is a decided step up from the Liquid Fire, and more versatile as well. Cavalli has come a long way since those first LFs came out - the beginning of an era ; )

 

[jacal01]

And I would be interested in reviewing those listener opinions that found that the Bakoon did not pair well with their particular headphones of choice.  If so, they were most likely highly sensitive IEMs, and the one knock I have with Bakoon is its coarse volume control at lower registers.
 
You do realize that I include the low impedance beyerdynamic T5p headphones among my stable?

 

[SleepyOne]

The RCA's are line level (same level as the QuteHD DAC) when swiching on the Hugo "in a special way". But if you adjust the volume control the output will change. So the RCA's are not a "true" line level.

 
I wonder whether increasing the volume slightly above the 'set volume' will has any negative impact on sound quality or not.

 

[nOtEcH]

I wonder whether increasing the volume slightly above the 'set volume' will has any negative impact on sound quality or not.

I don't think so. But it is possible. I have tried variable volume controls on input devices earlier and have experienced "clipping" if volume was too high. If you hear it, you will know that you heard it.
But I believe that I read in this forum that one had experienced better sound with slightly more volume than the preset "QuteHD volume". More lively and not so flat (or similar) I believe the description was.

 

[Stormfriend]

I could be wrong, but afaik the RCA's are line level.

There aren't any line level outputs on the Hugo. Holding down the cross feed button during switch-on defaults the volume to the equivalent volume level, but the volume is still in the circuit and can be adjusted without restarting.

There's an interview linked earlier in this thread with the designer of the Hugo. He says the amp is designed to power speakers and he ran it that way with some efficient speakers during development. I've tried it with some Monitor Audios and it works fine within its power limits. In the end I went back to my T-amp because I wanted an off switch for the amp and unplugging the RCA plugs was too fiddly. My speakers are a secondary system and not set up for critical listening so I can't really compare them sonically. To hook up the speakers I got some long RCA cables from Maplin (iirc) and bare wired the speaker end.

Overall I'm not completely sold on the Hugo. Whilst it does some things very well, especially vocals, it struggles in absolute terms to power my HD800s and sounds strained at times. I've now set up my desktop system again, along with all the filters and regenerators I need in my current place, and that has a more open and relaxed sound with better bass weight. I'm still experimenting but I suspect I may have to get something like the Bakoon if I keep the Hugo. The desktop system needs three or four rack shelves just for mains treatment and is a wiring nightmare, so I'd much rather go off the grid if I can. It's why I bought the Hugo after all, but it has a tough act to follow (M51/Mjolnir or M1DAC/M1HPA).

Phil, have Chord updated you on chassis swaps? I'd really like to get some decent cables on it to see what it can do, although I have a feeling they still won't fit. The desktop system has that as an advantage at the moment.

 

[SleepyOne]

Thank you, that's great news!

 

[PhilW]

Well I continue to be amazed by the Hugo, just read the interview by Rob where he talks about hooking up his horns. Cheers

No news on any chassis swap.