[Somphon]

  Farewell Hugo, there will always be a special place in my heart for you. However it was time to say goodbye. He's gone to a good home.

 
What is the replacement?

 

[514077]

   
What is the replacement?

I'm guessin' the QBD.  I doth weap for thee Hugo.

 

[isquirrel]

   
What is the replacement?

After listening to several high end DAC's I decided on the Light Harmonic DaVinci Dual DAC. It will be here next week. The QBD was very good, but not at the same level as either the Gryphon Kalliope or the DaVinci.
 
For portable use an AK240 with IEM's is my way forwards.

 

[ubs28]

 
After listening to several high end DAC's I decided on the Light Harmonic DaVinci Dual DAC. It will be here next week. The QBD was very good, but not at the same level as either the Gryphon Kalliope or the DaVinci.
 
For portable use an AK240 with IEM's is my way forwards.

 
How much % better are they relative to the Chord Hugo?

 

[isquirrel]

Impossible to say, for my listening preferences - substantial
 
Others experiences will no doubt be different

 

[bmichels]

 
After listening to several high end DAC's I decided on the Light Harmonic DaVinci Dual DAC. It will be here next week. The QBD was very good, but not at the same level as either the Gryphon Kalliope or the DaVinci.
 
For portable use an AK240 with IEM's is my way forwards.

 
very interesting (I also have a HUGO as portable set-up and wonder what I will use for my desktop system).
 
Can you tell us what other high end DAC you have tried and eliminated for the Gryphon Kalliope and DaVinci ?  
 
Have you also tried the NAGRA HD DAC, Total DAC-D1,  Berkley Alpha REF Serie, Lampizator Big7 ... ? 

 

[isquirrel]

   
very interesting (I also have a HUGO as portable set-up and wonder what I will use for my desktop system).
 
Can you tell us what other high end DAC you have tried and eliminated for the Gryphon Kalliope and DaVinci ?  
 
Have you also tried the NAGRA HD DAC, Total DAC-D1,  Berkley Alpha REF Serie, Lampizator Big7 ... ? 

Unfortunately none of the above are available to audition where I live. Crying shame because I would dearly like to be able to listen to some of them. The Nagra HD I was particularly interested in but there is no unit available. The demo having been sold and no replacement planned. 
 
I have owned the QBD, dCS and the Audionote DAC5 Signature so I had some references. Mainly though I rely on my listening experiences using my analog Rockport TT so I was listening for that elusive analog quality. The DaVinci surprised because immediately on listening to it I noticed my brain and body noticeably relaxed into the sound. I have only previously had that experience with analog.
 
This is of course completely subjective, I am sure that others have more knowledge and experiences which will differ. For me though I want something that gives me goosebumps, that's my personal metric. I only got that from the DaVinci, the Kalliope was very good, however, and this sounds weird, is that I thought it sounded a little like the Macintosh D100 only much more refined, but I am sure I heard the same sonic sig was there. My partner felt the same way. They share the same Sabre 9018 chip albeit implemented differently. 
 
This makes me wonder if DAC chips do have a certain sonic signature. After all its not possible to hear a DAC chip only the analog stages before and after.

 

[bmichels]

 
Unfortunately none of the above are available to audition where I live. Crying shame because I would dearly like to be able to listen to some of them. The Nagra HD I was particularly interested in but there is no unit available. The demo having been sold and no replacement planned. 
 
I have owned the QBD, dCS and the Audionote DAC5 Signature so I had some references. Mainly though I rely on my listening experiences using my analog Rockport TT so I was listening for that elusive analog quality. The DaVinci surprised because immediately on listening to it I noticed my brain and body noticeably relaxed into the sound. I have only previously had that experience with analog.
 
This is of course completely subjective, I am sure that others have more knowledge and experiences which will differ. For me though I want something that gives me goosebumps, that's my personal metric. I only got that from the DaVinci, the Kalliope was very good, however, and this sounds weird, is that I thought it sounded a little like the Macintosh D100 only much more refined, but I am sure I heard the same sonic sig was there. My partner felt the same way. They share the same Sabre 9018 chip albeit implemented differently. 
 
This makes me wonder if DAC chips do have a certain sonic signature. After all its not possible to hear a DAC chip only the analog stages before and after.

 
I also have the NAGRA HD DAC very high in my list, and I will try to audition it this WK or Monday since my dealer has now one demo unit in Bruxelles. I will come with my own HD Tracks and also to compare my HUGO & my ED5 Headphone.  I hope to hear a real step-up from my HUGO...   I will tell you...
 
I also consider The Berkley Ref DAC for his (supposed) excellence with 16/44 that is 90% of my library (I want to avoid a DAC that is good ONLY with 24/192 or 24/96).  But... I am concerned by it's total lack of USB and DSD support !  A brave but...extreme approach !
 
So... I hope that the NAGRA is not sublime ONLY with DSD and 24 bits HD files ....

 

[ubs28]

I was in the Apple store today and they told me I should not use the USB cable if I need to apply force to get it in and out for my Macbook Pro. So I guess the USB cable I got with my Chord Hugo is bad.
 
Any USB cables worth checking out or do they all sound the same? 

 

[SoundFreaq]

 
Any USB cables worth checking out or do they all sound the same? 

 
Ooh boy, that's a loaded question around here!
 
The most important thing for Hugo + a laptop setup is to get something with good RF isolation. What's your budget?
 
The Vertere D-Fi  is what I've been using. I've tried a few, and this is my favorite so far (as far as USB A to Micro cables go). It's nice and thin but durable, has good shielding, and is just convenient to use. Solid cable that won't break the bank, and has a ton of different length options as well. Of course the sky is the limit on cable expenses, and opinions. Generally, cheap cables, and some expensive, with bad shielding create more digital distortion going into Hugo. 

 

[514077]

  I was in the Apple store today and they told me I should not use the USB cable if I need to apply force to get it in and out for my Macbook Pro. So I guess the USB cable I got with my Chord Hugo is bad.
 
Any USB cables worth checking out or do they all sound the same? 

I had an awakening last night with USB cables.  I was listening not to music, but was reading an article with my screenreader with a speech synthesizer based on human speech sampling.  I was using the stock cable that came with my FiiO X5 and on a whim, decided to plug in my silver dragon instead.  Right away, I noticed that the voice became a lot smoother and easier to listen to over a longer period of time.  I was using a UHA-6 Mk-II as my Hugo was charging at the time.  But, I'm convinced more than ever, that USB cables can make a great diference to the listening experience.  HTH

 

[isquirrel]

I have been using the Vertere D-Fi Pulse 2 USB A to Micro USB cable, fits well and sounds good.

 

[SearchOfSub]

Wow, Rob.  That was a great summary of what you go through.  I am so thankful for that; it gives me a much better feel as to how this beast of many heads gets tamed.  And for what to look (listen) for when the next iteration of the WTA, etc gets released.  Thanks much
Ted

P.S.  Oh, and in the world of "geniuses think alike" I have both that Norah track and the Moby 18 transitions from We Are All Made Of Stars -In This World-In My Heart (great trio of dynamic but different sounds) in my demo list.  Interesting that you use Norah for both female vocals AND that double bass.  Nice!  Wonder if those ab changes also surface on the 24/192 or DSD (Analogue Productions, that is) versions of that track.

Changed from generic usb cable to AQ cinnamon usb cable for about 100.00 bucks and made difference

 

[rgs9200m]

A really good cd transport through the hugo will sound better than any laptop or pc could ever do my friend.

Interesting point of view. I asked headfier David1961 in the latest Stax thread if he preferred his Stax 009 / Headamp BHSE / Esoteric K-01 system using the K-01 as a standalone CDP or as a DAC using digital files from a PC, and he replied that the sound quality was equivalent either way.

 

[Rob Watts]

  Wow, Rob.  That was a great summary of what you go through.  I am so thankful for that; it gives me a much better feel as to how this beast of many heads gets tamed.  And for what to look (listen) for when the next iteration of the WTA, etc gets released.  Thanks much
Ted
 
P.S.  Oh, and in the world of "geniuses think alike" I have both that Norah track and the Moby 18 transitions from We Are All Made Of Stars -In This World-In My Heart (great trio of dynamic but different sounds) in my demo list.  Interesting that you use Norah for both female vocals AND that double bass.  Nice!  Wonder if those ab changes also surface on the 24/192 or DSD (Analogue Productions, that is) versions of that track.

I forgot to mention about perspective, or trying to scale the magnitude of an improvement. Doing the sound stage depth test, I find that its very easy for the the ear/brain to hear very small changes in depth perception - for example, listening solely to the depth on the organ track, you can easily tell if one is deeper than the other - if A say is deeper, then B sounds "flat as a pancake" even though the organ may sound 100 feet away on A and is probably 95 feet on B but the relative shift in placement on the AB test is easy to hear. It is very easy for small changes to take on the perspective of an enormous change. So to get changes into perspective, I use the general test, and gauge my reactions to the change. For example, if you listen the next day, and don't notice the improvement, then you know what one was doing the day before was pretty small. So in essence you measure how long it takes for the improvement to fade and for one to get used to the sound.
 
Hearing an improvement after:
 
1 day  - small improvement
1 week - substantial worthwhile improvement
1 month - very substantial
3 months - very rare breakthrough events
more than 3 months - earth shattering change
 
For example, the Olimex USB isolator was in the 1 week category - I was still noticing the improvement one week on. So one week on I felt like I had still had a new toy, and enjoying the extra warmth and depth. But a month later, I was no longer thinking the system sounds better, even though if you went back it would sound much worse.
 
Now this won't work if the product has a big break-in period, or if you are constantly making small changes. It won't work too if your system is variable (good at certain times, bad at others). My designs do not have a big break-in period, as I know why the components age and I try to reduce the sensitivity to aging through design - this also improves SQ as well, as a component will never age to perfect performance. That said, Hugo does have a break-in, but this is more due to one getting used to the sound - breaking in your brain if you like!
 
I have only ever had one instance of the earth shattering change.... 
 
Rob