[alubis]

  If the power amp section gain is high, there is not much one can do. Its still better than putting it through a pre-amp - the most transparent device is nothing at all!
 
I usually run at green to azure when driving my power amps directly, but the amps need 1V RMS to give full power.
 
Rob

The easiest fix for power amp with high gain sensitivity would be to use attenuators.

 

[stevendjm]

 
An amp may drive something louder so headphones have more power, which will inevitably sound better if you need high SPLs. For most normal use applications, you cannot add to the sound of Hugo's output and improve on it. You are only inevitably and absolutely adding output impedance, interference, distortion, and lowering the S/N ratio, from a number of places by adding another pile of electronics and wire to the signal - in the form of an amp.
 
 These "improvements" people are perceiving are colorations and distortions more align with what they are used to, or more aligned with their preferences. Sure, their amp may have more low end, because of an uncontrolled driver - that's exactly what you'd get. The "improvements" are actually, in almost all cases, inaccuracies, colorations and distortions added to the sound with additional equipment. "Texture" is actually more distortion. "Bass extension" is really an underdamped driver, etc...

Totally agree on those points!
 
But I think most new comers are mentioning the lineout thing mainly due to the concerns of whether Hugo amp is adequate enough to drive those commonly recognized "hard-to-drive" headphones such as HD800. If it were to drive "easy-to-drive" ones such as Z1000, you would not need an extra amp in the first place and you would not need any pure lineout as well.
 
I have not yet have a chance to try the Hugo but worst case will be such that knowing its amp's inadequacy but still adopting a dac/amp combined design, thereby leaving no room for "improvement"... This is something that will cause disputes. But based on the current review, I hope I am just worrying too much...

 

[SearchOfSub]

Hugo DAC that can drive 2 channels passive speakers and with a remote would sell like hotcakes... even without a remote, if everything is the same as the Hugo dac now, with higher output for speakers, I would buy it a heartbeat. Rob can you make a Hugo for 2 Channel ppl?

 

[kensonic]

Totally agree on those points!

But I think most new comers are mentioning the lineout thing mainly due to the concerns of whether Hugo amp is adequate enough to drive those commonly recognized "hard-to-drive" headphones such as HD800. If it were to drive "easy-to-drive" ones such as Z1000, you would not need an extra amp in the first place and you would not need any pure lineout as well.

I have not yet have a chance to try the Hugo but worst case will be such that knowing its amp's inadequacy but still adopting a dac/amp combined design, thereby leaving no room for "improvement"... This is something that will cause disputes. But based on the current review, I hope I am just worrying too much...

.
I like the distortion my Singlepower MPX adds to the Hugo very much (HD800)
So, nothing to worry about

 

[estreeter]

Hugo DAC that can drive 2 channels passive speakers and with a remote would sell like hotcakes... even without a remote, if everything is the same as the Hugo dac now, with higher output for speakers, I would buy it a heartbeat. Rob can you make a Hugo for 2 Channel ppl?

 
By extension, those of us with headphones and sensitive (or active) speakers aren't '2 channel ppl' ??? I get the distinct impression that the Hugo already 'sells like hotcakes' - I just dont think this is the DAC for you based on your posts here and elsewhere. 

 

[coolhand]

Hugo DAC that can drive 2 channels passive speakers and with a remote would sell like hotcakes... even without a remote, if everything is the same as the Hugo dac now, with higher output for speakers, I would buy it a heartbeat. Rob can you make a Hugo for 2 Channel ppl?

The Hugo as it presently stands is more than sufficiently capable to directly drive a suitable pair of passive speakers SUPERBLY, which is precisely what I am currently doing and have been doing for quite sometime already (when it's not feeding my active ADAM studio monitors) !!

The caveat is that the speakers must be sufficiently sensitive, in my case the speakers I have connected will output in the vicinity of 98dB @ 1m, @ 8ohms, with one watt input.
I would suggest that speakers of at least 95dB sensitivity could largely provide ample volume requirements in an average inner urban sized room, when powered from the Hugo.

As a very simplistic example of the Hugo's potential: I am sitting 4.2 metres from my speakers as I type this (in a 4.2w x 7d x 3m high, acoustically treated room), with the Hugo booted up whilst the Crossfeed button is depressed, therefore giving a default pre-set nominal line output voltage of 3V RMS for 0dBFS.

At this distance my SPL meter is indicating an average level of exceptional fidelity, full frequency sound of 75dB, BUT this is with the digital volume control of my selected MacMini audio server replay software FIDELIA presently set to the 12 o'clock position, or 50%.

FIDELIA can, as with many audio replay software applications, provide the remote control of (PCM) volume which I'm performing with my iPad. Native bit perfect DSD replay will require attenuation in the analogue domain.

With FIDELIA's volume control wide open I measure 82dB at the same distance, and there is loads of dynamic uncompressed headroom and powerful, tight & deep bass courtesy of Me'shell NdegeOcello (the Hugo is driving my custom Zingali monitors which each contain a 15" bass driver and 15" diameter horn loaded compression driver).

At 3 metres distance, where I have an Ekornes/Stressless recliner positioned for extended listening sessions .... the level increases by approximately 2.5-3 dB, and again there is still loads of headroom and potential SPL available in the Hugo which can deliver almost double the RMS voltage output when its dial is cranked up, in other words it gets plenty freakin' loud !!!

I have genuinely & absolutely flabbergasted numerous guests who see my 2.2KW power output ADAM fully active four-way monitors and other ultra high end tube amps set up before them, only to be told that the sublime high definition sonority to which they are enraptured is entirely being sourced AND powered by the battery powered Hugo.

Seriously, for ~85% of casual listening requirements I imagine that many listeners would not require anything else, or should I say, this Hugo based 'system'... if you could call it that, is simply so damn musical and enjoyable that the MUSIC takes precedence over any other technical concerns, and that is the bottom line....

This coming from me, a guy who is an extremely passionate musician, audio engineer, builder of Directly Heated Thermionic Triode Valve equipment and also fanatic of vinyl replay

 

[estreeter]

Thanks coolhand and welcome to Head-Fi. The speakers you refer to are very different to the 85dB speakers @SearchOfSub is trying to drive. 

 

[coolhand]

Thank you squire !
Indeed with speakers of 85dB sensitivity it would require in the order of at least 15-20 times the power output of the Hugo to achieve the SPL's in the circumstances to which I referred.
That is most likely unfeasible for a similarly dimensioned, highly pocketable battery powered 'headphone' dac/amp with the presently available civilian technology, maybe next year Dr. ?
 
However my example hopefully displays what is possible with the present Hugo technology and furthermore may help dispel the sometimes inferred notion that the Hugo's amplifier is marginally specified for 'difficult' to drive headphones.
 
Not withstanding its phenomenally natural sounding digital to analogue conversion, or its superb headphone playback fidelity (on my favourite Grado PS500's), the simple fact that it can also directly power my 200kg's pair of reference level horn speakers to relatively high SPL's with dynamic alacrity, grip and musicality across the full frequency range (measured in room response is flat down to ~18hz), and does so with rather astounding ease and essentially inaudible distortion for the most part, makes it truly the most fascinating and fat smile inducing electronic device of my audio-centric lifetime thus far....
 
P.S- I should also mention that it barely even gets warm to touch after a full day operating like this.

 

[CosmicHolyGhost]

I read in a review that said after QBD replacement, Rob will work on a class D amp. Good news for everybody!

 

[obsidyen]

So I sold my Chord Hugo today for USD 2000. I bought it for USD 1800 so it's a good deal. I prefer the smoother sound signature of Meridian 808.5 with speakers at home and carrying Hugo while on travel started to feel like chore so... Bye bye Hugo club.

 

[joeexp]

  So I sold my Chord Hugo today for USD 2000. I bought it for USD 1800 so it's a good deal. I prefer the smoother sound signature of Meridian 808.5 with speakers at home and carrying Hugo while on travel started to feel like chore so... Bye bye Hugo club.

 
If you can afford the Meridian for $23.000.- retail, the $200 you made on the Hugo should pay for a few pints! Cheers!
 

 

[alubis]

deleted

 

[AndrewOld]

Here's a question for the amazing Rob ...
 
My Hugo is wonderful. You've said on earlier posts that it's best to use the USB input with a USB isolator such as the Olimex because of ground noise issues. That leaves me with a problem, in that I can't play 24/96 or 24/192 music through the "standard" input. If I connect a second USB cable to the "hi-res" input of the Hugo, (which would save me unplugging/plugging the lead and the Olimex) will the second lead put the ground noise back into the Hugo when the hi-res input is not in use? I'm looking for the best possible sound quality, but it would be nice not to mess with cables and to be able to listen to hi-res stuff when I want to without compromising standard stuff. Or should I just always use the hi-res input?
 
I suppose an alternative would be to get a third-part USB to s/pdif converter .. but unless there was one that would give a better result than the USB inputs of the Hugo I'd rather save my pennies for the next Chord DAC !

 

[obsidyen]

   
If you can afford the Meridian for $23.000.- retail, the $200 you made on the Hugo should pay for a few pints! Cheers!
 

 
Thanks, every penny counts. If we were in a meet, I'd buy everyone a pint of lager. I'll still get a small headphone amp to use whilst on computer doing stuff but something with a smoother sound signature, maybe Meridian Prime.

 

[Currawong]

  Here's a question for the amazing Rob ...
 
My Hugo is wonderful. You've said on earlier posts that it's best to use the USB input with a USB isolator such as the Olimex because of ground noise issues. That leaves me with a problem, in that I can't play 24/96 or 24/192 music through the "standard" input. If I connect a second USB cable to the "hi-res" input of the Hugo, (which would save me unplugging/plugging the lead and the Olimex) will the second lead put the ground noise back into the Hugo when the hi-res input is not in use? I'm looking for the best possible sound quality, but it would be nice not to mess with cables and to be able to listen to hi-res stuff when I want to without compromising standard stuff. Or should I just always use the hi-res input?
 
I suppose an alternative would be to get a third-part USB to s/pdif converter .. but unless there was one that would give a better result than the USB inputs of the Hugo I'd rather save my pennies for the next Chord DAC !

 
It certainly would be interesting to try the Hugo with a Schiit Wyrd in the chain versus not.