Like many others, no doubt, I was convinced that direct out from the Chord duo could only be bettered by the addition of a really high end (and expensive) external amp, at questionable value-for-money. Unless seduced by glass wonders or the desire/need for far greater power delivery...viz Susvaras etc.
However, intrigued by the positive - albeit qualified comments heaped upon the budget Drop THX AAA ONE Linear amp (and its balanced sibling the 789), I was tempted to see what it might be capable of given a much better 30V power supply than the uninspiring stock wall wart...ie an inexpensive Chinese 'Ultra Low Noise' LPS, plus a cheap DC-DC step up/down converter.
In short, I wasn't at all prepared for the level of performance increase that resulted...and more so for not being simply a question of "amazingly good for the money". In fact, sound now exceeded direct out by a significant margin, and in ALL areas of delivery, bar none... highlighting the latent potential in an already top class product(s)....Edit#1 : actually, in both the Chord duo and the 'ONE'...#2 : oh, forgot to mention, the Empys also lol!
No doubt my easy to drive Meze Empyreans suit its 2.7W output at 32 Ohms admirably, along with it being a good match for other system upgrades, but I'm sure such unexpected results aren't limited just to my own setup lol!
And so for anyone interested in possibly replicating this upgrade to TT2's direct out performance for relative peanuts, I posted more detailed info here : https://www.head-fi.org/threads/drop-thx-aaa-one-linear-amp-transformation-david-v-goliath.961629/
ps. These findings have now been replicated unfailingly after more than a month's close scrutiny of test tracks I've used for assessment purposes hundreds of times over the past few years...with TT2/HMS; Hugo 2 and several tube amps.
Edit : pps. In addition to the areas of improvement mentioned in the above link, I would say that they negate any need whatsoever (unless in exceptional circumstances and system dependent) for use of TT2's filters and/or xfeed....which I personally found impacted negatively the sound from my own system anyway.
However, intrigued by the positive - albeit qualified comments heaped upon the budget Drop THX AAA ONE Linear amp (and its balanced sibling the 789), I was tempted to see what it might be capable of given a much better 30V power supply than the uninspiring stock wall wart...ie an inexpensive Chinese 'Ultra Low Noise' LPS, plus a cheap DC-DC step up/down converter.
In short, I wasn't at all prepared for the level of performance increase that resulted...and more so for not being simply a question of "amazingly good for the money". In fact, sound now exceeded direct out by a significant margin, and in ALL areas of delivery, bar none... highlighting the latent potential in an already top class product(s)....Edit#1 : actually, in both the Chord duo and the 'ONE'...#2 : oh, forgot to mention, the Empys also lol!
No doubt my easy to drive Meze Empyreans suit its 2.7W output at 32 Ohms admirably, along with it being a good match for other system upgrades, but I'm sure such unexpected results aren't limited just to my own setup lol!
And so for anyone interested in possibly replicating this upgrade to TT2's direct out performance for relative peanuts, I posted more detailed info here : https://www.head-fi.org/threads/drop-thx-aaa-one-linear-amp-transformation-david-v-goliath.961629/
ps. These findings have now been replicated unfailingly after more than a month's close scrutiny of test tracks I've used for assessment purposes hundreds of times over the past few years...with TT2/HMS; Hugo 2 and several tube amps.
Edit : pps. In addition to the areas of improvement mentioned in the above link, I would say that they negate any need whatsoever (unless in exceptional circumstances and system dependent) for use of TT2's filters and/or xfeed....which I personally found impacted negatively the sound from my own system anyway.
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