[SilverEars]

For D9200 I really don't see why Mojo isn't sufficient? It's only 25 ohms, and seems to drive easy out of portable devices.

Hugo 2 isn't some perfect headphone driving machine either (for instance IMO not for my HE-560, sony Z7). Cool piece of gear, sure, but a terrible value proposition too if you don't have a particular use case for 'cost is no limit dac in a transportable battery powered package' (maybe the 'golden eared' types get more out of it than I do... idk, just doesn't seem worth it for when money is anything more than an afterthought). Plenty of very well regarded desktop gear for a fraction of the price.... maybe look into non-usb source for Mojo? some people seem to think that can lead to some marginal improvement?

That's the problem with Hugo 2. You can't really depend on it to drive everything well out of it despite what people say about it's power output. Some headphones need particular amping other than Hugo 2 output. It's not really about transparency from forgoing another amp section, but the purpose of another amp is for driving the headphone well. Utopia for example doesn't get driven all that well from Hugo 2 headphone out for example. Sound stage seems compressed, and it generally doesn't sound as well out of the right amps for it. People say Utopia is easily driven, etc.., but it's finicky of amps and DACs.

Like for example, I found RMI ADI-2 headphone out to suck, but then again I dislike the performance of the DAC as well.

 

[jmills8]

For D9200 I really don't see why Mojo isn't sufficient? It's only 25 ohms, and seems to drive easy out of portable devices.

That's the problem with Hugo 2. You can't really depend on it to drive everything well out of it despite what people say about it's power output. Some headphones need particular amping other than Hugo 2 output. It's not really about transparency from forgoing another amp section, but the purpose of another amp is for driving the headphone well. Utopia for example doesn't get driven all that well from Hugo 2 headphone out for example. Sound stage seems compressed, and it generally doesn't sound as well out of the right amps for it. People say Utopia is easily driven, etc.., but it's finicky of amps and DACs.

Like for example, I found RMI ADI-2 headphone out to suck, but then again I dislike the performance of the DAC as well.

Mojo and hugo distorts when bass , sub bass , is needed. If you never heard real sub bass then its ok for you.

 

[Brando]

I completely forgot that my asrock motherboard has

" Purity Sound 4"
"It's time to enjoy the most purified audio performance with ultra high definition. Purity Sound4 is a combination of several hardware, software audio solutions. 7.1 CH HD audio with the latest Realtek ALC1220 audio codec, individual PCB layers for R/L audio channel, 120dB SNR DAC and other technologies to deliver the crispest sound effects."

Just for the hell of it I ran my 3.5mm to dual rca from my pc to my thx 789 amp and it actually sounds pretty good lol. Looks like amp synergy is the most important thing on these phones as far as I can tell. It's not amazing sounding but better than I expected.

 

[WDitters]

Still looking for the perfect cabling match between my FiiO M11 PRO (w/THX amp) and my D9200.. Am mostly into Indie, pop, rock but also folk, acousitc and singer songwriter.. (next to some EDM and hip-hop) Am a subscriber to Qobuz and Tidal.

Give the fact that the M11 PRO sounds cleaner and more detailed than my AK, but also slightly more clinical, I am a tad worried that bringing in silver strands or plating will result in too much edge on the highs.. Any suggestions or recommendations?

 

[SilverEars]

I've been looking at information about older Denon headphones, and I round information about D7000 was made by Foster. Are the new ones made exclusively by Denon? I searched around for this information, and ran into something about from D7100 onwards Denon produced them. Is this true?

 

[stimuz]

I've been looking at information about older Denon headphones, and I round information about D7000 was made by Foster. Are the new ones made exclusively by Denon? I searched around for this information, and ran into something about from D7100 onwards Denon produced them. Is this true?

They use their own "free edge drivers" in everything pricier d600 and onward.

 

[GamingDJ]

I've been looking at information about older Denon headphones, and I round information about D7000 was made by Foster. Are the new ones made exclusively by Denon? I searched around for this information, and ran into something about from D7100 onwards Denon produced them. Is this true?

Yep, that is true.

Also, a response to your statement where you said the Denon shouldn't need much power because they were just 25 ohms: It's because of the way Denon makes their driver which is physically dampened like a speaker rather than electrically dampened like most of the other dynamic headphones. All the Denons I've tried and had are in general power hungry cans who perform a whole lot better when fed more power and they don't necessarily get very loud as quick as people might think with powerful amps like the 789.

 

[SilverEars]

Yep, that is true.

Also, a response to your statement where you said the Denon shouldn't need much power because they were just 25 ohms: It's because of the way Denon makes their driver which is physically dampened like a speaker rather than electrically dampened like most of the other dynamic headphones. All the Denons I've tried and had are in general power hungry cans who perform a whole lot better when fed more power and they don't necessarily get very loud as quick as people might think with powerful amps like the 789.

Are you saying that it's not easy to drive out of portable devices? I don't understand what this physically depening vs electrical, it's something new to me. Is there any clear examples out there? I like to see some examples of this.

As far as specs goes, it's sensitivity is 105dB, so it does indeed get loud easy with very low driver impedance.

The driver size I've read is 50mm. That is quite large for a dynamic driver. Another headphone with the same driver size is HD800 although different materials used.

The magnet's strength is 1 Tesla, and for comparison I've read TH-900 is 1.5 Tesla.

 

[Brando]

I can confirm that the d9200 sounds good from my droid turbo 2. It sounds bad plugged into my receiver but my main sound system sounds amazing from the same receiver (onkyo tx-8270). They sound shouty/hard from the modi 3-atom combo. they sound similar from the mojo-atom combo. they sound fantastic from the mojo. they sound fantastic in a slightly different way from the mojo-thx 789 combo. picky ass headphones but very nice when they get their way.

 

[MacedonianHero]

Hugo 2 isn't some perfect headphone driving machine either (for instance IMO not for my HE-560, sony Z7). Cool piece of gear, sure, but if you don't have a particular use case for 'cost is no limit dac in a transportable battery powered package' just doesn't seem worth it IME (maybe the 'golden eared' & hi-res DSD types get a lot more out of it than I do... idk). Plenty of very well regarded desktop gear for a fraction of the price... maybe try non-USB sources if you don't already? some people claim that can give some marginal improvements.

It is the only portable DAC that I've owned that bests pretty much any desktop DAC I've owned costing $3,500 or less. And furthermore, it is the only portable unit that can drive pretty much any headphone I've owned; except for the LCD-4/Susvara/Phi TC. It is brilliant with the D9200 and D7000s from my experience. But then there is budget to consider...so like most things in life, it depends.

 

[Brando]

Got a topping d90 coming in a couple days or so. Will report.

 

[musickid]

finally macedonian hero talks sense. the topping is a big mistake IMHO. if you could pool all your resources sell your present gear the hugo 2 would give you an end game solution for the next 3-4 years with no additions. it's ok to disagree. the reviews are biased. trust your ear and nothing else.

the TT2 is an amp/dac/headphone amp and preamp all in one unit.

 

[jmills8]

finally macedonian hero talks sense. the topping is a big mistake IMHO. if you could pool all your resources sell your present gear the hugo 2 would give you an end game solution for the next 3-4 years with no additions. it's ok to disagree. the reviews are biased. trust your ear and nothing else.

the TT2 is an amp/dac/headphone amp and preamp all in one unit.

Yep TT2 owners , many use an amp with the TT2.

 

[musickid]

nearly always with susvara/abyss phi tc and lcd 4. even then the TT2 can easily power these cans. a few like tube effect but that has nothing to do with power. TT2 destroys HE 6.

(@1% THD) 1.15 W RMS 300Ω; 18W RMS 8Ω

 

[jmills8]

nearly always with susvara/abyss phi tc and lcd 4. even then the TT2 can easily power these cans. a few like tube effect but that has nothing to do with power. TT2 destroys HE 6.

(@1% THD) 1.15 W RMS 300Ω; 18W RMS 8Ω

Nice numbers but real life aint always the same.