[NYanakiev]

I've been using my Utopia with my Hugo 2 for the last ~2.5 years and it's been a great pairing, and doubles as a "transportable" setup for when I have enough time in the office and off the production floor to enjoy them.

I've only recently gotten the itch to either upgrade to TT2 or add a decent tube amp for the less than stellar recordings I enjoy. It's mostly just money burning a hole in my pocket as I save for a house though.

Yeah, I had the same...until I spent some time on the TT2 thread, that is.
When I asked Rob Watts about his advised upgrade path from the Hugo 2 (TT2 vs Mscaler), replied that the latter is the bigger upgrade.

 

[elisiX]

Yeah a long time ago, I saw the HiFi+ review of the Utopia + Moon Black Dragon V2 pairing. (Moon have moved on to the V3 now.) .... Yes, that is a cable I have in mind.

I've not read that review before. Just took a look - thanks.

I had a friends Black Dragon Utopia cable for a week or so which is where my experience with Utopia comes from. It felt perfect sonically to my ears. My only hesitation so far in buying one for myself has been that I don't completely love the aesthetic or physical design as much. The Moon Audio cables are a little stiff and have the most basic looking plastic coating. I'd have bought one already if it were braided for example.

It might seem like a silly reason not to buy as yet, but it's made me explore other options like Norne (though i'm not sure which is the Black Dragon equivalent), and the Lazuli Reference (which is double the price of the BD and Norne). Part of me just says go the whole way with the Lazuli Reference which I believe will come close to the Black Dragon sonically, but in a much nicer overall package (happy to be corrected if I am wrong).

Yeah, I had the same...until I spent some time on the TT2 thread, that is.
When I asked Rob Watts about his advised upgrade path from the Hugo 2 (TT2 vs Mscaler), replied that the latter is the bigger upgrade.

Passion for Sound (AU YouTuber) spent some time reviewing the Qutest and HMS vs. TT2 alone and TT2 / HMS. I've spoken with him personally and he agreed that the path to follow, assuming you are starting with a Qutest or H2 but can't spring for the TT2/HMS in one, was to go with the Quetst or H2 with HMS first and then the TT2 rather than having the TT2 alone. HMS seems to make the biggest difference with its 1mil taps, so I suppose that makes sense.

 

[NYanakiev]

I've not read that review before. Just took a look - thanks.

I had a friends Black Dragon Utopia cable for a week or so which is where my experience with Utopia comes from. It felt perfect sonically to my ears. My only hesitation so far in buying one for myself has been that I don't completely love the aesthetic or physical design as much. The Moon Audio cables are a little stiff and have the most basic looking plastic coating. I'd have bought one already if it were braided for example.

It might seem like a silly reason not to buy as yet, but it's made me explore other options like Norne (though i'm not sure which is the Black Dragon equivalent), and the Lazuli Reference (which is double the price of the BD and Norne). Part of me just says go the whole way with the Lazuli Reference which I believe will come close to the Black Dragon sonically, but in a much nicer overall package (happy to be corrected if I am wrong).



Passion for Sound (AU YouTuber) spent some time reviewing the Qutest and HMS vs. TT2 alone and TT2 / HMS. I've spoken with him personally and he agreed that the path to follow, assuming you are starting with a Qutest or H2 but can't spring for the TT2/HMS in one, was to go with the Quetst or H2 with HMS first and then the TT2 rather than having the TT2 alone. HMS seems to make the biggest difference with its 1mil taps, so I suppose that makes sense.

Yup. Which is great if you don't need a TT2 (for headphones only use) or, indeed, want one (cost, widely reported reliability/QC issues)

 

[elisiX]

I’ve already got a Hugo 2 and V281. I don’t use my Hugo 2 in that pairing as it’s my office transportable solution, but I could very easily add HMS to the H2 and run it through the V281 for a relatively problem free high end solution. I suppose if I did this I could sell the RME (putting that money toward HMS), and just unplug the H2 when I head into the office. Could always add TT2 down the track.

 

[NYanakiev]

I hope Chord fit the Mscaler into a smaller package. As it stands, it is a full blown tabletop solution with a substantial space requirement.

Personally, I much prefer the form factor of the Hugo2Go or, indeed, Focal's Arche.

 

[iceanddice]

My Utopia’s right driver got busted back in September 2019. Got them around March of 2018 from head fi. Had them repaired at the local distro here in the Philippines in Feb 2020. Didnt follow up due to Covid lockdown and recently got them back after paying 20k pesos (roughly 400USD) for driver shipping and labor for the repairs. I noticed that the red magnets that my drivers used to have are now gone, but both of them work now! Any update on these “red-less” drivers? Noticed the lack of red magnets when I was listening to them alongside my 4z’s. They still carry the same forward and revealing Utopia sound that I remember though.

 

[GreenBow]

Yep, so right after I mention that the Chord Electronics TT2 can run speakers, guess what! (Bear in mind TT2 driving speakers is in the TT2 manual from Chord.)

It is claimed from someone now, that Chord are not recommending that. Quote, Chord say “Our advice now is; regardless of sensitivity or impedance do not connect speakers directly to the TT2. We’re aware of the comments that Rob made about connecting speakers directly but the components in the output stage weren’t selected for driving speakers and we really don’t recommend it."

This may or may not be true. However, for the curious of those who want a DAC and no need for a headphone amp for headphones. The TT2 easily has power for any headphone.

The TT2 recently won a DAC group-test in HiFi Choice. Hugo-TT-2-Group-Test-Winner-2020-Hi-Fi-Choice.pdf (chordelectronics.co.uk)

 

[iceanddice]

Yep, so right after I mention that the Chord Electronics TT2 can run speakers, in two previous posts. (It is the TT2 manual from Chord.)

It is claimed from someone now, that Chord are not recommending that. Quote, Chord say “Our advice now is; regardless of sensitivity or impedance do not connect speakers directly to the TT2. We’re aware of the comments that Rob made about connecting speakers directly but the components in the output stage weren’t selected for driving speakers and we really don’t recommend it."

This may or may not be true. However, for the curious of those who want a DAC and no need for a headphone amp for headphones. The TT2 easily has power for any headphone.

The TT2 recently won a DAC group-test in HiFi Choice. Hugo-TT-2-Group-Test-Winner-2020-Hi-Fi-Choice.pdf (chordelectronics.co.uk)

ive owned a tt2 for over 1.5 years, had speaker taps terminated in 3pin xlr for the same amount of time and luckily haven’t used them lol. Wouldve been interesting to hear but if it carries a risk id pass.

 

[bpcans]

Well Vinh replied right away. They can swap out with either Neutrik or Furutech (for additional cost). The manual for the Arche says to use XLR for best results. Don’t think I’ve ever tried a balanced setup before.

Vinh Vu is awesome to deal with! You will be blown away by how good your Utopias sound thru a 4-pin balanced XLR cable. I use a Danacable Lazuli Ultra 4-pin hp cable, and I love it!

 

[iamoneagain]

Vinh Vu is awesome to deal with! You will be blown away by how good your Utopias sound thru a 4-pin balanced XLR cable. I use a Danacable Lazuli Ultra 4-pin hp cable, and I love it!

Think I’m sending cable off today. Might as well max out the Arche.

I’m surprised I’m not missing the Dave but maybe it’s sort of like a movie. When they did that Hobbit movie in was it 8k and everyone was like it’s too real. I think that can happen with the Chord products. Hear people saying they need to get used to all the detail. I’m not saying the Dave didn’t sound great but not sure need that level of detail to enjoy my music. Think things like tone, weight, impact, and soundstage are all important. Too much detail without enough weight can ruin the experience. Felt that’s what the Hugo 2 was like for me with Utopia’s.

 

[NYanakiev]

For what it is worth, I really enjoy the Utopia with my Hugo 2. As I do with the Arche- both sound great, just in their own unique way.

 

[bpcans]

Think I’m sending cable off today. Might as well max out the Arche.

I’m surprised I’m not missing the Dave but maybe it’s sort of like a movie. When they did that Hobbit movie in was it 8k and everyone was like it’s too real. I think that can happen with the Chord products. Hear people saying they need to get used to all the detail. I’m not saying the Dave didn’t sound great but not sure need that level of detail to enjoy my music. Think things like tone, weight, impact, and soundstage are all important. Too much detail without enough weight can ruin the experience. Felt that’s what the Hugo 2 was like for me with Utopia’s.

iamoneagain, well I wish I had a DAVE to not miss like you do, but I’m beginning to settle in with my HMS/TT2 combo. Us poor folks will just have to make do. Lol

 

[Hoegaardener70]

I did enjoy the transparency of my Hugo2, but I decided to let it go to finance my Arche (which does sound in my ears is with the Utopia setting more pleasant).
Before selling the Hugo2, I made an experiment and connected three devices playing the same source files parallel to my ifi ican Pro with the Utopia plugged in. Using this setup, I could then use the input selector to directly compare the three streams - Hugo2, ifi micro BL and Questyle QP2R. I prefered the Hugo2 with its transparent sound, but the ifi was more fun (although a bit muddier). My wife preferred the QP2R. Bottomline, you do not need spend a fortune for Chord to have fun.

 

[iamoneagain]

iamoneagain, well I wish I had a DAVE to not miss like you do, but I’m beginning to settle in with my HMS/TT2 combo. Us poor folks will just have to make do. Lol

Well only reason I got Dave in first place is thru inheritance money after both my parents died about 2 months apart. So I suddenly had a lot of money and wasn’t in the clearest of thought. As the year came to a close, I realized spending over $10k for a headphone setup was a little crazy when I didn’t earn that kind of money. So that’s why I can be happy with the Arche. It’s really what I can afford. The inheritance money will go towards my son’s education.

 

[iamoneagain]

For what it is worth, I really enjoy the Utopia with my Hugo 2. As I do with the Arche- both sound great, just in their own unique way.

And I really didn’t hate the Hugo 2 combination with the Utopia’s but I was used to a much warmer headphone, the AT L3000. The Utopia’s with the Hugo 2 was just too cold for my taste. My original plan was to save up and get the TT2 and then maybe add mscaler a year later. Once I had inheritance money, I sold off everything else and got the Dave and then soon after the mscaler. I was sort of set on keeping it until the Arche deal came up and even heard a few prefer it to the Dave since more fun sounding.

I wouldn’t go so far as to say I’d prefer the Arche if I kept both, just that it puts a smile on my face and can be perfectly happy with it.