[jarnopp]

I had this problem, with an incompatible XLR adapter. On switching on, the relays seemed to go crazy, and TT2 made a horrible clicking sound from its internals, accompanied by a horrible shrilling from the speakers. Plus it was ‘stuck’ at 88.2.
However, I just powered it down, left it to reset for ten minutes, and everything was then OK without using the XLR adapter.
I don’t think that it damages the unit, and it just ‘resets’ after a while, but maybe others have some insight?

I fear you have damaged your negative outputs. The unit will still work SE, even from the XLRs, but not balanced. Test it with the correct XLR adapter and then be prepared to have it repaired under warranty. Chord may very well do this.

 

[jarnopp]

The xlr plugs are clearly marked inside with the pin numbers.

I did this post of the ones I made so you can plug in existing speaker cables.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/chord-electronics-dave.766517/page-866#post-14793551

Nick’s solution is brilliant, because he has all 3 pins wired to separate colored outputs. This way you can use th same adapter to switch between SE and XLR. I tried a pair when they were en route to Ray-Dude. But it’s easy enough to make the proper pair or the Flashback Sales (UK) adapters work balanced, if not as fancy as Nick’s. The pins on all the connectors are clearly labeled.

 

[betula]

Maybe a qutest with a better amp like Violectric V281 or Benchmark HPA 4 is a more fair comparison and closer to the peformence of TT2.

The Taurus MKII is a better amp in my book. Just read Innerfidelity's review. In my experience no amp + Qutest will match TT2's performance.

 

[walakalulu]

New to this thread. I bagged a pair of Focal Stellias at the recent London Canjam and will stream Qubuz via an Auralic wirelessly into either a Hugo or TT2. Given the cans are fairly efficient do you think the extra bucks for a TT2 would be worth it as I will only be using them as a dac/amp for headphones.

 

[LeoKane]

New to this thread. I bagged a pair of Focal Stellias at the recent London Canjam and will stream Qubuz via an Auralic wirelessly into either a Hugo or TT2. Given the cans are fairly efficient do you think the extra bucks for a TT2 would be worth it as I will only be using them as a dac/amp for headphones.

I would suggest listening to both side by side with the Stellias and then deciding if the extra cash for the TT2 is worth it in your opinion. It was when I did this exact same thing, didn't take very long to decide either!

 

[ZappaMan]

Don’t think Paul rated them

 

[Todd]

Hi All,

To try to make the decision of purchasing the Chord Hugo TT2 easier, we have started a loaner/rental program at TTVJAudio so you can audition the unit in your system and see if it is for you. The rental fee ($500) is less than the standard 15% return/restocking fee . And the cost of the loaner/rental will be credited toward your purchase should you decide you want one! You can check it out here

How it works... you order the loaner unit from our website and pay the fee to rent it. We send it out to you (the shipping to you is included in the fee) and you get to use it for 2 weeks from the day it is delivered to you. If you decide you want one, the fee is credited toward a new unit that will ship to you. when your 2 weeks are up, your return the unit to us and send us tracking.

We have the TT2 loaner ready to go as well as in stock for sale!

 

[bluenight]

The Taurus MKII is a better amp in my book. Just read Innerfidelity's review. In my experience no amp + Qutest will match TT2's performance.

I think the reviewer have been using the V 281 as a reference until recently though. But you cant know for sure untill you heard them bort yourself i guess. But V281 seems to get more praise and status and seem more legandary around here.

There is one comparison in here or T MK2 vs V281
http://www.headphoneer.com/hd800-amplifier-review/

 

[GreenBow]

Hi All,

To try to make the decision of purchasing the Chord Hugo TT2 easier, we have started a loaner/rental program at TTVJAudio so you can audition the unit in your system and see if it is for you. The rental fee ($500) is less than the standard 15% return/restocking fee . And the cost of the loaner/rental will be credited toward your purchase should you decide you want one! You can check it out here

How it works... you order the loaner unit from our website and pay the fee to rent it. We send it out to you (the shipping to you is included in the fee) and you get to use it for 2 weeks from the day it is delivered to you. If you decide you want one, the fee is credited toward a new unit that will ship to you. when your 2 weeks are up, your return the unit to us and send us tracking.

We have the TT2 loaner ready to go as well as in stock for sale!

I would say to everyone, trust your own thoughts about buying the TT2, if you have a Hugo 2 etc. It's how you think it will be, and better in ways maybe not thought. Then you can make up your own mind. There are other stores that will give you a free home audition. Plus you can get free TT2 feedback, from those of us kind enough to share our TT2 experience.

The truth about the TT2 is that it's not out of line in any way, with the Chord family of DACs. (Or with the Chord DACs that I own: Hugo 2/Qutest, and Mojo.) It is a little more dynamic and immediate than the Hugo 2/Qutest due to its supercaps and/or beefed up power-supply. (Plus it has double the taps of the Hugo 2/Qutest; so more detailed, but you know how it works.) I remember Rob Watts once said, about the TT2 and M-Scaler together, that it was explosively fast.

To me just the TT2 is fast, so I believe him since he drives speakers direct. I mean, the transients that I can pick out with my modest gear amp and speakers, are stunning. When I first got the TT2, I almost jumped back in my seat, at one of the first fast transients I heard. It was on music I knew well on the Hugo 2.

I would also recommend with a TT2 audition, listen to some music you don't know on Hugo 2. (As well as music you know.) It's because, at first TT2 can sound like a lot, with music you are familiar with on Hugo 2. New music has no reference so it's easier to hear the TT2 as a whole. ..... Or at least I thought so, but get other's opinion on that too.


Also this just arrived on the M-Scaler thread: review of TT2 and M-Scaler. Copied it over. Am not taking credit for finding it.

Recent review from The absolute sound

http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/chord-electronics-hugo-tt-2-dacpreampheadphone-amp-and-hugo-m-scaler/

​

 

[N Quarter]

I have cut up a pair of XLR cables I have, in order to make XLR to speaker wire cables for my TT2. According to a previous post, I need to use pin 2 and pin 3 to get the 18 Watts output. My question is, is it ok to just not use the wire for pin 1, in other words, cut any exposed wire off, and cover it up with electrical tape or that shrink rubber stuff? This is just an experiment to see if I prefer this to the RCA to speaker wire connection I already am using (home made). I don’t want to spend a lot of money on cables until I figure out if I prefer using the TT2 direct to speakers, or using an amp. The last thing I want to do is blow something up though.

 

[jarnopp]

I have cut up a pair of XLR cables I have, in order to make XLR to speaker wire cables for my TT2. According to a previous post, I need to use pin 2 and pin 3 to get the 18 Watts output. My question is, is it ok to just not use the wire for pin 1, in other words, cut any exposed wire off, and cover it up with electrical tape or that shrink rubber stuff? This is just an experiment to see if I prefer this to the RCA to speaker wire connection I already am using (home made). I don’t want to spend a lot of money on cables until I figure out if I prefer using the TT2 direct to speakers, or using an amp. The last thing I want to do is blow something up though.

It should be. As long as pin 1 isn’t connected to anything. Ideally pin 2 would be red and pin 3 black for connecting to speakers, but for testing it doesn’t matter as much, as long as both speakers are wired the same (same phase). Be careful!

 

[N Quarter]

It should be. As long as pin 1 isn’t connected to anything. Ideally pin 2 would be red and pin 3 black for connecting to speakers, but for testing it doesn’t matter as much, as long as both speakers are wired the same (same phase). Be careful!

Thanks for the quick reply jarnopp. Yes I will be using red for pin 2, just kind of need a bit of reassurance before I plug them in tomorrow. I have the cables at work with me right now, and plan on soldering all the connections tonight. Triode Users 3 plug adapters got me thinking that I have to do something with pin 1, other than just making sure no other wires touch it. Also back a few pages, I think I read that someone wired theirs up wrong, and fried something. I have an old pair of energy speakers that I always connect up first, whenever I make changes to my setup, or cables...just to be safe.

 

[musickid]

The hugo2/mscaler combo is arguably better than a solo tt2/dave. not my words!! h2 becomes a 1 million tap dac. i definitely prefer my h2/hms over a solo dave having heard dave. this point should be important for those on a budget. of course adding a hms to tt2/dave we are in a different galaxy!

 

[musickid]

i tried audio technica's flagship today 5000's at 2K price. lovely crisp sound but alcantra pads were not comfortable for me. also tried 3K he1000se by hifiman and found a beautiful airy crisp sound but at over 400gr with massive ear cups i just couldn't settle in. i was going to buy one of these to use with my h2/hms. now back at home i'm playing the same tracks with hms/h2 through oppo's flagship my pm1 and the sound quality easily compares with the previous 2 big boy cans. the oppo is ultralight for a planar and i'm now thinking add a tt2 to my hms trading in my h2 to maximise every ounce from my pm1 with the best deal i can get and to maximise the SQ i can get for my given budget. really? yeah. that's what it ultimately boils down to.

 

[zappazappazappa]

I think the reviewer have been using the V 281 as a reference until recently though. But you cant know for sure untill you heard them bort yourself i guess. But V281 seems to get more praise and status and seem more legandary around here.

There is one comparison in here or T MK2 vs V281
http://www.headphoneer.com/hd800-amplifier-review/

Before purchasing my TT2 my setup was TT (used as DAC) into Violectric V281 headphone amp using MrSpeakers Ether Flow 1.1headphones in balanced mode. The TT was connected to the V281 with Snake River Audio Mamushi Signature inteconnects and the V281 had a Russ Andrews SuperKord - 100 mains lead attached. The results with this setup were excellent, by the way.

Having heard the TT2 at London CanJam and being very impressed by the SQ I decided to purchase it p/exing my TT to help fund the purchase.

The reason I was using the V281 as headphone amp in preference to the TT's headphone amp is simply because it sounded better. I used to get quite cross when some posters would say there was no need to use an external headphone amp with the TT and that the resulting sound must be worse when my ears told me a different story. I also preferred to use Hugo 1( my first Chord product) as a DAC into an external headphone amp in preference to the onboard headphone amp. Basically I liked the Chord on board headphone amps but thought they could be improved on.

When I listened to the TT2 at London CanJam I was impressed by the extra drive the headphone amp had even though it was single ended rather than balanced which I had previously regarded as being superior. When I got my new TT2 I initially used it in DAC mode into the V281 and was very impressed by the results. I next decided to A/B the headphone amps. After much toing and froing (which indicates how good the V281 is) I came to the conclusion that I preferred the TT2 as a single package. (The cost to buy a new V281 and the cables I used new would be more than the cost of a new TT2, making the TT2 a relative high end 'bargain'.) With the TT2 I feel the headphone amp section of Chord's products is now on a par with their world class DAC's.

No doubt there are headphone amps out there - the new Niimbus's for example or various valve based designs, which I haven't heard, and which may offer superior sound quality; but for the moment I'm more than happy with the TT2 headphone amp. Just need the money for the M Scaler now!