[SaddleSC]

Hi all. I’ve been reading up a bit and following this thread in the last week or so.
Recently i bought a niimbus us4 to drive my susvaras. i also have the utopias and hekse
As one can do here I am also now looking at dacs and weighing them up with the metrum hex dac that I have and really enjoy.
i have demoed the tt2 a couple of times a while ago and enjoyed it. In my brief demos i found them pretty similar in quality but slightly different but they were brief demos and before i bought the us4.
(the plan was to make this post shorter than what this is)
i am looking at whether the tt2 and niimbus will work together.
however in reading this thread i am thinking (please confirm if my thinking is correct):
1) even though the tt2 is well loved, the tt2 (only?) really shines with the hms;
2) the usb is not as good as the optical input. i am using usb out from my imac at the moment;
3) i may need to look at RF issued and look at an external battery, or is that more for the hms. Does rob watts not believe so - I haven’t totally to understood the (maybe) difference in opinions;
4) upgraded bnc cables are highly recommended for the hms tt2 link.

are these 4 points correct or common?
if so, me looking at the tt2 as an option is not as easy or as “cheap” as i was hoping to stretch my budget to as as to consider it.
so i either have to start saving and come back to it later or decide to look at other simpler/ less expensive options

if it was as simple as tt2 is great by itself and does shine and later i could come back to the hms for a “turbo boost” in quality (that is mot a must have) that would be good but reading this thread has raised my above concerns and giving me a more complicated but perhaps a more accurate picture of where things are at

any help on my concerns will be much appreciated

(apologies for the novella)

thanks
peter

I have/had many of the same questions. My Hugo TT2 arrived last week and I have been enjoying it quite a bit. I like to use external amps so have been testing it against my Qutest all week and IMO when A/B'd this way, there is a much more prominent difference between the TT2 and the Qutest than I imagined there would be. I am also doing a lot of listening on the internal headphone amp and it has power to spare to drive anything I own.

Well, to make a long story short...tomorrow my M Scaler should arrive and I will be doing extensive comparisons between Qutest + M Scaler vs TT2 Solo vs TT2 + M Scaler. I will post my impressions to this thread after I have some listening under my belt. I am very skeptical that the M Scaler will be as transformative as people say, but I just NEED to hear it for myself. It will need to meet a very high bar to not be returned at the end of my evaluation period, but I am optimistic based on what I have read.

To answer one of your questions right now...the TT2 is amazing as a standalone DAC and as a one-box listening device. I do not think you are being hamstrung in any way by waiting to add the M Scaler at a later time. I will follow up this weekend with some initial thoughts once I get everything set up with the M Scaler, but because of my love for external amps, I am interested to see how the Qutest + M Scaler stacks up to the solo TT2...stay tuned!

 

[118900]

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[Audioraider]

Nice system . But why are you keeping a big headphone amp right in front of your ML´s?
Cheers CC

Lol, because it looked great for the picture! It’s on a table that can slide back against the wall when I’m not using it. Also, since receiving ZMF Vérité I don’t really listen to my Martin Logans anymore other than TV and movies.

 

[DJJEZ]

I have/had many of the same questions. My Hugo TT2 arrived last week and I have been enjoying it quite a bit. I like to use external amps so have been testing it against my Qutest all week and IMO when A/B'd this way, there is a much more prominent difference between the TT2 and the Qutest than I imagined there would be. I am also doing a lot of listening on the internal headphone amp and it has power to spare to drive anything I own.

Well, to make a long story short...tomorrow my M Scaler should arrive and I will be doing extensive comparisons between Qutest + M Scaler vs TT2 Solo vs TT2 + M Scaler. I will post my impressions to this thread after I have some listening under my belt. I am very skeptical that the M Scaler will be as transformative as people say, but I just NEED to hear it for myself. It will need to meet a very high bar to not be returned at the end of my evaluation period, but I am optimistic based on what I have read.

To answer one of your questions right now...the TT2 is amazing as a standalone DAC and as a one-box listening device. I do not think you are being hamstrung in any way by waiting to add the M Scaler at a later time. I will follow up this weekend with some initial thoughts once I get everything set up with the M Scaler, but because of my love for external amps, I am interested to see how the Qutest + M Scaler stacks up to the solo TT2...stay tuned!

Sounds like your best option to is go with the TT2 as a dac, mscaler and add additional amp as you say the difference between TT2 and qutest is huge and you like external amps. Interested to see what you think of mscaler

 

[Icenine2]

Audiophile Nerd question: Has anyone flipped the C7 cord changing polarity and discoved a difference? You just have to flip the Cord plug into the PSU. I bought a Nordost Purple Flare Cord to upgrade the stock Cord. I saw someone else here tried one. I'm under no illusion that it might do zero but I'm giving it a shot. The dealer I'm buying from was adamant that the polarity one way will sound flat and the other dynamic and alive.

 

[SaddleSC]

Sounds like your best option to is go with the TT2 as a dac, mscaler and add additional amp as you say the difference between TT2 and qutest is huge and you like external amps. Interested to see what you think of mscaler

I agree...I am very excited to hear the differences that the M Scaler adds. I was quite shocked how different the Qutest sounds from the TT2...based on reviews I had read as well as a few months of listening to the Qutest alone I figured it would be a pretty subtle upgrade. Once I heard the TT2, it was very noticeable and a bit difficult to go back. Once I heard the level of detail that was possible the Qutest just sounded much smaller by comparison with far less instrument separation. Fingers crossed that the TT2 + M Scaler will be end game for me. I am ready to just sit back and enjoy the music!

 

[nwavesailor]

I agree...I am very excited to hear the differences that the M Scaler adds. I was quite shocked how different the Qutest sounds from the TT2...based on reviews I had read as well as a few months of listening to the Qutest alone I figured it would be a pretty subtle upgrade. Once I heard the TT2, it was very noticeable and a bit difficult to go back. Once I heard the level of detail that was possible the Qutest just sounded much smaller by comparison with far less instrument separation. Fingers crossed that the TT2 + M Scaler will be end game for me. I am ready to just sit back and enjoy the music!

I asked my dealer, where I bought the Qutest, if the upgrade to the TT2 would be a big one and he undersold that idea. I was pleasantly surprised when I moved to the TT2 and found IMO it is quite a bit better!

 

[Icenine2]

I too had a Qutest I bought from HeadAmp. It was such a big jump from where I had been with the Wyred4Sound that I sent it back after talkintg w/Justin for the TT2. A big difference. Also the headphone section is so good I shedded my Cavalli Liquid Fire too.

 

[118900]

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[SoundeScapes]

I have/had many of the same questions. My Hugo TT2 arrived last week and I have been enjoying it quite a bit. I like to use external amps so have been testing it against my Qutest all week and IMO when A/B'd this way, there is a much more prominent difference between the TT2 and the Qutest than I imagined there would be. I am also doing a lot of listening on the internal headphone amp and it has power to spare to drive anything I own.

Well, to make a long story short...tomorrow my M Scaler should arrive and I will be doing extensive comparisons between Qutest + M Scaler vs TT2 Solo vs TT2 + M Scaler. I will post my impressions to this thread after I have some listening under my belt. I am very skeptical that the M Scaler will be as transformative as people say, but I just NEED to hear it for myself. It will need to meet a very high bar to not be returned at the end of my evaluation period, but I am optimistic based on what I have read.

To answer one of your questions right now...the TT2 is amazing as a standalone DAC and as a one-box listening device. I do not think you are being hamstrung in any way by waiting to add the M Scaler at a later time. I will follow up this weekend with some initial thoughts once I get everything set up with the M Scaler, but because of my love for external amps, I am interested to see how the Qutest + M Scaler stacks up to the solo TT2...stay tuned!

I too had a Qutest into an integrated amp and was contemplating whether to go for
a HMS or TT2 as the next step.
I ended up buying the M-Scaler first and found the change very subtle.
It was even hard for me to tell if it was upscaling or not.
When I bought the TT2 it was a much bigger difference.
A fuller, more authoritative presentation and a lot cleaner as well.
If I had to do it all over again I would buy TT2 first and add the M-Scaler later.
Everyone hears and appreciates the effect of HMS differently though so it's impossible to give an advice.

Of course having M-Scaler and TT2 now I'm really happy with the way my system sounds.
The difference with M-Scaler is more obvious now too.

 

[robo24]

if it was as simple as tt2 is great by itself and does shine and later i could come back to the hms for a “turbo boost” in quality (that is mot a must have) that would be good but reading this thread has raised my above concerns and giving me a more complicated but perhaps a more accurate picture of where things are at

That's not been my sense exactly. My sense was that it was a clear step up from the first TT and the Hugo 2 & Qutest. It definitely was for me, moving from the Hugo 2 and I think it's a phenomenal product on its own. I've not heard it, but some find the HMS difference to be subtle to non-existent while others find dramatic improvements. If ignorance is bliss, I'll take it, because I don't have the funds for an HMS.

 

[118900]

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[thecrow]

The qutest never wowed me when matching it with my preferences amd what i am used to hearing (nos dac).
i even borrowed a friends.
his take on the qutest was that it does its best work with high res files.
i found it a little too cold/analytical. Again that is coming off my nos metrum hex dac.

whereas the hugott2 is another story and more in line with my preferences and what i seek.

 

[Gadget67]

Audiophile Nerd question: Has anyone flipped the C7 cord changing polarity and discoved a difference? You just have to flip the Cord plug into the PSU. I bought a Nordost Purple Flare Cord to upgrade the stock Cord. I saw someone else here tried one. I'm under no illusion that it might do zero but I'm giving it a shot. The dealer I'm buying from was adamant that the polarity one way will sound flat and the other dynamic and alive.

I purchased an Audioquest NRG-Y2 cord to replace the PSU cord. It is non-polarized and (presumably) can go in either way. I think your dealer is blowing smoke but if you try it and hear a difference, let us know. Color me skeptical.

 

[bpcans]

Same experience as me. I found the change from the H2 to the HTT2 to be much much larger than I had originally anticipated and although I am very tempted by the Mscaler, i could also live with my current set up (HTT2 without the Mscaler) very happily. More a case of uogradeitis rather than actual need.

juansan, I thought that I had crossed the Rubicon like Julius Caesar did in 49BCE when I bought my first Chord DAC, the diminutive and aptly named Qutest. But that little black box opened my ears to the possibilities of audio Nirvana that was available to me if I just listened more closely. After auditioning a TT2, I immediately drove back to my audio store, and giddily like a child, traded the Qutest for what I thought would be the endgame for all of my music loving needs. Long story longer, after only a few weeks I found myself buying an M Scaler at a great price. Could I have been happy without it? Definitely yes! Would I want to live without it now? Definitely not! In only a matter of a few months I went from a humble little hp system, notice the $3.99 banana hanger for a headphone stand, to a monstrous audio gear Kudzu thing that has taken on a life of its own. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kudzu Be afraid. Be very afraid!