[TSAVJason]

What would you use as spacers? It'd have to be pretty heat resistant and give, I would imagine, 3-5" distance between the amp and the Hugo, at least.[/

as long as you’re not directly covering any intended ventilation points you should be good with 1.5” or 2. 3-5“ is far more than you need to maintain to be in a safe operating condition. Again as long as you’re not stacking things that get HOT to the touch. Warm is ok but hot is ill advised

 

[TSAVJason]

i would suggest some rubberized feet you can purchase at your local hardware store.

 

[phonyx]

Hey folks, I’m struggling to find an actual thread discussing this amps sound signature, capabilities and modern headphones pairings. This thread was quite disappointing being 52 pages of mostly people waiting for their amps… are there any semi current appreciation / impressions threads anyone knows about? Or is this amp history?

 

[pippen99]

It is history. The last units were shipped in late 2016. If the serial numbers were linear approximately 370 were produced. My serial number is #367(?).

 

[phonyx]

It is history. The last units were shipped in late 2016. If the serial numbers were linear approximately 370 were produced. My serial number is #367(?).

Thanks for the quick reply. What else in your opinion comes close to this that is currently available? It doesn’t seem to me anything has been designed with the same goals in mind since. The Hypsos + OOR combo from Ferrum piqued my interest but it apparently has a rather narrow soundstage and there’s been more reliability/QC issues reported than I’d like.

I’m not averse to tracking down a used LAu!

 

[Benny-x]

That latest talk I've heard about good pairings is with the Abyss TC.

But it is totally a veteran amp and it was only the tippy top right before Cavalli Audio closed it's doors back like 4-5 years ago.

It's got a very meaty sound to it, but still lots of detail. It pairs well with detailed and sometimes a bit dry or aggressive sounding headphones, and it's got gobs of power on tap.

I like it with my whole string of headphones, for whatever that's worth, but that's not like a "confirmed pairing" guide:
1. McIntosh MHP1000
2. HiFiMAN HE-6
3. Pioneer SE-Master1
4. JVC HP-DX1000
5. HiFiMAN HE-1000v1

 

[Benny-x]

I’m not averse to tracking down a used LAu!

You might find one, but good luck. Only about 1 comes up per year.

Why don't you just go after the new Monoprice version? Alex Cavalli even commented in this thread about 6-12 months ago that it's an officially done miniaturized version and besides the power reserve for precisely the Abyss TC, HiFiMAN HE-6, or HiFiMAN Susvara, the amp will play perfectly and sound the same.

 

[TSAVJason]

You might find one, but good luck. Only about 1 comes up per year.

Why don't you just go after the new Monoprice version? Alex Cavalli even commented in this thread about 6-12 months ago that it's an officially done miniaturized version and besides the power reserve for precisely the Abyss TC, HiFiMAN HE-6, or HiFiMAN Susvara, the amp will play perfectly and sound the same.

Not to be contradictory but I’ve compared them side to side and they don’t sound or perform the same to my ears.

 

[x RELIC x]

Not to be contradictory but I’ve compared them side to side and they don’t sound or perform the same to my ears.

Can you expand on the differences please, for those that want to know?

 

[TSAVJason]

Can you expand on the differences please, for those that want to know?

Mostly on the non-Cavalli built unit sounds like it collapses in on itself. The unit built by Cavalli is open throughout the entire VC. There are very good reasons the non-Cavalli built unit is less money. It was not built to be a direct copy of the Cavalli, it was built as a low cost alternative since Alex had decided to retire. There are other reasons I probably shouldn’t discuss publicly

 

[Icenine2]

This was one incredible amplifier. I had one on loaner for a while before they were released to give Alex some feedback. It was powerful and detailed. An excellent amp

 

[cantara256]

Thanks for the quick reply. What else in your opinion comes close to this that is currently available? It doesn’t seem to me anything has been designed with the same goals in mind since. The Hypsos + OOR combo from Ferrum piqued my interest but it apparently has a rather narrow soundstage and there’s been more reliability/QC issues reported than I’d like.

I’m not averse to tracking down a used LAu!

I have one that I've been very happy with for years, but is now sitting in a drawer.

Why? Because I eventually got tired of the dry analytical sound of my HD800/Benchmark DAC2, I've ended up with Chord Hugo M Scaler/Hugo TT 2 and LCD-5.

I think it's a fantastic amp, it drove my HD800/HD800S/HE1000v2/LCD-4 with gobs of clean power. I've been tempted to keep it and possibly put it back in my chain, but at this point I'm probably getting rid of my other headphones and just keeping the LCD-5. The TT 2 is certainly powerful enough for it.

If you're interested, PM me. I can include rear XLR cables.

 

[Icenine2]

I too own a Hugo TT2/M Scaler. It is an incredible rig

 

[cantara256]

I too own a Hugo TT2/M Scaler. It is an incredible rig

Yeah, it's pretty awesome. I haven't done any testing between my Hugo TT (which replaced the Benchmark DAC2 I mentioned above) and the HMS/TT2, I just know that every time I sit down and listen to it, especially with my LCDi4/LCD-4 (now gone)/LCD-5, the music is just beautiful. There's something special there that I don't quite remember being there before.

I am considering a different amp if I end up getting the new Abyss Diana TC, but I've fallen for the Audeze house sound and will probably try tubes. Or if nobody picks up my Liquid Gold amp, I'll put it back in and see; I might still get a Susvara someday, and I think the Liquid Gold would be perfect for it.

 

[phonyx]

I have one that I've been very happy with for years, but is now sitting in a drawer.

Why? Because I eventually got tired of the dry analytical sound of my HD800/Benchmark DAC2, I've ended up with Chord Hugo M Scaler/Hugo TT 2 and LCD-5.

I think it's a fantastic amp, it drove my HD800/HD800S/HE1000v2/LCD-4 with gobs of clean power. I've been tempted to keep it and possibly put it back in my chain, but at this point I'm probably getting rid of my other headphones and just keeping the LCD-5. The TT 2 is certainly powerful enough for it.

If you're interested, PM me. I can include rear XLR cables.

PM sent