[goldendarko]

No doubt, but there are better and more affordable options if your just going to use the DAC of the Hugo & the Amp of the CDM. Why even bother with a 2-in-1 (DAC/Amp) in the 1st place, if only to use half of what your paying for on each - to each his own and all but it just doesn't make any sense to me but maybe I place more value on the money I work hard to earn. 

 

[Ultrainferno]

I have the Hugo and the CDM should be here on monday. I will be pairing them mostly with my AK240 and if I like the DAC of the Hugo and the amp of the CDM, then that's exactly how I'll be using it. If you can do it, afford it and you like it, why not do it?
 
Last week I was in a meeting with guys pending 250000€ on a home setup, looking at that $10K for a portable setup is cheap

 

[sonickarma]

  I have the Hugo and the CDM should be here on monday. I will be pairing them mostly with my AK240 and if I like the DAC of the Hugo and the amp of the CDM, then that's exactly how I'll be using it. If you can do it, afford it and you like it, why not do it?
 
Last week I was in a meeting with guys pending 250000€ on a home setup, looking at that $10K for a portable setup is cheap

Cool looks like it will be a cool setup. Im in total agreement with you - If you can - why not!
 
FWIW:
 
There are more expensive cables then any of the portable bits we are discussing
 
http://www.audiovisionsf.com/?page=detail&product_id=1314
 
Odin Speaker Cable:
2M - $26,000/pr
2.5M - $29,000/pr
3M - $32,0000/pr
4M - $38,000/pr
5M - $44,000/pr

 

[vaibhavp]

  I have the Hugo and the CDM should be here on monday. I will be pairing them mostly with my AK240 and if I like the DAC of the Hugo and the amp of the CDM, then that's exactly how I'll be using it. If you can do it, afford it and you like it, why not do it?
 
Last week I was in a meeting with guys pending 250000€ on a home setup, looking at that $10K for a portable setup is cheap

 
if i had money, i would do it. simple as that. 
 
no need to justify your spending by looking at speaker guys.

 

[raypin]

mmm......CDM's heat is tolerable, a bit warm to the touch but not intolerable (as transportable/portable with the AK 240). The build quality and design are top-notch (fantastically beautiful that screams quality). It was love at first sight. . As for the SQ right off the gate, a.w.e.s.o.m.e. Looking forward to long, listening sessions with my silver baby......   

 

[Ultrainferno]

  mmm......CDM's heat is tolerable, a bit warm to the touch but not intolerable (as transportable/portable with the AK 240). The build quality and design are top-notch (fantastically beautiful that screams quality). It was love at first sight. . As for the SQ right off the gate, a.w.e.s.o.m.e. Looking forward to long, listening sessions with my silver baby......   

 
Will you be tube rolling?

 

[raypin]

mmm......the dealer here will be ordering as soon as it becomes available. So, I will be tube rolling, just as I did with my Alo Pan Am (and ended up with the RTC tubes).

 

[shigzeo]

   
Simply because there isn't currently one device that can deliver the SQ to everyone's complete satisfaction. In a way, this is a never ending story. But it is also the nature and fun of this hobby. Trying to find your "perfect" sound system.

I think it's unfair to say 'deliver the SQ to everyone's complete satisfaction'. Why? Because we're not talking about definable, repeatable metrics when most of us say 'SQ'. We're instead talking about sound preference. And it's true: device A may not sound good to you, or to me. But that doesn't mean it doesn't deliver amazing SQ. It means that you, or I, do not like that sound; or it means that we love it. Love or hate, SQ largely has NOTHING to do with it. 

If we were talk about SQ, we'd be talking about dynamic range, signal to noise ratios, and how closely the signal out of the device cleaves to the original, recorded signal. 
 
I take issue with this because by and large, we are full of BS to think we know anything definite about SQ. It should be our prerogative to be honest: that we are talking about sound preferences, and there, not SQ, or in the chance that we can reference measurements, or benchmarks, about observable, repeatable SQ. 

Which, I can proudly say: CDM handles load almost as if it doesn't exist. The only metric I found through square waves, ringing tests, and RMAA that stymied CDM to a large degree was the Earsonics SM2. But most high end amps I've tested with it cannot handle it properly. CDM performs very very well. It sounds good. And measurably, in the metrics that count (considering that valves will never meet distortion figures of solid state - and in fact, that is probably the biggest reason we love their sound), CDM is excellent. 

And, I like it. 

 

[AlanYWM]

 
I think it's unfair to say 'deliver the SQ to everyone's complete satisfaction'. Why? Because we're not talking about definable, repeatable metrics when most of us say 'SQ'. We're instead talking about sound preference. And it's true: device A may not sound good to you, or to me. But that doesn't mean it doesn't deliver amazing SQ. It means that you, or I, do not like that sound; or it means that we love it. Love or hate, SQ largely has NOTHING to do with it. 

If we were talk about SQ, we'd be talking about dynamic range, signal to noise ratios, and how closely the signal out of the device cleaves to the original, recorded signal. 
 
I take issue with this because by and large, we are full of BS to think we know anything definite about SQ. It should be our prerogative to be honest: that we are talking about sound preferences, and there, not SQ, or in the chance that we can reference measurements, or benchmarks, about observable, repeatable SQ. 

 

 
"Sound quality is typically an assessment of the accuracy, enjoyability, or intelligibility of audio output from an electronic device. Quality can be measured objectively, such as when tools are used to gauge the accuracy with which the device reproduces an original sound; or it can be measured subjectively, such as when human listeners respond to the sound or gauge its perceived similarity to another sound." - From Wikipedia
 
 
I hear you. As a lay person and as far as I am concerned, I don't give a hoot what instruments tell me about the sound quality of a device. Sound quality to me is about whether what I hear is appealing to me. My ears are the judge of what is nice or not nice. Is it subjective? Of course. But unless I have distorted/extreme hearing, what I hear as producing good "sound quality" should also appeal to many people. So, for example, I find the Hugo to be a really nice sounding device. I think many folks who have heard the Hugo will agree with me on this. Note: I mentioned "many", not "all". 
 
In any case, I was just tryng to explain to the previous posters that many folks are "searching" for the ideal sound. That may explain why some folks here are prepared to go the extra mile to buy a device for a specific quality and pair it with another device in the hope of achieving a better sound. And if you have the dough for it, why not? It is a hobby for many folks here and mixing and matching is part of the game. For those who feel that it is a waste of money to mix and match audio devices, then simply don't.

 

[raypin]

mmm.....oh my GEEEEE. My Fitear TG 334 never sounded so luscious, until the Continental Dual Mono. It is like hearing the Fitear for the first time. Kilig (shivers) to the max!!! I could stare at the glowing tubes for
hours.......Mesmerizing. My temp (until something better comes along) and snug-fitting carrying case for: CDM + AK 240 + JH Layla:

 

 

[maricius]

  mmm.....oh my GEEEEE. My Fitear TG 334 never sounded so luscious, until the Continental Dual Mono. It is like hearing the Fitear for the first time. Kilig (shivers) to the max!!! I could stare at the glowing tubes for
hours.......Mesmerizing. My temp (until something better comes along) and snug-fitting carrying case for: CDM + AK 240 + JH Layla:
 

 
I think I saw you at egghead once!! Congratulations on your new purchase

 

[raypin]

mmm......thanks! Waiting for Egghead's new digs at Shangrila before the year's end. Speakers, home theater and a dedicated headphone room for us headfi-crazed Flips in a posh mall, certainly a step up from the under-the-escalator digs now. Since I'm also crazy for Thai foot massage, I think I'll suggest to him to include free TFM while auditioning his wares. Lol!

 

[jlbrach]

if somebody wants to buy a hugo,CDM and 380 and use them together more power to them.I would say there are probably a handful of people ready to do such a thing.I have no problem with what anybody does with their money ,I am just commenting as a person who owns more than i care to admit that it seems like overkill to say the very least.No malice intended for sure!

 

[AlanYWM]

I was charging the CDM last night while playing it. After 2 hours, the unit was really hot. Haha. Even the volume knob was hot. But this is a tube amp so I can understand. I would recommend placing something like adhesive clear bumpers under the CDM so that it is lifted above the table or whatever it is placed on. I think it would help cool the unit better.
 
On another note, I am really liking the sound coming out of the CDM quite a bit. I tested it with my Fitear MH335 and Fostex TH900. Very nice. Definitively no regrets. The built quality is also top notch. Well done, ALO.

 

[mscott58]

  I was charging the CDM last night while playing it. After 2 hours, the unit was really hot. Haha. Even the volume knob was hot. But this is a tube amp so I can understand. I would recommend placing something like adhesive clear bumpers under the CDM so that it is lifted above the table or whatever it is placed on. I think it would help cool the unit better.
 
On another note, I am really liking the sound coming out of the CDM quite a bit. I tested it with my Fitear MH335 and Fostex TH900. Very nice. Definitively no regrets. The built quality is also top notch. Well done, ALO.

Yep - it does get a bit toasty, but not more so than much of my other gear. My new Geek Pulse Infinity gets as hot as my CDM, and its not even tube based. Cheers