[SearchOfSub]

I think you are taking it too personally and not making any sense.

First of all, you say that comparing the Hugo to big desktop systems is "inappropriate". But then in the next few sentences, you say that the Hugo is being appreciated by people outside of headphonedom with "fullsize hi-fi systems costing substantially more than the most glamorous desktop headphone-centric gear".

Make up your mind. No one I personally know in their right mind would ever use a Hugo in their an two channel setup. In "big boy" audio, I prefer significantly less expensive desktop DACs such as the Schiit Uberfrost Gen USB2, Lavry DA11, etc. over the Hugo.

I'm mostly a SET tube amp two-channel speaker guy. Headphones are an enjoyable secondary pleasure or me. I currently use Altec horn, Fostex BLH, and OB speaker designs that I've built. I'm hardly being myopic here.

In terms of apples to apples - we are talking about comparison of performance regardless of any other factors. Some people have pm'd me asking how I felt about using the Hugo as a desktop DAC. Even you implied that people are considering its use beyond headphones. This is why the Hugo is being compared against desktop DACs. Regardless, I much prefer the AK120 over the Hugo for portable use if you want an apples to apple comparison. I also prefer the Cypher Labs Algo Rhythm stuff for portable use. For small footprint desktop, I far prefer the Wyrd/Modi boxes at $198 to the Hugo - so I'm not comparing to big ticket items either.

In terms of people being mislead because the Hugo is being compared to desktop DACs, I doubt people really are that stupid, especially when the I've already spelled out the advantages of the Hugo as a small portable DAC - it's not like I was hiding it. I know someone with a $30K+ DAC who uses the Hugo for travel. I understand his sonic preferences and where he is coming from. People on HF know exactly what the Hugo is. Bottom line is that I was asked how the Hugo stacked up. I never volunteered my impressions from the get-go.

I really don't give a crap that "many hundreds of people around the world are thoroughly appreciating the extraordinary performance the Hugo has brought to the market, in such a compact and portable form." Do you personally know these hundreds of people? What authority are you appealing to to cite such a point? Many thousands of people around the world are also enjoying the Mytek DAC which I think is horrible. All I can say is that 9 out of 10 people I personally know do not think the Hugo is competitive against desktop DACs priced less than a third of its price; and 5 of 10 people think the Hugo is decent, albeit expensive as a portable DAC.

Fisher Price toys are not made out of magnesium. But did Chord have to mold the magnesium to look like a Fisher Price toy? I mean really, did the industrial designer they employed work for Sesame Street?

Finally, everything is relative. What other DACs have you heard which you think are better than the Hugo and worse?

And why would anyone in their right mind wouldn't use Hugo as a dac in 2 channel.. please explain?

 

[BournePerfect]

Price, sonics, build quality, aesthetics?

 

[SearchOfSub]

Alright, let me try to understand. You praise it for being able to slot into a high end stationary system, yet it shouldn't be compared against stationary DACs because they aren't portable? Double standard much?

I agree with Purrin in all he's said in reply to you, especially the shill comments, and I stand by my own comments earlier in the thread. I think it's an alright transportable DAC/amp but several times more expensive than the performance warrants. I think the casing of the unit is directly taken from the Fisher Price playbook, including the over sized openings around all the plugs, which makes it look awful. I would expect the casing of a $2k+ product to have very tight fitting gaps around the plugs. The gimmicky buttons and color coding is annoying.

 

[purrin]

And why would anyone in their right mind wouldn't use Hugo as a dac in 2 channel.. please explain?

 
"2 channel" inferring two channel full-sized speaker system - in the context of reply of original arguments put forth by Mython. As for why not? Because there's stuff just as good in every way for 1/3 to 1/4 of the price. (IMHO, FWIW, my 2 cents, depending upon personal sonic priorities, depending upon associated gear, What, I'm not the messiah, etc.)

 

[SearchOfSub]

Price, sonics, build quality, aesthetics?

I've heard the Qutehd with external psu that cost 400.00 I think from a well known power supply designer in a 2 channel setup... and qutehd is accepted by many high end 2 channel purists as a dac only with an extra psu, and the Hugo did better in the same setup. There was better timing, less noise, more emotional. It just sounded more high end and better balanced overall.

Also compared the PS Audio MK2 with a Audio quest NRG.3 Powercord plugged in, same amp, and ics, the Hugo blows it away in every way possible. It as running on nativeX. Mode. PS Audio by comparison just sounded amteurish, raspy, not clear, flat soundstage in comparison. And mk2 are known for soundstage amongst many owners.. Hugo in comparison was on another level.

The only reason I see as Hugo not being fit for 2 channel is that the amp section of the Hugo cannot be bypassed so it is running all the time, so even with an external amp, your speakers are being double amped all the time. I dont know how much this is a negative factor.. but if someone can chime in, it would be great.


Some of the dacs I have heard are, Arcam irdac, ps audio mk2, chord qutehd, OPPO 105 sabre32,auralic vega, lampizator big 7, ps audio directstream, ...

I would like to hear the metrum.. and the Schiit ygg, and willing to let go the Hugo only if the double amp problem is big enough..

Otherwise, I would keep it for a long time. Especially that I picked it up for 1,800.00

 

[SearchOfSub]

"2 channel" inferring two channel full-sized speaker system - in the context of reply of original arguments put forth by Mython. As for why not? Because there's stuff just as good in every way for 1/3 to 1/4 of the price. (IMHO, FWIW, my 2 cents, depending upon personal sonic priorities, depending upon associated gear, What, I'm not the messiah, etc.)

I forgot that you were the thread starter purrin, would have given more credibility to the post if I remembered that it as you before I posted. Anyway, I would note this and look into this further.

 

[purrin]

Don't disagree with if you the PSA PWDmk2 was one of the newer ones which only 2.10 or higher with confirmed odd behavior. Someone sent one of those to me to confirm how it sounded. Pretty bad. This is why I made it a strong point to only recommend the PWD1->PWD2 running fw 2.02/2.03. I also preferred the Hugo over the PSA DSD simply because I felt it had better tonal response with being as lean. I don't really care for the PSA DSD either.
 
Maccabbage felt the Hugo was better than the NAD M51. I totally can see why. Qutehd (without external PSU) and Oppo105 are nothing special.
 
But in terms of high performance two channel, people I know belong in two groups: sky's the limit (where the Hugo wouldn't be seriously considered) or cheap (DIY, tweaked DCX2496, Emotiva, etc.).

 

[Currawong]

 

And why would anyone in their right mind wouldn't use Hugo as a dac in 2 channel.. please explain?

 
"2 channel" inferring two channel full-sized speaker system - in the context of reply of original arguments put forth by Mython. As for why not? Because there's stuff just as good in every way for 1/3 to 1/4 of the price. (IMHO, FWIW, my 2 cents, depending upon personal sonic priorities, depending upon associated gear, What, I'm not the messiah, etc.)

 
Any particular suggestions? 
 
I'll see if I can't take the Hugo into one of the local dealers or to a friend's house or somewhere and compare it in a 2-channel set-up. 

 

[SearchOfSub]

+1. What DAC would you suggest for upto 2,000.00 new or used in 2 channel setup for coaxial or optical sources?

 

[purrin]

• Metrum Octave mk2 (totally different sound though) (+ good transport or an old transport with a clock upgrade would be a nice touch)
• Schiit Gungnir USB Gen 2 + Wyrd
• Schiit Uberfrost USB Gen 2 + Wyrd
• Lavry DA11 (maybe)
• Schiit Wyrd + Modi (hard to beat price, Wyrd is not optional)
• Matrix X-Sabre (Maxvla's recommendation)
• AK120
• Behringer DCX2496 (modified, and especially if used as an digital X-over)
• Schiit Yggy

 

[SearchOfSub]

1. Metrum Octave mk2 (totally different sound though) (+ good transport or an old transport with a clock upgrade would be a nice touch)
2. Schiit Gungnir USB Gen 2 + Wyrd
3. Schiit Uberfrost USB Gen 2 + Wyrd
4. Lavry DA11 (maybe)
5. Schiit Wyrd + Modi (hard to beat price, Wyrd is not optional)
6. Matrix X-Sabre (Maxvla's recommendation)
7. AK120
8. Behringer DCX2496 (modified, and especially if used as an digital X-over)
9. Schiit Yggy

Lol @ Schiit YGG being last. Feel bad for those Schiit fan boys waiting 2+ years for it..

Definitely gonna look into the metrum now.

 

[zachchen1996]

Lol @ Schiit YGG being last. Feel bad for those Schiit fan boys waiting 2+ years for it..

Definitely gonna look into the metrum now.

 
It's probably put there because it hasn't even been released yet.

 

[purrin]

LOL, it's not in any particular order.
 
The DCX2496 is almost always in one of my development setups for speakers. The Wyrd+Modi has recently earned it's way into my secondary setups. I'm not afraid to spend money if I think there is something special, but when it comes down to it I'm am cheapskate. My primary DAC setup, the AGD-M7<-DACLadder HDMI interface<-OR5<-Wyrd, was a result of a series of accidents, coincidences, luck and wyrdness. Otherwise I would have plopped down for an MSB Analog by now.
 
Additional considerations $2K or under:
 
Add Shanling CD3.2 (CD player). I like this one.
The Emotiva AKM based DAC (DC-1), Naim PCM-1704 (maybe over), Bryston BDA-2 (maybe over), MHDT Stockholm look interesting too; but need to verify.

 

[purrin]

Lol @ Schiit YGG being last. Feel bad for those Schiit fan boys waiting 2+ years for it..

Definitely gonna look into the metrum now.

 
The only thing I'm concerned about with Metrum Octave is that it can be too laid back for some. As Hans said, it's not as laid back a the Quad. Its also does not belong in the hyperdetailed school of DACs, but I found its resolution adequate (more than good for most types of speakers.) Octave is smooth, liquid, does voices really well, yet agile and articulate. Personally, I'd pair it with components (amps, transducers) which have a ton of slam, punch, attack.

 

[En_R]

Otherwise, I would keep it for a long time. Especially that I picked it up for 1,800.00

 
Your head-fi feedback looks interesting.
 

The only reason I see as Hugo not being fit for 2 channel is that the amp section of the Hugo cannot be bypassed so it is running all the time, so even with an external amp, your speakers are being double amped all the time. I dont know how much this is a negative factor.. but if someone can chime in, it would be great.

 
So the RCA outs on the Hugo do not bypass the amp section?