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Review and Measurements of CHORD Qutest DAC

JohnYang1997

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I guess the novelty of Chord stuff is the FPGA tech.
Then you should get Chord Dave if you don't have a limited budget. FPGA stuff can't compete with ASICs in cost vs performance.
 

Dealux

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Then you should get Chord Dave if you don't have a limited budget. FPGA stuff can't compete with ASICs in cost vs performance.
I'm actually considering getting the TT2 at some point. Maybe. You can get that for a little over $2000 which is not bad for a high end DAC-amp combo.
 

Sam Spade

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I guess the novelty of Chord stuff is the FPGA tech.
The novelty of my chord qutest is the industrial design and user interface which is nice, i like it. The concrete reason i like it is how unbelievably good it sounds with my sparko aries amp and LCD4 or LCDxc headphones. The whole combination is stunning. And my subjective opinion is backed up measurements.
 

maxxevv

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And my subjective opinion is backed up measurements.


Measurements for the Qutest, yes, it is really a well implemented DAC.

For the other items on your list, not really.

But if you enjoy them, then it doesn't matter really from a subjective point of view.
 

Veri

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And my subjective opinion is backed up measurements.
I'd expect Qutest to sound good, sure. But so do many other DACs, many of which come with balanced output and more inputs/outputs.. :)
 

Sam Spade

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Measurements for the Qutest, yes, it is really a well implemented DAC.

For the other items on your list, not really.

But if you enjoy them, then it doesn't matter really from a subjective point of view.

Yup i wasn't precise in my language. i meant to imply it was the Qutest that was backed up by measurements.

But I'm pretty sure that the Sparko Aries will come up pretty well if someone with measurement expertise gets hold of one and publishes here. Actually i think i read a review somewhere that was a combination of measurements and subjective observations I'll see i i can dig it up.

As for the headphones (and speakers for that matter) other than a flattish frequency response, and good bass extension i haven't really worked out what measurements equate to subjective satisfaction.
 

Sam Spade

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I'd expect Qutest to sound good, sure. But so do many other DACs, many of which come with balanced output and more inputs/outputs.. :)
Yes Veri, id bought the Sparko Aries first and knew what my needs were for my desktop home office system in terms of balanced vs unbalanced and the inputs and outputs. Neither qutest or aries have remotes either. And balanced is of limited value for headphones except when being driven by a device like a A&K SP1000M where balanced doubles your power output.

In contrast balanced is useful for connecting components and my cambridge audio 840C / burson conductor 3X / rotel RB1080 power amp are connected with balanced XLR. I wouldn't have bought the desktop gear for my longeroom system. But both systems do a great job.
 

Veri

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And balanced is of limited value for headphones except when being driven by a device like a A&K SP1000M where balanced doubles your power output.

In contrast balanced is useful for connecting components and my cambridge audio 840C / burson conductor 3X / rotel RB1080 power amp are connected with balanced XLR. I wouldn't have bought the desktop gear for my longeroom system. But both systems do a great job.

Well I meant for DACs. Qutest is a DAC.

"balanced is of limited value for headphones except when being driven by a device like a A&K SP1000M where balanced doubles your power output" this statement confuses me, pretty much any actual balanced output will output more than single ended
 

Sam Spade

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Well I meant for DACs. Qutest is a DAC.

"balanced is of limited value for headphones except when being driven by a device like a A&K SP1000M where balanced doubles your power output" this statement confuses me, pretty much any actual balanced output will output more than single ended

Let's see if I can explain this more clearly than I have. You are right a device with a balanced output will put out more power to a balanced headphone. But attach a single ended headphone and it reduces/halves? the power.

But if you used the same resources/hardware to build a single ended device to drive a headphone you get the same power as the balanced device without having to build it as a balanced design.

So by building a balanced device to drive headphones to take advantage of the total amount of power you need balanced cabling for the headphone. Use the same resources to build an unbalanced device to drive headphones you can take advantage of all the power without requiring balanced cabling.

I'm not sure if that's clearer

But the consequence is that people who are walking around with balanced capable devices like a AK SP1000M driving headphones with single ended cabling to the headphone are only exploiting half the available power of the SP1000M. If the SP1000M was just designed as a single ended device, all other things being equal, single ended cable would exploit all the power available from the SP1000M.

If I hook my LCD4s up to the 3.5 unbalanced plug of my SP1000M it runs out of headroom. If I attach the LCD4s with the 2.5mm balanced 4 pole plug and cable it does an outstanding job of driving my LCD4s despite everyone telling me you can't run LCD4s with a portable device.

So I'm not convinced that balanced designs to run headphones are beneficial. You just end up needing to buy more cables.

In contrast balanced cables are advantageous between components in Pro and home use as they reduce the risk of noise and interference. Plus XLR connectors are much better and easier to use than RCA's, in my opinion at least.
 

Sam Spade

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I'd expect Qutest to sound good, sure. But so do many other DACs, many of which come with balanced output and more inputs/outputs.. :)

My burson conductor 3X ref in my main system is great, it sounds awesome and has all the bells and whistles functionality and connectivity I want from a DAC/preamp/headamp.

If I had the Qutest/Aries combo in my main system it would give me the complete shi*ts as it's missing a remote plus a bunch of other things I want when i'm lazing around in my loungeroom. Plus it's a music and (stereo) AV system.

However I don't need all those features when I'm sitting at my desk. I'm optimistically hoping that the money Chord and Sparko saved by having fewer features has gone into being spent on better performance :)

I haven't done any AB testing yet though. Both systems sound amazing. Both have the functionality I need for the location and purpose I bought them for.

I did almost buy a 2nd Burson Conductor 3X ref or the Composer/soloist pair for my desktop system. But the Sparko Aries intrigued me and multiple reviewers were emphatic about it. . And variety is the spice of life. The Qutest seemed like a great match for the Aries so I went in that direction and if a rich relative dies i'll be able to add a Hugo M Scaler :)

It's highly likely that there are cheaper options with equal performance. Topping for a start and then all the other brands that follow.

I bought upgrade parts from Burson 10 years ago to mod a Marantz CD80, and they are great to deal with, Alex and Dennis are great and I'm happy to support an Australian company.

Andrew Sparks is equally great to deal with, and Alisa, and it appeals to me that a team of two plus a dog can make such exceptional gear :)

Chris at Audeze is excellent too. And the headphones they make, well i'm not sure how they measure but they sound like nothing i've ever heard before, except maybe the Sony MDR-r10 but that was 30 years ago when I was selling hifi while studying at Uni.

In these days of click and pay it's nice to have personal and positive connections with the people making this stuff.

One of the most interesting things about my recent upgrades is how well my old gear stands up. Marantz CD80 and PM80, Cambridge 840C, Rotel RB1080 and Musical Fidelity Nuvista preamp. Plus my dynaudio and Dali speakers. A lot of it is 30 yo. Buy good quality and it lasts.
 

Veri

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I bought upgrade parts from Burson 10 years ago to mod a Marantz CD80, and they are great to deal with, Alex and Dennis are great and I'm happy to support an Australian company.
That's fair! :)
 

Nationalizer

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@Sam Spade Strage enough, I also like and own Burson, Audeze and Dali products :)
Recently tried some Chinese brand Dac/amps and they are also very good and clean. I guess it's just a great time for Hifi.
The only issue with the Qutest I found was the price, compared to the competition.
 

EB1000

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Does it come with a power supply? Is it a switched one? It would be interesting to test it with different PSU to see if measurement results are affected
 

Veri

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Does it come with a power supply? Is it a switched one? It would be interesting to test it with different PSU to see if measurement results are affected
Yes, external switching PSU. The designer recommends to simply use the stock one, if that counts for anything.. then again in audiophile scene people tend to think they know better than whoever designed it.. :)
 

Sam Spade

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So out of interest what cheaper Dacs compete with the Qutest? Personal opinion or measurement wise? I have a topping d10 im using in my car that works great and an ifi i-one? that seems equally good, but im using them as USB to SPDIF converters not DACs driving a helix ultra DSP that some people would say is poor value.

Oh note exchange rates, shippping and duties will vary the value equation. And discount sales. I never would have bought a SP1000M except the retailer was selling them half price. And it is a truly astonishing bit of kit. Its so good its probably worth full price. I got a burson conductor 3x ref and audeze LCD3 as a pre release package from burson at 2/3 RRP. much of my older gear, marantz, dynaudio and Dali i got at half price ish? when i was selling hifi.

I'm struck with the thought that equipment that measures similarly can sound different. Not nesecarially better or worse but different. So two things that measure practically the same might still seem different on blind testing. I'm not dissing measurements. It just seems to me that without measurements and blind testing, ideally double blind randomised testing (yes im a scientist where it's an invaluable tool) you dont get the full picture.

Im also struck that a 30yo marantz cd80 driving a qutest/aries and any headphone i throw at it can sound so spectacularly good. Its personal audio nirvana. Especially my collection of 4 audeze. Which i need to sell half of. Thats an admission of excess not gloating. Im also struch wiith. How amazing A&K gear sounds. Im sure other portables are as satisfying i just havent explored them.

The qutest was more an emotional purchase with the idea i might get an mscaler some day. Plus i was intrigued about eventually comparing it with the conductor DAC.

Recently tried some Chinese brand Dac/amps and they are also very good and clean. I guess it's just a great time for Hifi.
That is so true.

Note im a power supply and cable sceptic within the bounds of minimum standards. There's a lot of nonsense in the audiophile world.

I could be a brand snob but thats not intentional. After all im still using 30yo equipment in partnership with new. And i dont upgrade very often.

Cheers
Sam
 

Angsty

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I guess the novelty of Chord stuff is the FPGA tech.

Chord gets good subjective reviews for its DACs. The measurements don't pan out to superiority over other less costly DACs, though. You can avoid ground loops with TOSLINK, but then you are limited to 24/96K which further diminishes the value of the price premium. The Schiit Modius also has similar performance with much less cost and balanced outputs.

Still, I like the Chord but I could not convince myself to pay more than $500 for one, though.
 

Sam Spade

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Chord gets good subjective reviews for its DACs. The measurements don't pan out to superiority over other less costly DACs, though. You can avoid ground loops with TOSLINK, but then you are limited to 24/96K which further diminishes the value of the price premium. The Schiit Modius also has similar performance with much less cost and balanced outputs.

Still, I like the Chord but I could not convince myself to pay more than $500 for one, though.
It's interesting schitt is often more expensive in OZ and chord less so, relatively, compared to US. but i just checked and the schitt modius is just over $500 here AU$. The chord cost me 2k $AU. Is the schitt Balanced for headphones or as a system component?
 

Sam Spade

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Chord gets good subjective reviews for its DACs. The measurements don't pan out to superiority over other less costly DACs, though. You can avoid ground loops with TOSLINK, but then you are limited to 24/96K which further diminishes the value of the price premium. The Schiit Modius also has similar performance with much less cost and balanced outputs.

Still, I like the Chord but I could not convince myself to pay more than $500 for one, though.
Can you explain the likelihood of ground loops in a Qutest? Does the balanced design of the modius reduce the risk?
 

JohnYang1997

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Can you explain the likelihood of ground loops in a Qutest? Does the balanced design of the modius reduce the risk?
As qutest uses isolated smps, itself can't be the source/part of the ground loop. However the single end connection is the issue. When the upstream and downstream devices both earthed, the likelihood of ground loop of some sort is close to 100%. The chance of it being annoyingly very audible is still rather high when the condition is right. Balanced connection + differential signalling rejects the noise and not rely on the ground reference so it's pretty much impossible to get ground loop when implemented right (almost all modern devices).
 

Veri

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It's interesting schitt is often more expensive in OZ and chord less so, relatively, compared to US. but i just checked and the schitt modius is just over $500 here AU$. The chord cost me 2k $AU. Is the schitt Balanced for headphones or as a system component?
The Modius is a balanced DAC/system component..
 
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