Chord Hugo 2 Review (Portable DAC & HP Amp)

[sarumbear]

Not sure where you got that. It was just in the news that EU was about to force Mobile phone manufacturers to include USB-C connectors for charging... I have never heard of an already in place direction about micro USB.

Just because you haven’t heard it doesn’t mean it’s not true. it means most likely you are American. However, it was on general American news back in 2009 when the rules came into effect.

Even Wikipedia heard it.

USB-C is the following initiative 15 years after the first one.

 

[YSC]

too bad it isn't really a top performer, and another drawback back then stopped me from pulling the trigger as a desktop replacement is it's always powered by battery, so it will drain it's life pretty quick compared to a real desktop dac

 

[sarumbear]

Does it?, I’ve had every iPhone since the og and no adapters included.

This came with my IPhone X and 7. I’m in UK, at the time we were part of EU.

 

[AdamG]

$3 Grand for this? When factoring in price of performance this becomes a hard pass and headless Panther for me. If there were a Panther boiling snakes down to Oil, I would choose that. Three thousand dollars is crazy expensive.

 

[balletboy]

Whether you think this is ugly or beautiful is completely subjective.
It passed the measurement standards for portable devices and it is one of the finest so far measured on this site, we should give it credits where its due.
Now the price.... It's pretty much the big barricade here. I am convinced that most people in this hobby, even hardcore audiophiles don't like this price and some think it's not worth the MSRP.

This makes me wonder... If products made from china companies can easily top the SINAD score and they can sell them for very competitive prices.... What can western-based companies do to remain strong in this competition? They obviously do not have an advantage in prices, labor costs, maintenance fees etc.... I think it's a bit helpless.

This product has been selling very well since 2014 (Hugo and Hugo2), so clearly the price is not an issue for lots of people.

"What can western-based companies do ..." They make DACs with proprietary converters that people seem to enjoy listening to. Few people outside of ASR seem that concerned with SINAD, and I doubt Chord worry about it because it is a very successful and profitable company. As the CEO explains, he was working in a far more expensive area of electronics design (he was a Director of Marconi, a major Defence contractor) and only started Chord when he felt he could make products cheap enough for the consumer market. The Hugo2 is one of their cheapest products. So if you like Chord Electronics, the Hugo2 is a bargain.

John Franks and how Chord Electronics took flight

chordelectronics.co.uk

Topping did not invent the cheap DAC. John Westlake, a consultant engineer, was one of the first western engineers to master Chinese manufacturing for a UK audio company when working with Cambridge Audio. He explains here how he got the CA DacMagic made in China, back in 1995.

John Westlake

One of the most respected digital designers around, in some ways John Westlake is the archetypal definition of a geek – but is highly creative and amazingly fluent talking about his specialist area…

zstereo.co.uk

It sold for £150. The DacMagic 100 from 2012 was probably the most popular, issued in 2012 for £200, and now the DacMagic 200.
So it's a budget DAC product line that's been going for almost 30 years and as popular as ever.

Cambridge Audio DACMagic

One of the last ever digital-to-analogue convertors of the first era of DACs, the DACMagic spent a good part of the nineteen nineties being one of the few such products on sale. Had it been launche…

zstereo.co.uk

 

[PeteL]

Just because you haven’t heard it doesn’t mean it’s not true. it means most likely you are American. However, it was on general American news back in 2009 when the rules came into effect.

Even Wikipedia heard it.

USB-C is the following initiative 15 years after the first one.

Got it. Nowhere it says it was mandatory tough. They've put together a standard for cell phone charger because of the multitude of plugs. Having a spec and forcing manufacturers to follow a standard is something different. No one said micro USB was not suitable in 2009...

 

[DonR]

USB-C was well established by 2017 and appeared in many flagship phones by then. If Chord was meant to be leading edge, they would have included a USB-C (with adapter, if necessary) port instead of the already outdated micro-USB. If you are buying a $3K portable dac/amp, you own one of the latest model flagship phones.

 

[Trell]

In EU all mobile phones are required to have a micro USB charger.

Looks at my iPhone and see the Lightning port. Drags out my previous Android mobile that is a few years old with an USB-C port.

So no, you’re wrong.

Actually EU want to standardize on USB-C port for mobile devices and Apple is not happy about that.

I live in EU, btw.

 

[sarumbear]

Got it. Nowhere it says it was mandatory tough. They've put together a standard for cell phone charger because of the multitude of plugs. Having a spec and forcing manufacturers to follow a standard is something different. No one said micro USB was not suitable in 2009...

As the majority followed suit this device is making life easy for them. Not all rules are mandatory. Almost no FTC rules are mandatory. They are rules though and any respectful manufacturer will and should follow them.

Besides, you need two USB sockets for reasons I gave earlier for charging while using with a mobile phone. Which socket you would have preferred instead of micro USB.

 

[sarumbear]

USB-C was well established by 2017 and appeared in many flagship phones by then. If Chord was meant to be leading edge, they would have included a USB-C (with adapter, if necessary) port instead of the already outdated micro-USB. If you are buying a $3K portable dac/amp, you own one of the latest model flagship phones.

When was this device launched do you know?

 

[Rednaxela]

This came with my IPhone X and 7. I’m in UK, at the time we were part of EU.

View attachment 219000

Most interesting.

Of course I believe you. But I have personally never seen it, I swear. EU citizen, Apple household (incl. 9 iPhones through the years).

 

[DonR]

When was this device launched do you know?

April 2017

 

[testp]

am i right thinking this needs two wires hooked to it on the go..?

if so, what the heck... i'm annoyed even having one wire flying around on the go.

 

[sarumbear]

Looks at my iPhone and see the Lightning port. Drags out my previous Android mobile that is a few years old with an USB-C port.

The EU rule I am talking about is from 2009. USB-C was standardised in 2014. Do you see why your examples are meaningless

So no, you’re wrong.

Read it from the horses mouth then.

Press corner

Highlights, press releases and speeches

ec.europa.eu

Actually EU want to standardize on USB-C port for mobile devices and Apple is not happy about that.

Yes, they are, 15 years after the micro-USB standard.

I live in EU, btw.

Maybe you are too young to remember 2009

 

[Trell]

Most interesting.

Of course I believe you. But I have personally never seen it, I swear. EU citizen, Apple household (incl. 9 iPhones through the years).

Never seen it as part of a new iPhone, ever. Live in Sweden.

 

[sarumbear]

Most interesting.

Of course I believe you. But I have personally never seen it, I swear. EU citizen, Apple household (incl. 9 iPhones through the years).

Apple had not signed the EU standard back in 2009 but maybe there was an UK legislation that superseded the EU one.

 

[sarumbear]

Either way, micro USB was the only logical connection as USB-C was still a relatively young standard back in 2017 when this device was launched. I was simply commenting to members who diss micro USB without thinking further.

 

[Triliza]

I got an advice for you all, listen audiobooks when moving around, plenty of books available and you will learn a thing or two. You know, get to read (listen to) all those books you never got around doing so. And you don't need any expensive gear to do it, a simple and tiny mp3 player (especially one that can be Rockbox-ed) will be just fine.

 

[Jomungur]

too bad it isn't really a top performer, and another drawback back then stopped me from pulling the trigger as a desktop replacement is it's always powered by battery, so it will drain it's life pretty quick compared to a real desktop dac

Just correcting this. You can run it without battery through a wall micro USB charger.

 

[Trell]

The EU rule I am talking about is from 2009. USB-C was standardised in 2014. Do you see why your examples are meaningless


Read it from the horses mouth then.

Press corner

Highlights, press releases and speeches

ec.europa.eu

Yes, they are, 15 years after the micro-USB standard.


Maybe you are too young to remember 2009

You read my recent replies to you in the DM7 thread so you know I’m a software developer working as a pro for decades. So don’t make comments that I was too young in 2009.

And the examples from me and others are simple examples that your original claim is false.

Don’t move the goal post.