You hookup headphones to XLR at the back, with proper cables/adapters.
It will drive headphones (near zero output impedance) directly.
It will even drive high efficiency speakers directly.
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CHORD Hugo TT2 Review (DAC & HP Amp)
- Thread starter amirm
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It will drive headphones (near zero output impedance) directly.
It will even drive high efficiency speakers directly.
Cars-N-Cans
Addicted to Fun and Learning
From their users guide:
"Please note that once the Hugo TT 2 enters Amplification Mode, 8W on RCA and 20W on XLR, the rated spec is 7W/8 RCA and 18/8 (XLR balanced)."
And more...
"This enormous power reserve is available thanks to a very high power discrete output stage and super-caps to supply huge dynamic currents."
TuteTibiImperes
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You have to use the rear XLR outputs and change a setting on it to get that power.
I use a Schiit Ragnarok 2 for my headphone (and speaker) amp which puts out even more power. I just have to be careful to turn the volume down before connecting a new headphone to it.
Cars-N-Cans
Addicted to Fun and Learning
My concern would be either making a mistake, or hooking it to a source with a DC offset issue. The amp failing and getting stuck at one of the rails would be another potential calamity, and I'm not sure they bother to really have any protections in place. On my Schiit headphone amp, despite all the clicky noises from the relay, it has no DC servoing or compensation, so it passes DC straight out to the headphones, a near disaster when I was going to use it with a computer if I had not measured the output first. I don't think there is anything inherently wrong with having power reserve, but hopefully the higher output amps have the necessary accoutrements to accommodate it.
DonR
Major Contributor
An excellent SOTA product (minus the headphone amp) from Chord Electronics. Shame about the price.
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Just entirely too expensive for what it is. As good as the numbers are, Topping's are even better. Could buy an A90D, a D90 and still have enough left over for a pair of Dan Clark Stealth's. Or if your taste's run to speakers this is pretty close to Kef LS 60 money, or March Sointuva's + a Purif Amp and any number of world class $200-400 Dacs. There are just so many better ways to spend your audio budget.
And on the design front, the whole thing looks like a sheet of aluminum foil shaped on some kind of vaccum forming machine.
And on the design front, the whole thing looks like a sheet of aluminum foil shaped on some kind of vaccum forming machine.
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JSmith
Master Contributor
Ah... simply not justifiable at all.
This comment reminded me of;
Thanks for testing this unit Amir and showing the more detailed "time domain" results.
JSmith
It's amazing they have never been hit with a product liability lawsuit for blowing out someone's ear drums.
Cars-N-Cans
Addicted to Fun and Learning
Its got a spicy power supply internally for a headphone amp. Looks like they are kicking it up to at least 24V inside to give it the needed output swing (and probably to also help control the inrush current at turn-on).
I love how everyone accuses @amirm of "hating" Chord, despite the fact that he actually has recommended the recently released Mojo 2 and the Qutest from some years ago. Both good performance for good prices.
With Dave, Hugo 2, and now this, you get pretty good to excellent performance (in some tests) for multiple thousands of dollars more than something with equal or better performance. That's where the issue is that most people have in my opinion, in addition to the wild marketing claims made by the Company.
With Dave, Hugo 2, and now this, you get pretty good to excellent performance (in some tests) for multiple thousands of dollars more than something with equal or better performance. That's where the issue is that most people have in my opinion, in addition to the wild marketing claims made by the Company.
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I think that when you got the audibility metrics in check, which pretty much anybody and his mother can do nowadays, the only thing you can think of to be special or hi end or boutique or whatever we want to call it. is to shoot for superlatives, like crazy power specs or overkill over engineered stuff like reconstruction filters or such. That’s unfortunate but there is no way around it. What would you guys go for if you wanted to put out a DAC amp 10 times the price Asia big guns can produce? Seriously wondering… Not that it’s a good thing but where do you go when transparency have been achieved for years?
Diligent work of Amir measurement. We thank you. The measurement reveals that even Chord can produce a measurably high-quality product. Like PS AUDIO, it's not all bad. However, these companies use their name and will also launch marketing products that will bring in quick money. Measuring makes shopping much easier. If it were only on human hearing, we would hardly detect real engineering. This product, if the price does not play a role, will meet expectations.
Either producing moderately priced gear with ever slightly improving specs and features or trying to cater the audiophools with special design (sometimes good, sometimes hideous) and making lofty claims about effects nobody ever could hear but are also impossible to disprove by measurements and deny any blind tests.
Features, yes, but specs? Which spec need to be improved? This product does improve a couple specs from what's on the market. Power mainly. For "moderately priced" I think I disagree. Once it's settled that you can't compete in price for what you offer, wheter it's 170% or 1700% don't matter much. In both case you don't compete and you won't sell much. Might as well go for the very high and at least if you sell a few everybody gets paid.
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digicidal
Major Contributor
Not to mention that based on the aesthetics alone... mass production on the order required to make the same amount of profit if the sales price was reduced by 90% would likely be difficult. Of course, for myself... I'll take "ugly black box" for $400 all day long for the difference in price - but at least this isn't a huge loss in performance to get the kitschy styling. Some of their other offerings are more of a lose-lose proposition.
Generally speaking, I agree fully. But me personally I am not found of the Chord design language. But it's just me and yes I would pay considerably more for an object I find beautiful.
I have a distaste for Chord products as well, they have just the most terrible 90s future-fi design that makes them so much harder to use and they have no value. Topping destroys this thing at 300 USD with the G5, or the EX5.
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