CHORD Hugo TT2 Review (DAC & HP Amp)

[Ken Tajalli]

As with all Chord DACs, this is a single ended design by architecture .
The balanced XLR output is buffered, it is offered as a feature. So no balanced headphone out, nor one would need it, because the unit has plenty of power output anyway.

I bet the RCA out, would have better noise performance, but sadly, Amir did not measure it.

 

[DHT 845]

Good review and nice to see topping d70s again vs chotd dac. I wander what even slight sonic differences amirm noticed (if any) between the two

 

[vkvedam]

Chords's show comes to a close with this. Decent as expected but overpriced. Qutest is their sweet spot if you are real need for a Chord product.

Let's wait for the dCS Bartok

 

[amirm]

I bet the RCA out, would have better noise performance, but sadly, Amir did not measure it.

I suggest not getting into betting business. Here is the RCA output which is the same as XLR:

 

[amirm]

Owner requested that I also treat the XLR output as headphone out and measure it. I can only do this with 300 ohm load:

As noted in the review now, that is tremendous amount of power at nearly 1 watt. You should be able to drive and potentially damage any headphone using that.

So this is another plus for the unit.

 

[poxymoron]

Another thoroughly enlightening review, thanks Amir. Very good performance as expected but I cannot see past the cost. Just think about what sort of compete system one could purchase for the cost of this unit. Therefore I voted poor.
And the design. What were they thinking?

 

[amirm]

And the design. What were they thinking?

I think across the board they are not getting critical feedback to improve their products. A simple and cheap survey of a dozen people off the street would tell them how hard this unit is to use and how it lacks any elegance and uniformity in design.

 

[DanielT]

Thanks Amir, interesting as usual.

I did a quick check. 65% of the posts in the thread are about the price of the CHORD Hugo TT2. That in itself and , or compared to similar products. Not so strange considering , Amir about CHORD Hugo TT2: costs US $6,725.
Price vs performance, is and will always be of the highest interest. Applies to all things, even outside the HiFi world.

 

[DHT 845]

Why Rob Watts is not returning to dpa style design? For ex. DPA PDM1024 looked more acceptable than today's Chords...

 

[oscar_dziki]

Thanks Amirim - I detect a distinct distaste for Chord from you, hope you don't mind me pointing it out.
ABSOLUTELY I AGREE, thanks to you as much as anyone, this shit just keeps getting better faster smaller and cheaper.
Marketing is 50% of sales? Chord has to TALK BIG to get over the noise floor of Topping just getting it right.
Do you want to starve the EU? C'mon, U2 was their last big hit, things are rough over there!

I think the distaste is fully deserved. Guys make baseless claims about their products, basically scamming ignorant customers. They are con artists.

 

[marklings]

Why on earth would I pay 6K to get the performance of a 600 bucks Topping or SMSL device in such an ugly form and obtrusive external power ?????

 

[Kaiju]

Now it doesn't make sense to put money anything above Benchmark!

 

[TabCam]

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.

I also tend to think Amir has some beef with Chord Electronics. The confusing light show takes getting used to but is actually quite easy if you know the colors of the rainbow. It is always red lowest, then to yellow, green, blue, purple and white, which indicates the highest. So red is both lowest volume and lowest sampling rate, 44.1 kHz, and white highest volume and DSD sampling rate. And form and lights follow function. Why colors for the Hugo and Mojo? It doesn't use that much energy. Not important for a desktop/TableTop device but this one is designed like the original portable Chord.

A lot of posters complain about the price but it is build like a tank. You can at least see where part of the money went into.

My biggest complaint about a lot of the cheaper Toppings and other cheap offerings is the pops and clicks when turning on or off and switching sampling rates. I never heard that with the Chord Hugo 1 & 2 and also not with the Cutest (or was it the 2cute, it was just before Covid19 outbreak) in a limited headphone test session.

@amirm Wouldn't it be better to compare SINAD at 2V for unbalanced and 4V and maybe a maximum SINAD for those devices with more powerful outputs? A lot of receiving equipment can't handle overvoltage so those high numbers are not that relevant. Also, how would you be able to hear that noise floor? Maybe with very sensitive IEM's? What kind of difference would you hear with the Topping D70?

 

[DSJR]

Why Rob Watts is not returning to dpa style design? For ex. DPA PDM1024 looked more acceptable than today's Chords...

Rob is the digital design consultant. I doubt he has anything whatever to do with the steam-punk-esque visual design, which now permeates through their entire product line I think. Higher end buyers seem to like the idiosyncrasy of it all.

As for performance, how long has this thing been on the market? As said in other threads, Topping, SMSL and others have redefined what a cheap dac can do in very recent times and units like this are now exposed as basically very good but hideously overpriced. Chord lovers won't care, but the rest of us have some excellent choices at a fraction of the cost and I daresay, wouldn't dream of setting foot into audio 'salons' selling this stuff except for curiosity.

Chord people wouldn't look twice at a Topping or similar unless wanting something 'cheap' for a backup job and just maybe, they'd get something of a shock when they did, but it wouldn't stop 'em I reckon

 

[voodooless]

As for performance, how long has this thing been on the market?

A bit over 3 years now from what I could gather.

 

[Rja4000]

EDIT: the rear XLR outputs can be used as headphone out using appropriate adapter. Here is that performance with 300 ohm load:

At nearly 1 watt, that is tremendous amount of power available for high impedance headphones.

Thanks Amir

 

[Jimster480]

So let's measure out own.

^should be "our own"
@amirm

Here we go again . . .

Six thousand, seven hundred and twenty five dollar, Jules Verne inspired design—replete with blinking lights and all (giant squid not included)—DAC with middlin' performance, powered by a $25.89 switching power supply.

That is $25.89 Retail shipped via Amazon sir. It is more like $6-9 mfg cost!

What's nice about this product is that it really shows you don't need fancy power supplies or fancy line conditioners to get pretty good performance.

Overpriced for sure, but if you had it for free, it'd be a reasonable product.

I mean as Amir mentioned; if it is a sunk cost then it is already very competent. It just is crazy expensive for what you get. Considering that there are $150 DAC's with better actual performance
As far as the amp; it looks competetent unless it is turned down low (with the poor 50mv score); but again not for the price. Really the Monolith from Monoprice or the THX 789 from Drop has better performance as does the Topping D90 (especially that new discrete version).

 

[Ken Tajalli]

I suggest not getting into betting business. Here is the RCA output which is the same as XLR:

Thanx for that.
It was worth a bet since I know the balanced out is artificial. the DAC architecture is a single ended one. Chord must be using one hell of a buffer to create the balanced out.
Tell me, I see some harmonic artifacts peaking at mostly -130dB and a noise floor of below -150dB, am I correct? why is that classed as high noise floor?

 

[staticV3]

Tell me, I see some harmonic artifacts peaking at mostly -130dB and a noise floor of below -150dB, am I correct?

Partially. FFT shows correct levels of distortion, but the noise floor you see is fake. Look up FFT gain for more info.
The Hugo TT2's noise floor is much higher in reality.

 

[Ken Tajalli]

I think across the board they are not getting critical feedback to improve their products. A simple and cheap survey of a dozen people off the street would tell them how hard this unit is to use and how it lacks any elegance and uniformity in design.

Oh well.
They have heard it from me, numerous times on our sister forum, the Headfi.