Review and Comparison of CHORD Chordette and 2Quete DACs

[rebbiputzmaker]

Because like with the Chord products, there are not volume controls.
Only digital volume on your computer which will reduce the performance of the DAC further.
Some amps do not like 3V input and will clip prematurely or have other issues like increased distortion, etc.

More often then not people will use a preamp or something intergrated in their systems. For people who may use their computers for volume they should not use a program/player with a volume control that degrades sound.

 

[sonci]

That is why there are volume controls. How can that be a problem?

It's called "Input sensitivity", basically a Chord with a high input sensitivity amplifier is No No..

 

[Krunok]

Only digital volume on your computer which will reduce the performance of the DAC further.

That really depends on the way digital volume is implemented. It's qutie simple to calculate it correctly even with the greater precision than 32 bits which is used in most DAC chips.

 

[sonci]

More often then not people will use a preamp or something intergrated in their systems..

Who is using that? What does that mean? I have a dac and an integrated with remote, do I need a pre?

 

[andreasmaaan]

Who is using that? What does that mean? I have a dac and an integrated with remote, do I need a pre?

No no, your integrated amp contains a preamp already

 

[rebbiputzmaker]

Who is using that? What does that mean? I have a dac and an integrated with remote, do I need a pre?

No you integrated is fine. I cannot see where a good design would have an input that would not have sufficient headroom.

 

[rebbiputzmaker]

It's called "Input sensitivity", basically a Chord with a high input sensitivity amplifier is No No..

Input sensitivity has nothing with max input before overloading. A proper design should not have these problems.

 

[blackmetalboon]

I thought the problem was lack of low level volume control, definitely a problem of you like late night, low level listening.

 

[Jimmy]

I'm not sure about the two DACs tested, but at least with the Qutest which is their current "basic" model, just above the mojo, output can be set to 1, 2 or 3 volts using a button combination while powering up.

Anyway 3V is not standard by any means, and 1V should only be useful when using pretty old vintage gear, so I think the most logical choice would be to use 2V as the default.

It's called "Input sensitivity", basically a Chord with a high input sensitivity amplifier is No No..

 

[elberoth]

Can you post the back panel pictures to determine which models you tested ?

Chordette was a name for a series of products.

The original Chordette came in 2008 or so and was USB/BT only DAC. I'm not sure it was based on their FPGA DAC architecture. It was only 399 GBP. Then there was Qute HD, Qute EX and 2Qute. The current model is called Qutest.

 

[caguilar91]

This is a review and detailed comparison of two CHORD DACs: the discontinued Chrodette and 2Qute. They are both used and on kind loan from our local audio store: Gig Harbor Audio. The Chordette seems to have listed for USD $799. The list price for 2Quete is USD $1,295.

Both units look remarkably similar from the outside with TOSLINK optical, S/PDIF coax and USB inputs. On 2Qute there is an input selector. There is none on Chordette and it seems to autoselect the input.

View attachment 19374​

I first tried to operate the units using USB input but had no luck with my previously installed CHORD drivers. I downloaded the Windows 7 drivers and still had no luck. So for this review and testing I resorted to using the S/PDIF input.

Typical of other CHORD products, user interface is odd with a large lens on top of the units amplifying LEDs of different colors.

Unlike many DACs we test, these CHORD units have custom DAC internally designed and implemented using an FPGA. they are what I call boutique products given their unique approach. Let's test them and see if they deliver or have oddities as many boutique products have.

Measurements
Let's start with the older and cheaper Chordette:

View attachment 19376

We strangely have high output of 3 volts rather than 2 volts. Not a bad thing but be mindful of comparing this unit to other DACs as it will play louder, making you think there is higher fidelity than there is.

Distortion and SINAD unfortunately are well below average. There are a lot of odd spurious tones in the Fourier transform on top right although the mains noise and second harmonic dominate.

Switching to 2Qute, the picture changes dramatically:
View attachment 19388

Distortion drops by almost 20 dB, matching the specified 0.0003% by CHORD. Here is how they rank among tested DACs:

View attachment 19387

2Qute is at the bottom of tier 1 and Chordette in the middle of tier 3.

Due to high output levels, dynamic range is quite good for both:
View attachment 19386

Intermodulation distortion tracks THD+N results in the dashboard with new insights with respect to level sensitivity:

View attachment 19385

Chordette has generally higher noise which 2Qute remedies but both have an odd rise in distortion at around -25 to -20 dB.

Here is jitter performance:

View attachment 19384
The 2Qute delivers essentially textbook response with almost no spurious responses. Chordette looks worse compared to it but it is still a very respectable response.

Linearity shows the absolute superiority of 2Qute:
View attachment 19383

That is one superb linearity all the way down to -120 dB. I usually allow up to 0.5 dB of error at that limit but the CHORD 2Qute does not need that handicap at all.

The Chordette DAC sadly produces disappointing results, losing all presence to even 20 bit fidelity let alone 24.

Here are 32-tone tests which as usual, mostly reflect the results in other tests:

View attachment 19389

Conclusions
Despite the reputation for excellent engineering, the other CHORD DACs I have tested have not broken any new ground. The CHORD 2Qute changes that equation for the most part, delivering very good results and rankings among DACs tested. The Chordette however, fails to impress across a range of tests.

Quirks of CHORD products remain with drivers that don't seem to work, and user interface that is cryptic although not as much as a hindrance as in their headphone products.

Both of these products are discontinued. In used market, assuming the price is right and you want something unusual, the CHORD 2Qute may make a good purchase.

I hope to test one of the more current CHORD DACs in the future. Given the direction of 2Qute, I am hoping it will deliver exceptional performance showing that custom DACs need not underperform.

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As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.

If you like this review, or even if you don't but wish for me to escape the rain in Seattle and go somewhere sunny, please consider donating using:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/audiosciencereview), or
upgrading your membership here though Paypal (https://audiosciencereview.com/foru...eview-and-measurements.2164/page-3#post-59054).

Here are the Chord Qutest measurements and it did incredibly well:

https://www.stereophile.com/content/chord-electronics-qutest-da-processor-measurements

 

[KR8NUX]

I'm sad that discontinued products are getting Amirs attention but new ones need some love too.

 

[amirm]

Can you post the back panel pictures to determine which models you tested ?

Unfortunately I just returned them yesterday...

 

[amirm]

I'm not sure about the two DACs tested, but at least with the Qutest which is their current "basic" model, just above the mojo, output can be set to 1, 2 or 3 volts using a button combination while powering up.

I have a Qutest in for review so that test will be coming soon....

 

[bennetng]

Amir, an idea for a different thread, people have expressed concern over digital level attenuation using software. I realize it's been stated that there wouldn't be any ill effects but perhaps if you did a mini study with some measurements showing the effect it could be a good resource to set the record straight. Just an idea

If you are interested...
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...bout-quality-of-software-volume-control.5922/

 

[mshenay]

Ehh! I've heard a lot of positive feedback about the 2 Quete so it's nice to see some objective data to back that up. Thank you!

 

[Fone]

At one point I considered trying a Chord DAC for the virtual instruments I play live. This is an esoteric usage scenario.

There was a fairly recent statement from Chord somewhere (either on their website or at a forum but I can't remember) that their DACs were not appropriate for playing live music due to latency. Today, I couldn't find that statement in a quick search but you might. Frankly, I suspect this was just Chord being extra conservative. I have no way of isolating and measuring that level of latency.

Obviously, this is not an issue for just listening to music or watching videos, which should be the usage scenario of most customers.
_____

Quick & dirty reference for electronic musicians:

- A good live virtual instrument will run close to 5ms latency say from: Synth input> Audio interface> PC virtual instrument software> Audio interface> Amp> Speakers (measured output at speaker cone).

- Sound takes additional 3ms/meter to travel through the air from speakers to the ear, roughly (this approaches 0ms with headphones).

- Experienced musicians might notice latency at 10ms or more; this seems to vary widely by person and published research is not all that helpful. I suppose some pros might be sensitive to slightly lower latency and some people may not notice 40ms or more.

- Audio interface makers like Personus allocate 0.5ms latency to their standard DAC processing (albeit who knows what processing they are dumping into or excluding from that bucket).

- There is latency in acoustic instruments, so getting the virtual instrument latency to approach 0ms may not be a productive task.

 

[amirm]

There was a fairly recent statement from Chord somewhere (either on their website or at a forum but I can't remember) that their DACs were not appropriate for playing live music due to latency. Today, I couldn't find that statement in a quick search but you might. Frankly, I suspect this was just Chord being extra conservative. I have no way of isolating and measuring that level of latency.

Thanks for mentioning this as I was going to comment on that. The long tap filter requires that many audio samples before it can output anything. From memory the delay is 1/8 of a second or something like that which is very long from point of view of interactive experience. Definitely not good for gaming, video, etc.

 

[Fone]

For the record, it might be worth noting that several "audio interfaces" and "consumer DAC boxes" also incorporate FPGAs for some discrete or basic tasks, but still utilise traditional off-the-shelf DAC chips and schemes.

So I will not assume that a FPGA in the box implies a long delay.

 

[blackmetalboon]

At one point I considered trying a Chord DAC for the virtual instruments I play live. This is an esoteric usage scenario.

There was a fairly recent statement from Chord somewhere (either on their website or at a forum but I can't remember) that their DACs were not appropriate for playing live music due to latency. Today, I couldn't find that statement in a quick search but you might. Frankly, I suspect this was just Chord being extra conservative. I have no way of isolating and measuring that level of latency.

Obviously, this is not an issue for just listening to music or watching videos, which should be the usage scenario of most customers.

Some earlier Chord DAC’s had a selectable RAM buffer, there was a 4 second delay on maximum setting.
Other than that, the only place I’ve come across mentions of high levels of latency are when using one of their DAC’s in conjunction with the M-Scaler or Blu MKII CD transport.