![]() One set of dual DX BNC digital (expansion) output are also provided. Analogue outputs include: stereo XLR, stereo RCA, 2 × 6.35mm headphone jacks, and 1 × 3.5mm headphone jack. #Chord hugo tt2 BluetoothThe Hugo TT 2 sports a host of useful digital inputs: two optical, two coaxial BNC inputs, one driverless USB input (for use with tablets and smartphones), one USB Type-B input, and an aptX Bluetooth interface. In short, everything the Hugo TT could do, the Hugo TT 2 can do better. It is quieter, yields un-measurable levels of noise floor modulation, offers greater dynamic range, provides a different and better power supply, produces much more output power, and incorporates a markedly improved DAC section. To state things simply, the Hugo TT 2 is different to and better than the original Hugo TT in every way. The Hugo TT 2 is one of our two review subjects here, the other being the Hugo M Scaler, which we will get to in a moment. This “more filter taps = superior sound” philosophy forms the underpinnings of the DAC designs found in the Hugo, Hugo TT, DAVE, Hugo 2, and now the new Hugo TT 2, which offers 98,304 filter taps (second only to the DAVE DAC within the Chord Electronics range). Each time new Chord Electronics products up the number of available filter taps, says Watts, the WTA algorithm has had to be revised to take advantage of the additional processing power, while sound quality has audibly improved. To give some perspective, most normal DACs use filters offering a couple of hundred taps, whereas Chord’s DACs use filters offering tens of thousands of taps, or more (the DAVE, for example, offers a filter with ~164,000 taps). Watts is saying, in essence, that a DAC with a properly designed filter system can deliver ultra high-res sonic results from conventional CD-quality files. Stop a moment and let that claim sink in. Specifically, Watts contends that garden variety 44.1kHz digital audio files could, if processed through a digital filter of near infinite tap-length, yield analogue waveforms every bit as accurate and complete as those produced from higher-res audio files, albeit with slightly higher noise floors. #Chord hugo tt2 fullWhat’s the significance of the ultra long tap-length digital filter and of the WTA algorithms? In seminars given around the world, Watts has suggested that few designers recognize the full implications of digital audio sampling theory, which according to Watts point to an astonishing conclusion. (To avoid confusion, let me mention that Rob Watts acts as an independent Digital Design Consultant to Chord Electronics, although he is regarded as an honorary member of the Chord team.) Second, they incorporated extremely sophisticated Rob Watts-designed DAC sections that used distinctive FPGA-based digital filters that supported extremely long tap-length filtering schemes and could therefore use Watts’ proprietary WTA (Watts Transient Aligned) filter algorithms. First, they possessed extremely quiet, powerful, and low-distortion amplifier sections. ![]() As time moved on, those first-generation Hugo models gave rise to what was and is one of Chord Electronics’ greatest achievements: namely, the cost-no-object DAVE (Digital Audio Veritas in Extremis) preamp/headphone amp/DAC.įrom the beginning, two things set the Hugo/DAVE family of products apart. #Chord hugo tt2 plusGranted, it did make for a strange sight, as the system would be comprised of racks full of big, full-width components plus the compact little paperback book-sized Hugo, which at least sounded big.Īudio history took its course, so that the first-generation Hugo begat the critically acclaimed first-generation desktop-sized Hugo TT (‘TT’ stands for table top), which was essentially the DAC section of the Hugo bolted on to an even more capable and powerful Chord headphone amplifier/preamp. ![]() Though that first Hugo was ostensibly a personal audio product, it didn’t take audiophiles long to discover that it could handily compete with (or in many cases surpass) the performance of like-priced standalone DAC’s for use in full-size audio systems. #Chord hugo tt2 portableAs many music lovers know, the legend of Chord Electronics’ Hugo family of products started several years back with the first generation Hugo, which was a wildly overachieving portable headphone amp/DAC that took the marketplace by storm. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |