Impressions of Chord TT2 and M-Scaler

I don’t want to be overly technical or long so I’ll jump right in. I read many great reviews concerning the two Chrod pieces (The Hugo M-Scaler and Hugo TT2) and listened to some great reviewers concerning this wonderful DAC and accompanying upsampler. I have a Diablo 300 with an added DAC module inserted by Gryphon Audio in Denmark for an additional $6,000. So you can imagine my hesitancy to go with another fairly expensive one. So I rolled the dice! And so far I’m glad I did! Now before I get to the glowing comments I would like to say if you’re interested in ordering one (at least in black) you’d better be patient. My Hugo TT2 took nearly two months to arrive (but I was able to get the Hugo M-Scaler in fairly short order).

As for the M-Scaler (which I’ve had longer) I can tell you that even at the single BNC maximum of 176.4kHz the absolute liquidity and avidity of sound was exceptional! I was a bit skeptical at first because my Gryphon DAC module which maxed out at 44.1kHz sounded great. But after about 2 weeks of burn-in, I could audibly hear the smoothness of the Hugo M-Scaler. It wasn’t drastic, but noticeable. It took my ears (and I guess brain) time to adjust. Almost like trying on new eyeglasses after your prescription has changed. The edginess I was used to was not there. And that’s coming from a DAC that has the bloodlines of the highly acclaimed Gryphon Kalliope (albeit scaled down a bit). The more burned in it became, the better the sound. Now that is not to suggest my other components didn’t help too. I’m using a Cambridge Audio Azur 851C CD Player and Black Cat Silverstar 75-ohm Digital Cables as well as Audience Au24Sx balance cables to go from the Hugo M-Scaler to my Gryphon Diablo 300.

But, the sound was extremely layered and open. I especially heard this auditioning, Oscar Lopez’s, "Lucia" which has lush layered Latin/flamenco style. Now, I have to admit, the initial sound was not as weighty (or full-bodied as I had hoped). But I will credit that to lack of burn-in hours, or maybe a need for slightly different digital cables?
Personally, I like a slightly warmer sound which I think the Diablo 300 gives naturally. But it still sounds very, very good. However, if I had to nitpick that would be one criticism so far.

I hate to give my thoughts on the Hugo TT2 because to be fair it has only been 2 days since I’ve had it in my system so bear with me and I’ll give updates on changes. What I was told to do by my retailer was to let it burn in using the "Amp" mode for three straight days turned to mid volumes. And I’m in the process of doing that currently. But even as new as it is, I can hear the improvements! It sounds really refined. The details are not overdone or artificial which I feared might happen. The depth of the soundstage is really nice! And the detail is exquisite. And after coming back home (I work nights) and listening to it after running for nearly 15 hours straight, I could hear it sounded less "top-heavy"; the highs were better blended with the mids and bass and I could hear the midrange sound becoming a bit more pronounced and smooth.

I’m sure as with all systems there are strengths and weaknesses in the sound chain that could be the reason for most of my initial observations and I would love to hear others experiences along with your components. But I plan on getting a Synergistic Research Atmosphere UEF Level 3 Power Cable to replace a very nice, Triode Wire Labs Seven Plus Power Cord I have currently running to my Cambridge Audio Azur 851C CD Player to my Torus RM 15 Plus Isolation Transformer.  But any other suggestions are welcomed.

I’ll give updates later.