The Chord Company Hugo 2 + 2Go (Black)

I am selling a Hugo II with the companion 2GO interface. They work flawlessly together and are instantly recognized by the Roon too. They only have about 19 hours on them and sound amazing. I used them with a Mal Valve headphone amp and the detail they deliver is amazing.  I have the box for the HUGOII.

Hugo 2 features all the inputs and outputs you could realistically require. Its digital optical input (a full-size TOSLink) is good for digital audio up to 24bit/192kHz, while the digital coaxial (a 3.5mm socket) functions up to 2bit/384kHz.

The final physical input is a mini-USB able to deal with information up to 32bit/768kHz and DSD512. Music can also be fed to Hugo 2 via aptX Bluetooth.

Selling to North America.

There are 3.5mm and 6.3mm headphone socket outputs, and a pair of stereo RCAs for connection to an amplifier.

Put simply, it is difficult in the extreme to find meaningful fault with the way Hugo 2 converts and delivers your digital audio files.

And while it’s obviously preferable to feed in a file of meaningful size in order to hear Hugo 2 at its best, unlike the outgoing Hugo this DAC doesn’t have a lot of unkind observations to make if you lower yourself to Bluetoothing a 320kbps Spotify file. Hugo 2 simply makes the best of it.

Broadly speaking, there’s no change in Hugo 2’s character whether its handling a Spotify-derived stream of Big Boi’s All Night or a Qobuz Sublime+ 24bit/96kHz file of Michael Jackson’s Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough.

The bigger the file and the more information Hugo 2 has to play with, the greater the detail and fidelity of its performance - naturally - but in all circumstances, Hugo 2 serves up a detailed, dynamic and punchy performance.

Timing is perhaps Hugo 2’s strongest suit of all – it brings absolutely believable unity to ensemble music. That Michael Jackson tune features both brass and strings sections in addition to the more standard bass/guitar/keyboard/drums rock’n’roll line-up, but there’s never any suggestion the musicians aren’t interacting in the most natural way.

There’s crispness and clarity to Hugo 2’s sound, admirable management of tempos and an unequivocal layout to the soundstage.