Tell your dealer that you hear no difference. Tell him what you are trying to do, maybe he'll have another option? If you are willing to spend about $1,700 to get better sound maybe you need two devices. I really thought my Sonore MicroRendu stepped up the game dramatically. Others really liked the Sotm SMS200 and others really like the Alli Digi One Signature. Maybe jumping in with one of these products as a good transport and a less expensive DAC would be an option?
I'll ask the OP again is there a coaxial cable you can get your hands on? I suspect it would be an upgrade over both usb and very much so over toslink.
Agreed... Coax cable is way better than Toslink in my systems. Even an old rca video cable works well in my experience, if they were well made.
First, thanks all for all you feedback, help & thoughts on this. I talked to my dealer and he was surprised as some of you are in here. As most of you he challenged the sources & digital cables and therefore accepted to give me some more time with the Qutest and lend me an audiophile high-end USB cables. He's a keeper. The cable he lend me is a 1m Acoustic Revive USB R AU1 PL. I've also plugged my wifes iMac Pro to avoid the use of any USB-C adapter. She doesn't want me to pollute her work laptop with many lossless files & random programs so I had to settle for Tidal. It was basically a challenge between, Tidal Master Tracks > iMac Pro 2019 > Acoustic Revive USB Cable > Chord Qutest > Analysis Plus Copper Oval > Luxman L-550 AXii > Tannoy Cheviot Spotify Premium Tracks > Streaming > Sonos Connect > Audioquest Evergreen > Luxman L-550 AXii > Tannoy Cheviot Important, I made sure sound volume was on the same level on both, playing with Sonos volume output level. There were differences from track to track but mostly similar. -- My thought before starting was that there should be no match and that everything is set for an instant knockout of my Sonos Connect and praises for the Chord. Instant death? Nope... Love Her Madly from the Doors even sounded slightly better (imo) on Sonos Connect. Is there a difference? I'd say the it's a bit easier now to hear a difference. The Chord sounds more overwhelming, louder, more present and offer some more details because of it. I always wanted to turn up the volume slightly from the Connect. Does the Chord sound better ? Honestly, different but not necessarily better. Not on my set-up at least. Given the distinct soundstage difference I hear when I play vinyls I'd say that the Chord Qutest simply doesn't match my Luxman amp who does all the work and the Qutest can't seem to help or offer that night & day improvement I was exepecting. How's the sound overall ? Honestly it's great. The day I purchased my Luxman is the day things really changed for me. I do think replacing the Connect with the right Streamer/external DAC could bring digital sources to a new level but won't be the Chord Qutest. Haven't made my mind on streaming devices yet but regarding DACs I think I'll be looking at, Mytek Brooklyn DAC+ (I feel I'd be paying too much for stuff I don't need, reason why I might disregard this one) Shiit Gungnir Multibit or Yggdrasil Denafrips Pontus R2R ps : I did try to find an old-CD player but could only find a Blu-Ray player. Did some tests, but I feel the CD's I found weren't great recordings. Didn't help ps2 : On the comment regarding position of speakers. I do think they're not in the best place, but not bad either. Their current position shouldn't refrain from hearing a difference between Qutest & Connect imo.
Trust your ears. Your accompanying gear is plenty resolving. No amount of tweaking with this unit is going to lead to a jaw-dropping moment. If you want a real upgrade, try something like the Benchmark DAC3L and use it as a pre-amp to drive the amp section of your Luxman, essentially upgrading your system to separates.
If you can find a used Audio Note DAC on eBay, that should be on your list also. No return policy, but you could always resell it if it doesn't suit you. They really have a way of vinyling up digital. The difference between my current DAC and the high quality Sabre DAC built into my integrated is startling to say the least. Complete system transformation. The others on your list will probably give you a little bit of that vinyl sound, but I really feel like the tube output boards on the AN/ANK models make a lot of the magic happen.
The OP seems to be the only one in this thread to know what he is talking about and make decisions based on unbiased listening. bravo!
Haha not too sure about that as I'm potentially looking at doubling my initial budget of an external DAC. I'm not hardcore to the point to spend huge sums of money on gear that only slightly increases your sound experience (I do say experience rather than quality on purpose). Whatever you do, it's always better to invest money in your records. I'd rather save some budget on purchase a near mint RL cut of Zeppelin II for example.
But your new listening tests were using the same sources (Tidal and Spotify)? Why did you expect this to sound any different? I am sure you could persuade your wife to let you download a single HD album. At least this way you will know you have heard the Qutest at its best before you dispense with it. Both Tidal and Spotify sounded bland through my 2Qute. CD was a big step up. Hi-Res downloads were another jump. It is the closest I have gotten to having Nina Simone in the room with me.
@gregleo you already have access to the best and most relevant test gear available — your ears (especially as they are the only ones connected to your mind, listening to the music you like as played through the system you own located in the room where you've placed that system). Trust your own ears above all else. Because most people are ill equipped to accurately describe the difference that any given piece of gear is making on their listening experience, they turn to the easier to use "product A blew away product B" or "product C wiped the floor with products A, B and D". On top of that, some people seem to take it personally when you are not experiencing the same results as they are. None of this changes your own experience which I would say to always trust your own impressions above those from any of the rest of us. It is great to get suggestions from others, but keep in mind that the best anyone can do is to relay their own experiences that are influenced by how well their ears/mind happen to be functioning in conjunction with their own systems sitting in the rooms where they are placed. Between your ears/mind/system/room if you are detecting no major differences resulting from a different piece of gear being inserted into that chain then it is safe to say that the piece of gear is making no detectable major difference. That does not mean that the same can be said for the others, but what does that really matter to you in your own listening environment? The only listener that any piece of gear needs to please is yourself. The last time I checked listening to music was not a team sport. Good luck with the experiments and I hope you find something that works for you.
@gregleo Kudos for going through all the trouble of giving it another chance with a different USB cable and borrowing the Missus' laptop as well. I wish I could invite you over so that you could listen to mine in my system, there are plenty amazing DAC's out there you just need to find what works for your ears and system. A final thought, Tidal app's playback is really nothing special even the 'Masters' recordings so when you continue your DAC auditions try to use Tidal with either Roon, Audirvana or Foobar with HD tracks so that you push the DAC to its maximum capabilities.
Based on your experience, try to get an R2R dac if you want to get closer to your vinyl experience, like the ones you mentioned (schiit, denafrips,...).
I could definitely try and negotiate that, what better to do in these time of confinement. This said, the goal was to compare the benefits of the Qutest vs Sonos Connect. I did test HighRes tracks through my laptop feeding into the Qutest with the Acoustic Revive Cable but needed to use an USB-C adaptor. I honestly don't think the adapter alone is the reason I'm not getting that night & day difference with the Qutest, especially given my previous experiments but did try with the iMac to make sure this wasn't the reason. Bits are bits right?
Couldn't agree more. I think this whole thing is more about disappointment I believe, the Qutest (external DAC) not living to my expectations. My never-ending digital quest continues
When connected to my own laptop (with USB-C adapter dongle & Acoustic Revive cable) I did use Audirvana switching between my own lossless files, Tidal & Qobuz and playing with the DAC settings. Great app.
It's hard to find genuine night and day improvements with digital by spending more. With vinyl expenditure usually equates to sound quality.
Always trust your ears and if it's n0t for you it's not for you, but just curious how the Chord could be 'louder' and the benefits down to that alone if you correctly volume matched them? The extra weight, detail and presence is exactly the difference I heard with the Chord (along with improved imaging - in terms of where the instruments are placed in the space rather than soundstage itself, although this was also slightly wider), but ultimately if the sound isn't for you try something else. Be curious to know what other stuff you try and end up preferring.
I would not rule out the USB adapter dongle causing some sort of bottleneck. I have an old apple lightning to 30 pin adapter that I used in the past connected to an old Cambridge Audio DAC and 30 pin Cambridge Audio iPod dock and the adapter's internal chip would limit the signal to 44khz. I'm not sure if your USB dongle does the same but perhaps you could check if it limits the signal in any way.
I agree that it sounds like the Chord Qutest is not for you. It could be many things mentioned here or simply its not a good synergy with the rest of your system. Unfortunately there is a balance between components, room and you. That's why this thing is so difficult. What other brands does your dealer represent? Maybe we can recommend a path. One thing that digital does not have in common with analog is that throwing more money at it is not always a fix. You/we need to help you find a balance. With your main source being Tidal/Spotify I suspect that less money may be in order. I have a similar "problem" at home. Many albums I like are not mastered all that well. So I've found that less resolving components sounds better in the end. The good recordings don't sound as good as they could, but the bad ones don't sound as bad. I tried Tidal and Qobuz at home. Without hesitation I liked the sound of my local files much better. I'm personally not a big proponent of reacquiring everything on 24/96 or 24/192.
I would say, just to put yourself at ease, download a single HD album and give it a whirl. If still not for you, you have let it show its best in your system. HD streaming won't show much improvement, in my experience. The better the amp I put in my system, the more obvious the 2Qute's advantages were. With my AV system (which is still very good), I could not tell a difference at all once the sources had been level matched.
I have gone through quite a number of DACs and auditioned many professional ones when I was mastering. The 2Qute I didn't like, def overhyped. The Qutest I quite liked, but sent back and kept an RME ADI-2 for a while, but then went off it. I decided to try a TEAC 505, isn't like tat either. I decided to try a Hugo 2 for the hell of it. I use it with an iFi PSU and really like it. It works really well in my system. I find it has a solidity/guts that the Qutest lacked. I will say using streaming services to demo a DAC is not the best way, IMO, and especially not through a Sonos. For me Tidal sounds significantly worse than files played from my HDD of the same album. Also, coaxial connection is the way to go. USB from Macs is not a good sound, even when using the likes of Audirvana. I use a Node 2 with USB HDD coax feed into the Hugo 2 and that sounds very good.
There will not be any difference whatsoever in streaming an HD track vs playing a downloaded one. 1s and 0s are 1s and 0s regardless.
