Chord M-Scaler Review - Upsampling Greatness or Snake Oil?

Рет қаралды 41,650

3 жыл бұрын

Come chat on discord: www.thegoldenone.co.uk
Support me on patreon: / goldensound
(or subscribestar) www.subscribestar.com/goldens...
The MScaler is a unique product with the potential to upgrade any audio chain.
I adore it, but the alternatives (HQPlayer) make the asking price a tough pill to swallow.
1:45 - Build/Features
7:13 - Use with different DACs
9:47 - Improvements overview
10:31 - Soundstage
12:09 - Separation
14:20 - Transients & Timbre
17:54 - Worth it with a non-chord DAC?
19:57 - Resolution
21:56 - HQPlayer
24:37 - Conclusion
Intro Song: "The Roots" by Long Arm - song.link/gb/i/417224140
Test Tracks:
Favourite Sound - Audien & Echosmith - song.link/gb/i/1451879454
Pain - The War on Drugs - song.link/gb/i/1242366668
Breezeblocks - Alt-J - song.link/gb/i/520968896
Blow - Audiobruz - song.link/gb/i/1479881875
Thank you to my patrons, you make this possible!
Kingjunguhn, Ross Kyle, Mammal
Dylan Nunn, Fuji Xu, Kevin Yamasaki, TreeNanner, Jack
Alex Piercy, Gizmo1k, Jay Samuel, TheVorp

Пікірлер: 253

@SumbaListens 3 жыл бұрын

Here from your MQA video and I'm here to stay.👏🏾

@TombstoneTube 3 жыл бұрын

@little-endian5957 Жыл бұрын

Which might have turned out to be a mistake, as those were pretty much the only halfway critical and questioning ones whereas the rest is the usual entirely insane imagination of differences which simply aren't there, presented in the weird 3D ego-shooter - style, but admittedly with a silky and pleasant voice.

@jasonp1568 3 жыл бұрын

Hey man I look forward to your HQPlayer video!

@RJ_Chicago 2 жыл бұрын

Me as well! Happy Holidays!

@nick0703 2 жыл бұрын

I don’t know how I haven’t discovered your channel before - you’ve got some awesome content. Been binging on dac videos all evening cheers 🥂

@codecraftercc 3 жыл бұрын

I'm hyped for the Digital to Headphone video!

@ericharrelson32 3 жыл бұрын

I like your approach to reviewing equipment; looking forward to many more. I shared your channel on the PS Audio forum; hopefully, it will assist your take off. Maybe you can get your hands on the Auralic Sirius G2.1 Upscaling Processor for review and comparison to the M Scaler. Hans Beekhuyzen just reviewed the Sirius. He wasn't too impressed using it with the Mytek Brooklyn Bridge DAC. On the other hand, he was quite smitten using it with the Denefrips Terminator R2R DAC.

@Cryptoletsgo1 Ай бұрын

Wow you know your stuff man. Awesome job

@rustygates3367 2 жыл бұрын

You forgot to mention that not everyone wants their sound system constantly hooked up to a PC with layers of software running.

@TheCagape 3 жыл бұрын

Would love to se a TT2 review with and without the M Scaler

@gjtube37 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you for the great and very helpful review. I just bought the Hugo TT2 and am now contemplating the M Scaler. Does the M Scaler also upsample Internet audio such as KZfaq and Vimeo?

@campersruincod6134 3 жыл бұрын

Earned a new sub!

@vext01 3 жыл бұрын

Me looking at a $200 DAC: "that's a bit pricey". This guy: "This $15,000 combo is worth every penny". Me.... :o

@Emira_75 3 жыл бұрын

Yah nah I would have to respectfully but very strongly disagree. If you can hear the difference between a $200 DAC and a $2000 DAC then you have more sensitive/capable ears than a lot of professional grade measuring rigs

@vext01 3 жыл бұрын

@@Emira_75 I don't think I could hear the difference tbh. I can only just hear a difference between an Intel HD onboard sound card and a £200 DAC. Of course I'll never find out because I'm not willing to spend thousands on audio kit 😉

@theprince08853 3 жыл бұрын

@@vext01 I can't even hear any difference between onboard and Modi 2.

@AnnaVannieuwenhuyse 3 жыл бұрын

@@Emira_75 Me as a mastering engineer, I don't dig any of the upsampling stuff because in the end my end user won't have it either. So I have to make it sound good for normal stuff. Not just for my exotic foam pad under my chair.

@DaveJ6515 3 жыл бұрын

@@Emira_75 or maybe you have a very good amp and very good speakers.

@SchwizzZer 3 жыл бұрын

I own it and just learned about this 3 dB headroom, claps. There is one shortcoming with the auto video/audio selector, that if you have 48 kHz audio mat (5 % in my case), it would recognise that as video and disable the upscaler. It would be great to be able to set this auto detection mode per input channel. Question on this sync-m/l filter. Is this or similar filters available for JRiver MC? Does it really require such a performant computer?

@JoelFinkel 3 жыл бұрын

I've seen a few of your videos now, and I enjoy your presentations. And I have never seen a more beautiful and artful logo than yours; it's stunning in its brilliance. But...and you knew there would be a but...this device approaches $5,000. I contend that no matter how expensive the setup, it can never reproduce the sound or experience of live music. Would I replace 5 seasons of the Lyric Opera or the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for this device? Not a chance. Now more than ever, I think it is crucial to support live musicians, whose lives have been upended for well over a year or damaged permanently.

@filipviljamaasvensson 2 жыл бұрын

@Lagunakid24 One thing doesn't have to exclude the other :) I'm building my high end-ish hifi (not rich so let's be honest haha), but I still have tickets to TOOL next year and a concert at the Concert Hall here in Gothenburg. Also I don't think a person who buys the M-Scaler and then don't go to a concert stays at home because they ran out of money.

@eskamobob8662 2 жыл бұрын

The way I look at it is that I use my headphones 6+ hours a day. I don't have enough nights avilible to be able to do live shows even once a week. That makes the spending situation quite a bit easier to decipher for me.

@wouterkolkman 3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your very informative videos. You mentioned.briefly the Denafrips Terminator will you review the Terminator II or Plus? - comparable to the May?

@johnnyg1700 3 жыл бұрын

What is the difference between upsampling 44.1khz using the computer's software direct to the DAC vs the Chord upscaler to the DAC? Could you explain please. Is upsampling using the computer worth while? What are the draw backs upsampling from a computer?

@bltzcstrnx 2 жыл бұрын

He answered this question on his Holo Audio May review. There he even prefers software upsampling using HQPlayer compared to Mojo Upscaler.

@seekeroftheways 2 жыл бұрын

Great vid! Will a DDC in front of the mscaler make any improvement in jitter reduction?

@MrTony1625 3 жыл бұрын

Hello, yes your right! But in the QuickStart manual card supplied with the unit in the box, it shows the complete opposite! From what I see from other reviews, the video white light is always on and I hear a big jump in performance. Chord has got this wrong. Check your self, and listen. It seems stupid that they have this wrong. Thanks.

@r00s. Жыл бұрын

Still waiting for that HQPlayer video!!!

@Maxime-ho9iv 3 жыл бұрын

Now I really really want to see this video about upsampling.

@Accuaro 3 жыл бұрын

Will we get a review for the Holo may?

@daretobe957 3 жыл бұрын

given the delay in processing, how does it handle jitter?

@tomb375 Жыл бұрын

Great Video! But Bring on the HQ Player video!!!!!!!! Please! Looking forward to it. Thank you.

@clivewilliams9460 2 жыл бұрын

I have moved on. I am now using a Audio Note UK CDT-4 and I will be getting a SW1X Level 4 balanced Dac. SW1X is doing some excellent stuff.

@mariuszgorka4713 3 жыл бұрын

Have you tried the Musical Fidelity MX-DAC upsampling dac?

@AF-rd2vf 3 жыл бұрын

Will you get beneficial results with a PS Audio Directstream DAC?

@gordonfreeman4491 3 жыл бұрын

Lol I deleted my remark, as I now saw in the video, that the Dave was at 768 khz when the music is playing. And after that I saw your remark in the YT notification roll down. Thx for the reply.

@markhampton7559 2 жыл бұрын

May I ask, what are you using as the BNC cables between the M-Scaler and the DAVE? I hear that is critical for optimal performance.

@jinsaitoda 2 жыл бұрын

Why was the review of the DAVE+M-Scaler removed?

@steamstories1279 3 жыл бұрын

You can notice these differences much easier on speakers because the drivers are way more apart, on headphones the sounds are still in your head. My Hugo 2 makes a huge difference compared to Mojo or other non Chord DACs, on headphones just a little. Hell, my friend can't hear the difference from Mojo to Hugo 2 on his HD800.

@JTB-- 2 жыл бұрын

Good points. I have been researching the Chord DACS because I'm interested in buying one and I wish reviewers and commenters would state 100% what they are using the gear for? Speakers or Headphones? Because after watching hours of Chord reviews and reading tons of posts on them it seems the M-Scaler is basically more effective for a Speaker system. I don't care about speakers and only care about Headphone audio gear. I'm leaning more towards a Qutest DAC pairing with a SS Burson Soloist 3XP and LYR 3 Hybrid Tube for a desktop setup. Or the Hugo TT 2 AIO on the used market. I'm sure the M-Scaler is great... but for a HP setup it's simply not going to make a big enough difference to justify the asking price. Getting it for a speaker system is a whole other conversation.

@TombstoneTube 3 жыл бұрын

Using The War on Drugs as demo - kudos!

@johnwright8814 3 жыл бұрын

I hope that you become a British "Audio Science Review" rather than a British "Zeos Pantera".

@davidmasters1242 3 жыл бұрын

As long as the reviews are interesting and factual as they can be with the limited resources GS, I feel he does well. Also having zero agenda would be most refreshing

@jamesmoore4827 2 жыл бұрын

@@davidmasters1242 This IS a British "Zeos Pantera"! lol. Albeit much more refined.

@bltzcstrnx 2 жыл бұрын

Zeos is full subjective, while ASR is hardline objective. He's somehat in the middle, he described himself at one video as a centrist. My take is you should watch and read multiple reviewers and draw you own conclusion. Takes the best information out of all of them.

@johnwright8814 2 жыл бұрын

@@bltzcstrnx The middle way could be worse - using measurements to legitimise his subjective opinions. I can't imagine how the subjective language could help in the design process, but I can see how measured data could help improve the performance of the item I was designing.

@bltzcstrnx 2 жыл бұрын

@@johnwright8814 you can have both subjective and objective views on design process, this is true not just for audio field. A building for example have both subjective (aesthetic) and objective (structure) requirements. As for reviews, that is why you need to watch a lot of them. Especially the one with different opinions about a single product. This way you can have multiple point of view, and can draw your own conclusion based on these.

@lorenzo42p 3 жыл бұрын

can you release a lossless version of your videos, so we can hear at better than youtube quality?

@jaykabel 2 жыл бұрын

I love the candy ball aesthetic. God knows we don't need more anonymous black boxes...

@Nephilim-81 3 жыл бұрын

You have nicer hands than your go pro rival, Zeos. ;) Seriously though. Well done. Thank you.

@noob9103 2 жыл бұрын

what digital source do you mean when you said you need good digital source for hqplayer? a music file, network streamer or ddc ?

@Reeeepicheep 2 жыл бұрын

When are we getting the HQ player video?

@beherit98 Жыл бұрын

is there a link to the HQPlayer video ?

@pwhittak88 2 жыл бұрын

Hi, when do you can on doing your hq player video? I am on the fence about an mscaler purchase.

@MrBoomtheroom Жыл бұрын

what about software like jriver for a up sampler software better than hardware?

@goodsound4756 3 жыл бұрын

You are a Roon user and Roon has also a built in upsampler, I wished you compared the software upsampler from Roon to this hardware upsampler from Chord.

@johnnyg1700 3 жыл бұрын

My thoughts exactly...

@simplereef4854 3 жыл бұрын

HW upsampling is clearly better, there is no contest here

@AnnaVannieuwenhuyse 3 жыл бұрын

@@simplereef4854 That's a conclusion made too fast. The HW upsampler is software driven.

@biko331966 3 жыл бұрын

even audirvana has upsampler

@goodsound4756 3 жыл бұрын

@@simplereef4854 - it's not about the absolute result, but the relative one, the comparision, the reviewers opinion.

@noob9103 2 жыл бұрын

how is the combination of chord dave and hqplayer compared to dave and mscaler?

@bardrich2570 3 жыл бұрын

haiii..what brand cabel bnc you use?tq..

@TheBauwssss 3 жыл бұрын

I realize the KZfaq audio compression seriously impacts the signal output quality of this video, but when you're changing upsampling or sound output device for your headphones, does the audio input for your camera/whatever you used to record the audio for this video also change along with the audio input for your headphones? I don't have headphones nearby to check, so I have no choice but to listen to this video on my crappy phone speakers and i honestly cannot tell 😭

@oysteinsoreide4323 3 жыл бұрын

This isn't a sound demo for KZfaq. KZfaq destroy the sound. This is first and foremost about listening to what he tells.

@little-endian5957 Жыл бұрын

Don't worry, the Golden Sound guy can't either.

@Johnnyde94v2 Жыл бұрын

Did you ever end up making the HQplayer video?

@sarcese52 2 жыл бұрын

How does the Hugo TT2 and M Scaler compare to the May KTE

@nataflet 3 жыл бұрын

Have you tried STAX gear ? STAX have way faster transients than dynamic drivers, the difference is huge. With Chord gear it's something else. My HD800 is a toy compared to my L700 and have only a Hugo 2.

@GoldenSound 3 жыл бұрын

Yes, I've tried all the current production stax, and also owned the Lambda Signature for a while (which is the thinnest driver stax has ever produced). I do really appreciate some of the things estats can do, and for sure they outresolve things like HD800 by a landslide, but you give up so much in timbre and other areas. Plus, for me, susvara gets so close to estat speed/resolution without giving up other areas that its a much better package (though of course, much more expensive and difficult to drive). TOTALLY understand why people love stax. And I love them too, but I just can't really enjoy them as a main headphone. I may end up getting another pair for when i'm in the mood at somepoint though.

@blakkpatron 3 жыл бұрын

so if you have a computer capable of running hqplayer this is like throwing money out the window?

@dmartyn3809 3 жыл бұрын

Excellent review. I have the Chord stack: Hugo TT2 & MScaler. Worth it to my ears. Cannot go back…enjoy having the ability to upscale all digital media. Most source files are 44.1khz therefore I do not need to pay for hi-res files. MScaler has 4 filters built in. BTW - Careful with the LPS - will void your warranty :)

@rhodey2952 2 жыл бұрын

I have a TT2 and have been wondering if the mscaler was worth it... I wonder how TT2+HQplayer compares to the TT2+Mscaler.

@supercompooper 3 жыл бұрын

I use a mutec upscaler which I enjoy.

@tanguyverdoodt638 3 жыл бұрын

Anybody has a good/free Music format converter to recommend?? Thx in advance

@indigocarrott5917 2 жыл бұрын

Should I be able to hear the difference from this video?

@TheVoicefrombelow 3 жыл бұрын

Hi there. I was a bit confused by the combination of claims that the M-Scaler + Dave makes a lot more sense than an M-scaler + a cheaper dac, while at the same time you keep mentioning that the M-scaler + Dave was making smaller improvements than other combinations. In general, if the upsampling of a cheaper dac is considerably less than the upsampling of an expensive dac, wouldn't the m-scaler make a bigger difference with a cheaper dac?

@MrB10N1CLE 3 жыл бұрын

basically, get a better dac instead of spending the same if not double on trying to improve your dac

@geraldford6409 2 жыл бұрын

Don’t know why the mscaler doesn’t have a usb audio output to feed dacs with usb inputs that can handle 384 or 768khz

@aceofspades6667 2 жыл бұрын

Would love for GS to review the TT2 as a standalone Dac - hp amp as well as a m scaler as an adder. I would imagine the TT2 is the far superior amp the Dave the far superior Dac and the TT2 the better value. I would wonder if the Mscaler still makes sense with the TT2.

@ks_3.14 3 жыл бұрын

could you please show me the cable adapter you used to connect speaker amp to headphones ?

@GoldenSound 3 жыл бұрын

Mine was made by skedra (vikingweavecables@gmail.com). Its a banana plug to XLR-Female adapter. Example would be this one: www.portentoaudio.it/en/prodotto/adattatore-xlr-4-pin-banana/

@ks_3.14 3 жыл бұрын

@@GoldenSound thanks for the share ! Did you have to add extra resistors to protect the headphones ? I’m thinking about using speaker amps for 1266 but I’m not sure what’s the right and safest way to do this. Thanks in advance for responding !

@michaell2444 5 ай бұрын

Where is the HQPlayer video?

@olivier6151 2 жыл бұрын

Correction about M Scaler + Qutest : the M Scaler with the Chord Qutest (coupled to a dual mono-amp bi-wired Quad Hifi set-up) makes a notable difference and musicality is objectively enhanced, the discerning audiophile will notice that as well as the non-audiophile. At least this is the feedback I have received about my set-up. A DAVE DAC would go even further no doubt.

@philipcooper8297 10 ай бұрын

In theory, upsampling should move the antialiasing of the DAC to inaudible range. Sort of giving you a more ''clear'', some say ''analogue/natural'', sound, if that's what you seek. How big of a difference depends on your equipment and audio files. That being said, I do appreciate you mention in this video, that upsampling does not ''create'' new information in the audio files. There are other products, for instance the DSEE HX, that do try to fill all the missing data into lower quality audio files with interpolation, but with somewhat unpredictable results.

@AliBekirKlckaya 3 жыл бұрын

Your MQA video was really good. I wish you use the same analogy and show null tests to compare the outputs, which would give some idea. Thanks!

@johnratcliffe6438 Жыл бұрын

The M Scalar has already been debunked by Amir at Audio Science Review. Video on YT. If you want a purely objective view then watch.

@martyn5416 2 жыл бұрын

Where is the HQPlayer vid?

@ArielMLenczner 6 ай бұрын

I did have the same combo dave+M-scaler, want to know whicn BNC (red color) pair of cables are you using ? And they have an real audible positive difference between the ones that comes originally with the M-Scaler from Chord.? Thanks a lot.

@dobeikwan3684 4 ай бұрын

Hello, does it make a big diff adding the M-Scaler before the DAVE? Thinking of adding it to my TT2 but seems hard to find user comments

@johnspy12345 3 ай бұрын

@@dobeikwan3684 I bought it for my TT2 after a home trial. It pushes the soundstage further away and makes listening more relaxed and less fatiguing.. It is subtle though. Sometimes I miss the etchiness of the tt2, so I take it off upscaling and then seconds later I switch it back because it’s not as comfortable to listen to by contrast. That all said, for the same price as a tt2+mscaler you might prefer trading your tt2 in and getting another dac (like the holo may). This might scratch the itch better than adding an mscaler would..

@dobeikwan3684 3 ай бұрын

@@johnspy12345 Thanks so much for your reply. I can almost "feel" what you can get from the M-Scaler just from your comment. Some thoughts: 1) Thanks for mentioning the Holo May DAC; didn't know this b4 and now I gotta research it. 2) Read many comments saying that the M-Scaler is just (again) snake oil. I think it would be unwise for Chord to launch a (mid-/high-end) product that couldn't make ANY sonically noticeable improvement. 3) Another incentive for me to switch is that I'm now using the TT2 exclusively as a DAC source for my amplifier, w/o using its headphone part. Logic tells me that this translates to lost value for money. Anyway thanks for sharing, and great listening!

@BillNepill Жыл бұрын

Snake oil....

@FullOnK1 2 жыл бұрын

Has anyone used an M Scaler with a Berkeley Reference DAC?

@gli7utubeo 2 ай бұрын

What BNC cables are those?

@PaoloCaminiti Жыл бұрын

where is the video on hqplayer?

@paulmurray6663 Жыл бұрын

" Subjectively " You Have Lower than Zero Creditability, P.R.A.T.(Pace, Rhythm And Timing) W.A.N.K(We Are Not Kidding)😉

@TaTaSoul 3 жыл бұрын

Where can I get those custom headphone cables

@GoldenSound 3 жыл бұрын

My cables were all made by Skedra ( vikingweavecables@gmail.com / vikingaudioblog.com )

@cool28990 3 жыл бұрын

What is the full name for the Amplifer may somthing?

@GoldenSound 3 жыл бұрын

@@cool28990 The DAC (left) is the Holo May. The amplifier (right) is the benchmark AHB2

@ericstefko4852 9 ай бұрын

GoldenSound I hope you add more content, you haven't posted in quite a while

@CinematicLaboratory Жыл бұрын

First, I love that you actually try to let us hear differences instead of just describing them. You put 'a lot more', 'huge' and 'better' in a frame of reference. I am super happy that I can actually hear a difference on KZfaq with my own cheap music production DAC and translate it to my set. There's one thing I can't figure out. Are you running your source (the PC) on 44.1/16 and let the Chords do the work? Or do you play higher rate/resolution if you can? I just don't seem to find the recommended initial output settings for the PC/Mac and I don't want to switch my music production applications/driver settings all the time. Thanks for sharing!

@jaykabel 2 жыл бұрын

USB Audio Player Pro upsampling enhances similar qualities to my ears (Android).

@mr20 3 жыл бұрын

A small circuit board is hidden under the huge body

@MrTony1625 3 жыл бұрын

Your totally right, I used the quick start guide and it shows off as a white.and was misled as when you look at the guide for sampling rate, the guide shows USB the same colour! I have been using this unit for a year the wrong way!! What a P**K. Can you see how I made this mistake as on the guide it looks white. I never used the full online instructions. If it was not for your video, I may never have realised. Ha Ha Ha🤒

@GoldenSound 3 жыл бұрын

Ouch! Sorry to hear that :( But good that its corrected now! Mscaler is a lovely product (And yeah. I do which chord made their UI/manuals a bit uh....more intuitive?)

@iampuzzleman282 3 жыл бұрын

Seems this is an infomercial for mscaler

@cinqo7 3 жыл бұрын

I love your video. As an owner of a Qutest I’m quite interested in the M Scaler. Your video is highly professional but what I don’t like is the short duration of your sound a/b samples. I couldn’t even hear a difference when using the Dave with and without the M Scaler. I’m at half through your video.

@ralfm3710 2 жыл бұрын

Did you measure the device? Amir from ASR just did...

@GoldenSound 2 жыл бұрын

goldensound.audio/2022/03/17/chord-hugo-m-scaler-measurements-and-technical-evaluation/

@drfubars 2 жыл бұрын

@@GoldenSound Your site doesn't load properly. Can't see measurements.... anyway would you be willing to compare testing methods / results with ASR?

@techydude 3 жыл бұрын

this concept of the benefit of up-sampling is one I really struggle with. i’m in the camp of “you can’t create new data” when it comes to up-sampling (unless you get into the new realm of AI-based up sampling like some of the high end TVs are doing, and that’s still just a guess, albeit a guess that will probably be “better” most of the time). I feel like you didn’t really *demonstrate* its benefits, beyond subjective claims from listening tests that we can’t experience ourselves. what i’d love to see is some audio tests…

@diserasta1 3 жыл бұрын

Of course you can't create data, but you can represent it more accurately. Let's use an example. If we have two samples at 44.1kHz, at 16 bit then there's at least a 1/65536 increase in volume over 1/44100 seconds. So that's our minimum step. When we up sample this to 192kHz, the minimum step is now 1/192000 seconss, or 4 times less. How we fill in those samples depends on the upsampler but a good upsampler won't add new data, in will just interpolate between the two existing samples based on some algorithm. It's like the difference between falling down the stairs and walking down. Sure the end effect is the same but the individual steps are different

@bobdole69420 Жыл бұрын

It's complete snake oil ASR measured it: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/kNihmJWJq8DYfYk.html

@JingoLoBa57 Жыл бұрын

ASR Amir has measured this… here on YT.

@user-es3hq5zk4e Жыл бұрын

@@JingoLoBa57 and its junk,does zilch.

@Cestmoi50 7 ай бұрын

@@user-es3hq5zk4e than you would say HQplayer is junk to, and I experienced myself and also blind testing. Upsampling does help te music. the mscaler is expensive but a pc running HQplayer decently as well.

@railwaystationmaster 3 жыл бұрын

I have a Blu 2 upscaler cd and a Dave , is this upgrade worth considering , thanks .

@dante19890 Жыл бұрын

upsampling is like upscaling when it comes to image quality. Totally undisirable. U dont buy an 8k tv to watch a dvd on.

@GoldenSound Жыл бұрын

This is not the case with digital audio. Upsampling is a necessary process in order to adhere to Nyquist theory. Without a reconstruction filter you encounter treble rolloff and aliasing among other issues

@VQR420 Жыл бұрын

@@GoldenSound doesn't most any D-S DAC do that, and can be achieved in software anyway? That's not even including unsubstantiated claims of improving transients and readding info that was alteady gone. You don't need to waste several grand that could go to better speakers, room treatment, or any actual improvement to sound quality.

@IvicaMarusevic Жыл бұрын

What about measurements? Didn't really shine on Amir's desk...

@snowrang3r657 3 жыл бұрын

I wonder just how much power is required to run the sinc-M filter in HQPlayer. I’d love to try and get it going on a fanless PC. Probably best case would be a Ryzen 5700G (about to come out).

@BrentLeVasseur 3 жыл бұрын

I just received a new dongle DAC today that I love so far. It’s the THX Onyx and it is very good for the $200 price. It outperforms my older AudioQuest Cobalt DAC and its $100 cheaper.

@michasieczko9654 3 жыл бұрын

I've been using Roon for 6 months or so and I just installed the HQplayer beliving i wouldn't hear the difference. I was so wrong. You should definitely make a material about this thing.

@bunozen1 3 жыл бұрын

I am still on the fence about the M Scaler. I have the TT2, I think the M Scaler is just a gimmick....5% improvement for $5k to the greedy Chord folks..... sad.....

@cinqo7 3 жыл бұрын

I know their products are expensive but I love my Qutest so much and it has made such a change in my system that I would buy again in a heartbeat.

@martinkay3912 2 жыл бұрын

I agree. I have a TT2 paired with the Meze Empyrean which I absolutely love! I bought an M Scaler looking forward to an endgame setup … and … over the course of two weeks of critical listening I literally could not hear any difference. Back and forth from pass through to full upscaling - no appreciable sound quality difference. I sent it back for a refund. I started listening via Apple Music hires and I did notice an appreciable improvement in sound quality. Maybe it’s different for speaker setups, but to say I was disillusioned by Chord was an understatement.

@bunozen1 2 жыл бұрын

@@martinkay3912 I am happy for you. It is quite absurd what Chord charges us for their products. I love my tt2 more as a Dac plugged to my McIntosh mha100 and the Rogue Audio RH5 and some others amp than thinking that the tt2 is the absolutely the best combo. I am pretty certain that a 2k dollars Dac nowadays would do great things. Sabre dacs to my surprise are getting so much better. That digital “noise “ is pretty much gone. They are sounding quite smooth and warm. I would not buy again the tt2 if something goes bad with mine. Chord is just too much marketing.

@HailKingCeezer 2 жыл бұрын

Would this be beneficial for a vintage 8x OS 20 bit 48khz dac? Can HQPlayer do it or do i need the dac to be able to do higher res for any of this to work?

@joshuascholar3220 3 жыл бұрын

I would upsample in software. Math can be as perfect as you program it. If you want 100% perfect, well computers are fast now.

@enjoshi-godrez8775 3 жыл бұрын

Hq music player is exactly that, but most of its filters require a very substantial gpu. Their Was an artical showing that 40% of their rtx 3090 test tig was being allocated to hq music upscalling.

@joshuascholar3220 3 жыл бұрын

@@enjoshi-godrez8775 it doesn't require anything that powerful to upsample. If it takes you more than a simple single threaded modern computer to upsample, then you're unbelievably bad at math. Hell, it doesn't require anything nearly as powerful as an x86. I remember using simulated annealing to come up with an optimized iir filter for something similar. Break the data into blocks, and run an IIR filter on it in both directions (to get a phase linear filter!) and crossfade to deal with edges and you could be happy with computing power that was cheap 20 years ago.

@user-es3hq5zk4e 4 ай бұрын

Snake Oil but nice looking at that.

@anthonysmithjr.7388 3 жыл бұрын

I have a yggdrassil. will the mscaler have any benefits?

@GoldenSound 3 жыл бұрын

Potentially. I would definitely use HQPlayer instead of the mscaler though. A friend of mine is currently using HQP with his yggy.

@carminedesanto6746 3 жыл бұрын

🤔

@clivewilliams9460 3 жыл бұрын

Keep in mind, it will be a whole different sound in a High End system. A Chord Blu 2 / Dave Dac would kill a lot of stuff out there. CD still does the job. 👍🏽

@connorduke4619 2 жыл бұрын

I would like to see Jay's CD Transport + Holo May take on Chord Blu 2 + Chord Dave. My bet would be on the Chi-Fi, but I would love to see the match up.

@thesunsetchannel9938 2 жыл бұрын

When I was listening to my chord blu mkii with Dave, I thought that was the end game sound i was looking for. Then my audio friend introduced me to vinyl, I immediately sold my bludave. Later my friend asked me if I have heard 2-track 15ips R2Rs...now I have 5 R2Rs and 1 TT. Looking back, bludave is 5/10, TT 7/10, R2R 9/10, Live concerts 12/10. The interesting thing is...TT is 60-70% cheaper than bludave combo and R2R is 80-90% cheaper than TT. Overall, R2R is less than 10% of the cost of bludave combo but beat it in a heartbeat no matter what records you are listening to. So the mainstream’s recommendation may not always represent the best for consumers. With that being said, i do have hugo 2 with 2go for playing background music when dining. Cheers

@connorduke4619 2 жыл бұрын

Interesting analysis.

@stevehinch6869 2 ай бұрын

Don't buy an M Scaler for use with a Qutest? Not so. The M Scaler makes a HUGE difference to the sound and makes the Qutest an even better DAC. Probably beats the Dave.

@Koopagamelouda 2 жыл бұрын

You're forever wrong about the Chord aesthetic.

@arimyllymaki3248 3 жыл бұрын

@user-es3hq5zk4e 11 ай бұрын

This device showed no improvement in frequency domain measurements in ASR,what time domain measurements are there, that can confirm its efficacy with regard to staging etc...?

@KORBENDALLAS168 10 ай бұрын

Snake oil

@marttiinnanen4911 3 жыл бұрын

There's just one slight problem here. If you can hear the difference after being run through the KZfaq encoding and the DAC you happen to be playing it from afterwards, it means that Chord is cheating and altering the frequency response of the output in order to make users think there's an audible difference. Otherwise we, the users of "inferior" equipment wouldn't be able to hear any change as it would again be lost in the encoding and resampling.

@GoldenSound 3 жыл бұрын

The sound on the video isn't from the mscaler. It's just from a virtual cable which the music player is also playing into. So unfortunately any difference won't be audible on the video and the music is just there to demonstrate what I'm listening to/discussing

@MrTony1625 3 жыл бұрын

Just wanted to add that you only get half a million taps, hence the small difference you heard when going from blue to white on the sampling frequency. This is when the M Scaler jumps from 4 times to 16 times upscaling. To me, this is the biggest jump in sound quality, but with the video mode switch in like in your video, ( Blank ) your not getting the benefits of the processing power. Do try again with the video mode switch off ( White ). The full instruction manual available on line from Chord's website will tell you not to use video mode on music only playback. Good luck with your channel and thanks.

@GoldenSound 3 жыл бұрын

In the manual the light being on/white means video mode is active. I have video mode disabled. thegoldenone.co.uk/wAAV9GxOLk.png

@MrTony1625 3 жыл бұрын

Hello there, I was watching your video and I noticed you have the video mode switched on on the M Scaler. White light means off! Blank means on! You are not getting the full one million tapes, I have this unit and so does a friend and he made this mistake. Thanks and good luck.

@GoldenSound 3 жыл бұрын

Heya, the left-most button is the video mode toggle. I have video mode off. The white light in the video is the source-selection button. Which is white when using USB

@keithbertschin1213 3 жыл бұрын

I have the M Scaler and TT2, when left most button is blank, video is off. TT2 confirms this by confirming its receiving the 700+ khz

@Thevikingcam 2 жыл бұрын

Wait what? I did hear that on THX ONYX + 7imiless IEMs. Hmm, how? I did hear the soundstage and imaging change and on the guitar on the right... I cant believe i just heard it.