If anybody wants a decent alternative to the Hugo/Qute that seemingly works well with Naim, I'd recommend the Eastern Electrics MiniMax DAC Supreme (Long name!). Out of the box it sounds superb. Toe tappy, full, rich, natural, engaging, evenly balanced.
It's probably the most natural and even keeled DAC i've heard so far after the hugo (Dislaimer: see below).
I've listened to:
DAC V1 (Nice but not fluid enough for me)
2Qute (Shouty with TP PSU and SMPS)
Classe Sigma 2200i (Bland / cool sounding)
Mytek Brooklyn (Sounded artificial to me and bass boomy).
Benchmark / Hegel all sound fine but lacking a little something.
Hugo (Fantastic, but the battery stems it's scale. Although at the same time, the battery seems to be it's shining light). Makes a huge difference vs 2Qute.
EE MiniMax Supreme is very much like the Hugo but with more scale/fullness. But in no way forward or boomy. Lovely product.
Posted on: 10 September 2016 by ryder.
I just had a look at the Eastern Electric Minimax Supreme. The unit is pretty well-built with a solid feel to it. Nice casing. Though I note it is a hybrid with switchable solid-state and tube outputs. Good to hear the EE matches well with the Naim.
FWIW I looked at the Hugo and 2Qute after all the talk about the goodness of these DACs but the build quality of these units is a bit of a let down to me. No offense to current owners. The Hugo TT looks more like a *proper* DAC whereas the Hugo and 2Qute look like they are designed for mobility and headphone use. In the end, I went with the Chord QBD 76 instead. I am not sure how the QBD 76 compares with the Hugo but the QBD sounds very analogue like and fluid when matched with the Naim even with 44.1 redbook CD format. CDs sound almost like analogue it's amazing.
I am sure the EE Minimax Supreme is another lovely product. Enjoy your new DAC as I do with mine.
Posted on: 10 September 2016 by ThatsNotMyNaim
Cheers
It's just on loan at the moment. It's a bloody impressive DAC. More Naim than Naim! Slaps, and whacks and powers through with real energy and fun. It's gone real swagger and it's stupidly punchy and tight. Sounds pretty good with more laidback stuff too. Definition is fantastic.
But, i'm not sure I prefer it to the Hugo yet. The Hugo is nice for the evenings and relaxing.
Might look at the Hugo TT but then the sound between the 2Qute and Hugo is so vast I worry the TT will change the Hugo's sound again. Maybe just stick with Hugo as I seem.to be happy with that in my setup. Build quality doesn't really bother me.
I'll look at the QBD - assuming it's very ££££.
Cheers
Adam
Posted on: 11 September 2016 by Iconoclast
The Supreme is about $1000 less than the Hugo. I've owned the original Minimax since its inception about six years ago. At the time it cost $650 and garnered rave reviews. I brought a few mods to it bringing the total cost to about $1000.
I've yet to hear anything that can touch it at that price point.
I'd be curious to listen to a modded Supreme. Something tells me it would be killer.
