[VintageFlanker]

 

[adrian.clopotari]

Problem:

I connect Qutest via USB from laptop.

And whatever file I play, whatever kHz, 128 khz or Flac, the center RED light is always on. It doesnt change to show me the sample frequincy.

Somebody else experienced this?

P.S. the center RED light is ON all the time! no matter if a play a song or not on laptop.

 

[dmance]

Problem:

I connect Qutest via USB from laptop.

And whatever file I play, whatever kHz, 128 khz or Flac, the center RED light is always on. It doesnt change to show me the sample frequincy.

Somebody else experienced this?

P.S. the center RED light is ON all the time! no matter if a play a song or not on laptop.

It is correct. Each file has a sample frequency of 44.1khz. You are confusing this with the encoding bitrate .

 

[adrian.clopotari]

It is correct. Each file has a sample frequency of 44.1khz. You are confusing this with the encoding bitrate .

So when I can see that light other colors?

Cause I assumed that If I play 320 mp3 it will be one colour and if I play FLAC it will be other color.

 

[VintageFlanker]

And whatever file I play, whatever kHz, 128 khz or Flac, the center RED light is always on. It doesnt change to show me the sample frequincy.

No problem at all. FLAC or mp3 are 16bits/44khz. If I may, you are confusing khz and mbps.

 

[dmance]

Adrian,
it may be that all the music you have is 44.1khz @ 16-bits per sample. The resulting data is then stored lossless (FLAC) or compressed (MP3). You need to find files that are 24/96, 24/192, 24/88.2, etc. If you explore the file (details) it will tell you the technical specifics of the file. Higher resolution files can be purchased online or downloaded from dubious sources just for testing.

You may also have your streaming set so that everything is converted to 16/44.1?
Dan

 

[adrian.clopotari]

Learned something new today.

Thanks.

 

[sandalaudio]

What voltage do you use with Qutest? it is still hard for me to decide between 2V and 3V

I used 3V when comparing against Hugo 2, then changed to 2V subsequently since my old iFi DAC was 2V, and stuck with it.
2V felt right for me as the nominal line level expected by most amps these days so I didn't care to try and compare the sound difference. I will have to give it a try.

So the Qutest is basically slightly more laid back than H2 in the upper mid range?

The difference wasn't big so I don't want to make a big deal over it, but basically yes.
I tried on a couple of different amps but I just felt on certain instruments (e.g. violin) that Hugo 2 + amp tend to bring the sound stuck up close and enforcing, whereas Qutest gave the same instrument a little bit more air space to the listener, so it gels nicely with the other instruments.

Maybe it's to do with the benefit of Qutest's USB isolation, or because Qutest output is more suitable for line out because it's tuned for lower voltage gain than Hugo 2?
I still think Hugo 2 sounds amazing on its own as a headphone amp, but after a long comparison demo at the shop, I felt confident about taking away the Qutest for my purpose.

 

[Skampmeister]

Yes, 2v vs 3v, this is a battle I’ve been having. The 2qutes “3v” for my system was perfect. The Qutest is bordering to hot, right on the cusp. The occasional track will push it over the limit.
The last 12 seconds of Steven Wilson’s “To the Bone” shows off the 3v problems I’m having. The rest of the time you get a sense it’s on the edge.
This is the biggest mistake they made with the Qutest. They shouldn’t have pushed a higher voltage than the 2qute. If they say they are both exactly 3v, I won’t belive them. I may sell the Qutest because of this issue, and that saddens me greatly. Thankfully I bought the Brooklyn also the day before.

 

[Rob Watts]

2 Qute is 3.0V RMS with 0dB FS and is exactly the same as Qutest when set to 3.0V.

 

[Skampmeister]

@Rob Watts but why after 3 years of the 2qute am I now hearing overloading issues with Qutest?

 

[Rob Watts]

Perhaps because Qutest is fundamentally smoother, more refined and more transparent it is more apparent?

But it's for sure it is exactly the same OP voltage. The trouble/challenge/excitement with audio is that extremely small technical differences often result in easy to hear and substantial changes. But I can't think of any technical reason why you are experiencing this - Qutest discrete OP stage is identical to 2 Qute, and the voltage is the same at 3V.

 

[Skampmeister]

@Rob Watts i understand perfectly, the distortion I’ve heard on some tracks totally disappears at 2 volts but is introduced at 3v, never heard this on the 2qute. I actually wish I still had my 2qute so I can reference it now. It’s the exact sound distortion the Brooklyn has, it’s a really hot DAC, but you can taper it down 1db at a time till it disappears. I wish, and I know this is going to far, the the Qutest had a .5v step down instead of 1v. .5v on my system would be perfect. 2v is a tad to thin, 3v is bordering to hot. But I get it, that’s the problem with the myriad of system differences out there.
I’ll run it on 3v for awhile, try and listen to a variety of more music and see how often the issue may pop up.
But yes, you are probably correct, maybe this DAC is being more revealing, but that doesn’t explain the loss of distortion lowering the volts.

 

[x RELIC x]

@Skampmeister, do you have any way to actually measure the volume from your amp when you volume match it between 3V and 2V input strength? Humans are terrible at matching by ear and with as little as 0.5dB difference reports are that the louder signal is ‘better’... more dynamic, better separation, more layering... all the things that are usually associated with ‘better’ sound. At the end of the day it’s commonly just a difference in loudness, and humans are wired to prefer louder.

I’m not saying that what you hear isn’t confusing, and I don’t have an answer for why you feel the 2Qute was never too hot, but unless volume matching precisely it’ll be difficult to come to a conclusion between 2V and 3V input to your amp. Especially considering that the 3Vrms OP is identical between the 2Qute and the Qutest.

 

[Skampmeister]

@x RELIC x the setup up I have has been the same for a few years, I know it very well. I can perceive very subtle changes easily. My favorite album is the 192k Neil diamond album “you don’t bring me flowers”, and is my go to reference album. On the 2qute at 75 on the volume, I used to be in awe, still am but the level at 75 with the Qutest make me now uncomfortable as you feel like your being intimidated so to Speak.
Sure, it could be down to other things apart from volume, but yes, it’s interesting.

And no, I have no way to test the out put from my amp.