Performance Impressions
What to look for?
Normally, I would say sound impressions but here I think performance is more adept at describing how the Hugo M Scaler performs.
The enhancements fundamentally lie in the technical domain but that is not to say timbre is not unaffected. Rather, this is unlike a PMEQ or EQ effect, it is not a bludgeoning tool to completely change the tuning bias of any particular source or amp output.
Your system’s level of dynamic range and how well you know it, combined with just how resolving and adept your headphone is will play a key role in appreciating what the M Scaler can do. I generally found the better the system the easier it was to hear how dramatic some of the changes were with the M Scaler inserted into the chain.
What will you possibly hear? I have to say two things stuck out for me when moving from the by-passed 44.1k red OP sample rate setting to the 784kHz white setting which has been the most dramatic difference when paired with the Qutest.
Dynamic Range “Vivid”
The first is just how precise everything sounds without actually sounding digitized. The red or 44.1K keeps rates where they are for most of my music’s native sample rates. The general presentation sounds great at that level with the Qutest but with the M Scaler, everything sounded much more vivid.
You suddenly become far more aware of little nuanced details with imaging cues right on the edge of the stereo field that have a lot more ‘pop’ to them. It almost made the Qutest sound a little vague without the M Scaler which honestly is not fair at all on the Qutest because it is an awesome DAC but there you are.
Example
A good example of this was Hifiman’s Jade amp paired with a Stax 007 MKII. For this we used a 24BIT/96k FLAC recording of Beth Ditto’s title track from her 2017 Fake Sugar album, pushing the marker in the song to around 65-68 seconds.
This is where the mix opens up from a sparse solo lead vocal focus to include the majority of the instrumentation – strings, percussion, etc. You also have a new mix of Beth’s solo vocals to produce a more harmonized layering.
Bypass Sound
With the M Scaler setup for USB from the PC Source and working ASIO Chord 1.05 via Foobar2000 to a dual BNC connected Chord Qutest, we set the first few runs with the red 44.1k or bypass setting. Here the sound was as you would expect from a pure Qutest setting.
This was a very smooth and detailed presentation, particularly on the vocals. The timbre was also quite natural and instrumental separation was accurate. The Stax 007 MKII has a slightly mid-bass to lower-mid bias unlike the cleaner Hifiman Jade headphone so for my money the interpretation was spot on.
Upsampled Sound
However, once we upsampled to the maximum rate of PCM 768kHz (from 96kHz input) the track took on a very different dimension. The first thing noticeable was the amount of perceived detail from the mids upwards.
You get a strong perception of more headroom and an airier soundstage with more resolution in the upper mids. The Stax 007 MKII treble sounded like it had a shade more presence which in turn delivered a slightly cleaner timbre than the red bypass rate.
I would also argue that the transient response or timing and pace of this pairing sounded more convincing. Guitar plucks hit and faded in a tighter manner than the softer bypass red performance.
Second, vocal presence is much more electrifying whereas the red bypass sound is a little faded and lacking in impact. Hence, the term “vivid” is apt.
Vocals are clearer for me delivering a lot more micro-detail with the upsampled maximum rate. You can hear the additional definition in the texture, subtle breath intakes, and mixed voice intonations are much easier to pick out.
Also, there is this underlying synth-type beat just below the vocal that has a presence within the first minute of the track. I would say it is around the mid-bass to the lower-mid max.
I have no problem picking it out at the red level but it suddenly became more defined and lively when moving to the top upsampling rate via the M Scaler.
That liveliness and enhanced dynamic range drive the track a bit better and offer more PRaT in general making the track seem pacier and more engaging.
Timbre
The second observation is indeed the timbre and I have alluded to that in my description above. With the red by-pass linked to a Qutest-electrostatic amplifier pairing, I felt the low end of my system take on a touch more body and warmth but also sounded softer in comparison to the White 784kHz upsampling setting.
The 784kHz upsampling setting via the M scaler sounded more reference-like on the same setup but had a much more pleasing tone to the mids and treble. Not a dramatic timbral change but much more refined in its delivery with more detail in note texture and body.
From my Qutest/Jade/Stax setup testing, I felt that the reference sound was coming from not only a livelier treble presence but also a subtle reduction in potential bass bloom.
With the bypass on, the Stax pairing felt a little more even-harmonic biased. Upper harmonics were not being pulled on as much by the majority of instruments that needed it to sound crisp and clear. Percussion and vocals, in particular, were the softest and warmest offering the most note decay and the least separation.
Example
A-Ha’s “To Let You Win” from their 2000 Minor Earth Major Sky album is a nice example to explain how the timbral changes came into play.
Note, this is a 44.1k/16BIT FLAC track served from Foobar2000 via ASIO Chord 1.05/USB to the M Scaler and then dual-BNC out to the Chord Qutest. From there it is a Kingsound M20 tube amplifier combined with the Stax 007 MKII. The supplied YouTube recording above is a lower rate and may not convey as much information.
From 30 seconds to 55 seconds into the track there is a kick drum underpinning the basic timing of the song. From approximately the 55th second the song sort of expands with an accompanying bass guitar and the lead percussion.
Together, they give the song some depth, warmth, and weight to drive the song forward in terms of PRaT. It also ensures the timbre of the instruments is inviting rather than clinical to match the tone of the lead male vocal.
Switching Samples
Now with the M Scaler sample on red or 44.1k, we are bypassing the upsampling capability and working a regular signal via the Qutest to the amp. With this signal, the bass has a comparatively enhanced level of bloom and sounds plentiful but not as defined as switching to the maximum 784kHz rate.
Once we switch to the 785kHz rate the bass tightens up and pulls back from bloom and instead sounds punchier with better low-end layering. That higher upsampling rate tighter low-end drains a little of the initial excessive warmth out of the resulting timbre I hear from the Stax setup.
As a result, instrumental and vocal notes from the midrange upwards sound more balanced, slightly more neutral, and cleaner.
Headphone Synergy
Not every headphone is optimal with the Hugo M Scaler and that’s an important point. In my opening statement in this review, I spoke about the use of a Hifiman HE5SE at CanJam Singapore in 2019 to do some quick testing.
Quite apart from it being an open headphone design in a noisy trade show environment, it images quite poorly and not the most efficient of headphones either. I honestly struggled with the synergy of these headphones and went home hoping I had not made a mistake in electing to review the M Scaler.
Best setups
Roll on 12 months and via trial and error, the choices are that much easier to state in terms of good synergy for headphone users.
Given the technical prowess and subtle changes in the timbre, good-quality electrostatic systems seem to benefit the most.
If you do decide to go planar or dynamic headphones then the likes of Stax’s 007 MK II (009 may even be better), Sennheiser’s HD800, Abyss’s Diana Phi, or Hifiman’s Susvara combined with a highly resolving analog amplifier will qualify.
What’s the common thread running through those 4 choices? Technical capability in terms of speed, level of detail, and sound staging prowess. A headphone that is known for imaging, micro-detail retrieval, and a 3-dimensional type of staging performance is going to gel with the M Scaler behind it.
Example
As an example of one of the headphones we mentioned under synergy, we connected the Diana Phi to a Violectric V281/Qutest/Dual-BNC/M Scaler chain with a USB input from the PC/Foobar setup. Here we ran another FLAC A-ha track from the same 16BIT/441.k album called “The Company Man”.
The Diana Phi proves that much of what we described in the M Scaler’s performance is not just reserved for electrostatic headphone systems. The Phi is a neutral and clean flagship headphone with incredible speed and detail. Perhaps one of the best I have tested to date outside of the Susvara.
Bypass Sampling
With the red bypass low rate, the Phi sounded natural to neutral with a similar level of low-end bloom and a comparatively faded vocal and treble presence.
The information was there but had a slower pace of delivery, perhaps slightly longer levels of decay and separation, and not as spectacular as we knew it could be. Technically, this level was pleasing on the timbral level but a bit soft with less dynamic range.
Maximum Upsampling
Once we clicked on the maximum sampling rate the Diana Phi started spitting out reference-quality perfection. The low-end bloom died down and definitely, there was a lot more perceptible information being conveyed from the mids and beyond. That familiar ‘vivid’ sound I got from the Stax pairing was very easy to pick up.
One notable aspect of the Diana Phi pairing was the level of detail in the lower-mid instrumental texture. Bass guitar plucks with similarly timed acoustic guitar strumming, creating a single harmonized note in the mix, sounded very detailed with the M Scaler on maximum upsampling.
You could make out the depth in the note and the two individual instruments’ own unique timbre. With the upsampling turned off (red) that separation was not as clear. You get more of a perception of warmth behind the acoustic guitar plucks rather than an individual bass guitar pluck.
