Chord Electronics
Amplifiers
DACs
Digital Sources
Preamplifiers
Best Known For
DACs
/
Used Products
197
 Available
Average Price
$5,001-$10,000
Brand Popularity
18
 of 900+
Products Listed
22
Review Count
291
Founding Year
1989
Headquarters
United Kingdom
Chord Electronics
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What's unique about the brand

Chord Electronics' idea is to do digital-to-analog conversion in its own code, written by Rob Watts and run on an FPGA chip. The British company was founded in 1989, and its first amplifiers went to the BBC. Everything is designed and built in Great Britain. The Hugo TT 2 runs filters with 98,304 taps. The battery-powered Mojo 2 is made for listening on the move and heads our Best Portable DAC/Amps list, and the Qutest, a standalone DAC, heads our Best DACs list.

What reviewers are saying

We read all the reviews. Here's what reviewers feel most strongly about:

  • Chord Electronics distinguishes itself with its unique Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) DAC implementation, custom-coded by Rob Watts, offering a tap-length filter far exceeding typical DAC chips for precise digital-to-analog conversion.
  • They incorporate a fully transparent custom UHD DSP in their devices, enabling comprehensive lossless tone adjustments across the frequency range, providing unrivaled sound customization without sonic degradation.
  • The brand's designs incorporate highly sophisticated switch-mode power supplies with advanced cross-coupling, and high-voltage MOSFETs that create exceptionally clean, stable power delivery which enhances amplifier performance.
  • Chord Electronics's distinct design language and high-quality aircraft-grade aluminum casing are featured in their products, setting them apart with unique aesthetics.

Our favorite reviewer quotes:

  • "The circuitry inside this little psychedelic box offers truly unbelievable detail, giving you infinitely more information than just about every other DAC on the market. You will hear every note, every lyric, every single element of the song with absolutely breathtaking clarity." (https://www.themasterswitch.com/review-chord-hugo-2)
  • "With the M Scaler on and set to the highest setting (white sphere) the music was more free flowing, details were popping out into space like never before with these Heresy IV's and imaging was so beautiful while being so full, rich, smooth and organic I could not pull away. Just about gone were all of the hints that I was listening to digital music." (https://www.stevehuffphoto.com/2021/01/17/hifi-the-chord-mscaler-with-chord-qutest-dac-review-end-game-for-your-digital)
  • "The things that make the Mojo 2 worth the money are that it is the highest resolution DAC ever offered in a portable device and revelatory sound quality that is hard to ignore. Its tone controls are easily better than pretty much any other device I've tested without going to a full parametric EQ, and for those already invested in the Chord ecosystem, the Mojo 2 maintains compatibility with the other Chord modules (Poly)." (https://www.ecoustics.com/reviews/chord-mojo-2-portable-dac)
  • "The TT2 is an absolute monster of an integrated DAC and amplifier for dynamic range, resolution, and a strong perception of 'speed'. The articulated manner of the TT2's performance is such that even the most complex of musical passages are delivered with compelling accuracy." (https://violethifi.com/chord-hugo-tt-2-dac-preamplifier-headphone-amplifier-review-roundup)
  • "Anni provides some wonderful separation and layering, and you'll get some very different sound experiences depending on how you set it up. In my headphone system, the song is incredibly punchy and dynamic." (https://www.moon-audio.com/blogs/expert-advice/chord-anni-review?srsltid=AfmBOoo3kL75D-ANum-VYZspcPeoUFu0lojAvWMVTRZr7qefq_PVt0jE)
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Our interview with the brand

What are two key technological innovations or strong opinions that differ you from other brands?

What's your approach to customer support?

What are your favorite tracks for showcasing the strength of your products?

What other products pair best with yours?

From Julian's interview with
.

Products

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Lineup comparison

We think it's helpful to understand how their products compare. To learn more about each, scroll to the section above to click through to individual product pages.

Every Chord Electronics model is designed and built in Great Britain, and its digital products convert in custom code on an FPGA chip. The digital line climbs in filter length. Qutest uses 49,152 taps, Hugo TT 2 uses 98,304, and Dave uses 164,000. The amplifiers climb in power, from Anni at 10 W, to Suzi at 30 W, to Ultima Integrated at 125 W, to Ultima 6 at 180 W, and to the mono Ultima at 780 W per channel. Preamplifiers such as Ultima Pre 3 add more inputs.

​

Start here. Mojo 2 is the pick for a first portable setup, since it is the battery-powered DAC and headphone amp in the lowest price bracket.

Sweet spot. Hugo 2 suits a desk or travel headphone listener who wants a DAC, preamp and headphone amp with both 3.5mm and 6.35mm outputs plus a remote.

All in. Dave paired with the mono Ultima amplifiers fits a dedicated room with large speakers, with Dave as the flagship DAC and Ultima as the top power amp.

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Julian Shapiro
ExtremeHiFi Writer

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Our interview with the brand

What are two key technological innovations or strong opinions that differ you from other brands?

What's your approach to customer support?

What are your favorite tracks for showcasing the strength of your products?

What other products pair best with yours?

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Our interview with the brand

What are two key technological innovations or strong opinions that differ you from other brands?

What's your approach to customer support?

What are your favorite tracks for showcasing the strength of your products?

What other products pair best with yours?

Website author headshot
Julian Shapiro
ExtremeHiFi
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Rockna Audio is a Romanian maker of DACs and digital sources, founded in 1999. It builds everything in its own labs in Suceava and designs its core R2R DAC modules in house. Custom FPGA code drives those modules, so firmware updates can change how a DAC behaves. The Wavedream offers linear, minimum phase, hybrid and NOS digital filters, and Rockna DACs often include an analog preamplifier, so an all-digital system can do without a separate preamp. The Wavedream NET combines a memory-based CD transport with a music server and connects to Rockna DACs over I2S.

Our interview with the brand

What are two key technological innovations or strong opinions that differ you from other brands?

We developed the expertise to design the hardware exactly as we want using programmable logic circuits. This means our designs are free from the limitations imposed from off-the-shelf chips, especially regarding critical conversion and clock sub-systems. Original designs can emerge under these conditions, a fresh alternative on a market where unfortunately many designs are similar.

When started the company back in 1999, we started with amplifiers and dedicated many years to analog designs. After switching to digital products a few years later, integrating digital and analog in the same circuit came naturally and it's one of the keys regarding sound quality.

What's your approach to customer support?

The natural way is to contact the local seller or distributor. If the issue cannot be resolved at that level, we will assist our local partners in every way to have the issue resolved. For the countries where we don't have a representative, the owner of the products can contact us directly. We have a friendly support and we don't require anything but a valid serial number. Our support extends also post-warranty period, and if possible, we try to have everything free of charge (if possible).

What are your favorite tracks for showcasing the strength of your products?

Frankly, I don't have a favorite particular track, or two or three for demonstrations. Decent recordings must sound good, good recordings should sound fantastic. That's our goal.

What other products pair best with yours?

Website author headshot
Julian Shapiro
ExtremeHiFi
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About the brand

Sonnet Digital Audio is a Dutch electronics company led by Lion Kwaaijtaal and Cees Ruijtenberg, known mainly for research into digital-to-analog conversion. Its DACs can set volume by adjusting the reference voltage instead of by digital attenuation, so the signal stays bit-perfect. That lets the Morpheus work as a digital preamplifier, and it pairs especially well with sensitive tube amplifiers. The Pasithea uses eight DACs and has a very low noise floor. The Hermes is a Roon-certified streaming bridge, and the Kratos is a monoblock amplifier built on high-voltage FET transistors.

Our interview with the brand

What are two key technological innovations or strong opinions that differ you from other brands?

What's your approach to customer support?

What are your favorite tracks for showcasing the strength of your products?

What other products pair best with yours?

Website author headshot
Julian Shapiro
ExtremeHiFi
Brand Page
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 Available
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About the brand

Ideon Audio is a Greek maker of DACs and streamers, with Vassilis Tounas as chief designer. Every product is an in-house design built without off-the-shelf modules, and its electronics use fully linear internal supplies, with dedicated lines feeding the critical parts of the circuit. The company's 3R technology re-clocks, re-energizes and re-drives the USB signal aimed at reducing jitter, and Ideon also sells it in standalone USB accessories. The Ayazi mk2 is the entry DAC, and the Absolute DAC ε meta and Absolute Stream meta belong to the flagship Absolute Suite.

Our interview with the brand

What are two key technological innovations or strong opinions that differ you from other brands?

We love and pursue purity. That’s why our analog output doesn’t choke dynamics with multiple stages, it lets them breathe, preserving the extraordinary SNR of our DAC engine without introducing artifacts or limitations. We’ve developed our own proprietary parallelized DAC conversion engine, complete with over 4,000 lines of custom firmware. Why? To meet our standards for emotional realism. We wrote our own rules—and our own code—to bridge the gap between technical performance and musical truth.

That’s what sets us apart: every circuit, every line of code, every concept is ours.

From our advanced re-clocking systems to our zero-noise rectification bridges—everything is conceived, designed, and executed in-house.

Even our power supply architecture is proprietary: parallelized, ultra-low-noise designs, paired with custom active bridges that eliminate diode-generated noise at rectification.

This isn’t tweaking - this is redefining what’s possible in digital playback. Timing correction is applied at both ends - input and output - with our sequential re-clocking and re-driving architecture. Each device is equipped with multiple femto-level clocks, operating in cascading stages, ensuring absolute signal phase integrity and vanishingly low jitter.

This is a fully upgradeable platform - because we’re always thinking ahead. All of this adds up to something more than specs, more than numbers. It results in sound with unimaginable resolution, breathtaking dynamics, and a texture that’s almost tactile. Whether through USB or SPDIF, our re-clocking and re-driving platforms deliver a musical experience that isn’t just accurate, it’s alive. Music deserves nothing less.

USB Input​

More than 90% of DACs today use the same two generic USB chipsets. We don’t. Instead, we created our own proprietary USB input architecture, hardware and firmware designed together, paired with top-class femto-level clocks. It’s called the Ideon Triple Distillation USB input - a three-stage circuit that eradicates digital noise before the signal even reaches the DAC chip. What reaches the conversion stage is unflavored, untainted, and utterly transparent. A clean slate - ready to be reborn as music. This is our declaration of war on both linear and non-linear distortion. We simply eliminate noise.

Analog Stage​

We take a similarly radical approach: one single stage. No coupling capacitors in the signal path. No power FETs or multiple output stages to artificially inflate current or “enhance” dynamics, because we found a better way. Our ultra-low-noise, symmetrical power supplies feed a uniquely designed topology that maintains signal integrity at an unmatched level. The result? Explosive dynamics, natural textures, intense detail—yet nothing is forced, nothing hyped. It just sounds real.

What's your approach to customer support?

Our approach to customer support is structured, customer centric, yet highly responsive. The first level of support is handled by our distributors in each country where we are represented. For territories without a local distributor, customers can contact our technical team directly. In fact, many customers reach out to us even when a distributor is present, especially for specific technical questions. We maintain a dedicated support email and pride ourselves on responding quickly and effectively to every inquiry. Customer satisfaction is at the core of everything we do. We’ve consistently been praised by both customers and partners for our fast, reliable, after-sales support. Whatever the issue, our goal is to resolve it swiftly and professionally. Additionally, all Ideon Audio products are designed with a modular architecture. This means servicing is straightforward and quick, as individual modules can be easily replaced when needed. This way we minimize downtime, ensuring continued performance. We are committed to making sure every customer is satisfied. In fact, we aim for, and maintain a zero unhappy customer record.

What are your favorite tracks for showcasing the strength of your products?

  • Sway, Diana Krall
  • Jacques Loussier Erik Satie Gnossienne No. 4
  • Daft Punk, the Game of Love
  • And many others

What other products pair best with yours?

This list is big, as we try to listen to synergies with many different products from a lot of brands. To name a few: Wilson, Estellon, JMF, Elac, Gamut, VTL, Aesthetix, etc.

Website author headshot
Julian Shapiro
ExtremeHiFi
Brand Page
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Used Products
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 Available
Brand Popularity
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About the brand

Matrix Audio is a Chinese maker of DACs, streamers and headphone amplifiers. Its digital products carry a wide set of inputs, including less common ones such as IIS-LVDS and HDMI ARC. Owners control the streamers with the company's own MA Remote app, which reviewers find easy to use. The catalog also includes network switches, isolators and clock sources for the digital chain. The Mini-i 4 streams services such as Apple Music directly and is on our Best DACs and Best DACs Under $1,000 lists.

Our interview with the brand

What are two key technological innovations or strong opinions that differ you from other brands?

What's your approach to customer support?

What are your favorite tracks for showcasing the strength of your products?

What other products pair best with yours?

Website author headshot
Julian Shapiro
ExtremeHiFi
Brand Page

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