Critique of industry claims and audiophile myths

Watts, Chord, community and miscellany

Everything he said on this topic (80)

One-line summaries in our words, oldest first. Each link opens the original.

2015-02-02Watts says DACs sound the same only if you don't listen or are very hard of hearing, noting different DACs measure very differently. Head-Fi, Feb 2015
2015-04-15Watts says DAC chips are designed to cost and marketing specs, verified by measurements without listening tests, so tiny but significant errors that listening reveals go unaddressed. article, Apr 2015
2015-10-03Watts rebuts a Nagra DAC's marketing claims point by point: quantization noise, brickwall filter phase, oversampling as cheating, clocking, and DSD out-of-band noise. Head-Fi, Oct 2015
2015-10-03Watts criticizes uncritical acceptance in high-end audio, recounts leaving audio after DAC64 in 2001 for silicon work, and says Hugo's success led him back full time. Head-Fi, Oct 2015
2015-10-03Watts says Chord initially objected to him giving away information, but he posts because he enjoys it and no one else pursues long-tap WTA filters. Head-Fi, Oct 2015
2015-12-04Watts cites 27 years designing DACs and silicon chip experience, says no rival DAC has caught his attention, and that Dave sets new measurement standards. Head-Fi, Dec 2015
2015-12-11Watts rejects 'more than one way to skin a cat': transparency to live music requires very long tap-length sinc filters, and other designers fail to address timing and NFM. Head-Fi, Dec 2015
2016-02-14Watts says Dave's price came from the bill of materials and Chord's multipliers, recounts a dealer calling Dave too cheap against $50k DACs, and calls hi-res results mixed. Head-Fi, Feb 2016
2016-09-10Watts argues negative feedback is not harmful, attributing low-feedback amps' smoother sound to local feedback, higher bias and wider open-loop response cutting RF, HF distortion and signal-dependent delay. Head-Fi, Sep 2016
2017-01-09Watts suggests Mercury's 35mm film and Decca's tape machine modifications, perhaps bias choices affecting timing, explain great 1960s recordings, and laments that modern pro ADCs are not designed by listening. Head-Fi, Jan 2017
2017-07-18Watts contrasts obvious progress in TV picture quality with audiophiles claiming expensive DACs are better, asks why audio assessment lacks objectivity, and jokes about his daughters. Head-Fi, Jul 2017
2017-08-31Watts says Chord's production director puts Hugo 2 failure rates near 0.1%, describes its manufacture alongside Mojo, and argues no other or chip-based DACs match Chord's measured performance. Head-Fi, Aug 2017
2017-10-17Watts says taps are simply taps, rivals' short or minimum-phase filters misreconstruct transient timing, Blu 2 sounds profoundly better, and he predicts marketing pseudo tap counts. Head-Fi, Oct 2017
2017-10-22Watts says CPUs struggle even with DSD512 DoP, 'input related' tap figures are meaningless pseudo numbers, cascaded FIR stages differ from one flat stage, and only real taps count. Head-Fi, Oct 2017
2017-12-05Watts says audibility cannot be assumed and needs careful structured listening tests, and that chip designers work to a marketing specification without listening, calling audiophiles 'audio fools'. RMAF 1:41
2017-12-05Watts describes the silicon design business view that no one hears below minus 90 dB, so DACs running at 120 dB are already perfect. RMAF 2:29
2017-12-05Watts calls claims for femtosecond external clocks nonsense because clock jitter is regenerated inside a chip's clock tree, starting with the input buffer. RMAF 24:46
2017-12-05Watts says amplifiers lack high-frequency feedback but his system gives intermodulation below minus 150 dB, versus minus 110 dB in some DACs that reviewers still praise for brand reasons. RMAF 51:32
2017-12-05Watts says Europe and Asia have no review problem, half a dozen reviewers bought DAVEs at a discount, and the only problem is mainline US magazines. RMAF 54:08
2017-12-23Watts says he has a ten-year roadmap for improving sound quality, while competitors depend on devices that cannot improve. Head-Fi, Dec 2017
2017-12-26Watts says the industry is wrong to judge digital sound with non-bandwidth-limited impulses, and that pre-ringing diagrams make easy marketing. Audiophile Style, Dec 2017
2018-02-15Watts says a reviewer got facts wrong and published measurements bearing no similarity to his own APx555 measurements. needs context Head-Fi, Feb 2018
2018-04-27Watts responds to a review calling Hugo 2 merciless, contrasts live drums with reproduction, states Davina's goals of depth and speed, and says all design is his. Head-Fi, Apr 2018
2018-09-19Watts calls the claim that filter ringing is reverb pseudoscience: a sinc interpolation filter reconstructs a bandlimited impulse perfectly, with no ringing at all. Head-Fi, Sep 2018
2018-11-11Watts says shorting unused amplifier inputs is insane, risking damage and ground currents; Hugo 2 survives a short via thermal trips but must not run into one constantly. Head-Fi, Nov 2018
2018-11-22Watts jokes that a claim resembles fanciful dynamic range measurements some companies publish, as if the measuring gear were switched off too. Head-Fi, Nov 2018
2018-12-12Watts says other manufacturers avoid discussing noise floor modulation because they either do not see it as a sound problem or know they cannot fix it without a pulse array. Pursuit Perfect System 19:25
2018-12-13Watts says he varies one measured variable, such as noise shaper performance or distortion, and listens to its effect; many in audio wrongly think distortion sounds better. Pursuit Perfect System 26:39
2019-04-09Watts says ringing is inaudible because 22.05 kHz is inaudible and bandlimited signals carry no energy there, calling the industry's Dirac-impulse view a misunderstanding of sampling theory. Head-Fi, Apr 2019
2019-04-10Watts attacks the industry's 'ringing is bad' meme, discusses ultrasonic intermodulation, distinguishes EQ pre-ringing from reconstruction, and calls transient timing the real problem. Head-Fi, Apr 2019
2019-04-19Watts says research is ongoing, AES papers take much time for little benefit and peer review is a joke, citing MQA, though he wants to present his work someday. Head-Fi, Apr 2019
2019-09-14Watts says the industry misunderstands reconstruction, so minimum phase, NOS and no-ringing filters worsen timing, and fitting sinc to finite processing by listening and custom windowing is the real work. Head-Fi, Sep 2019
2019-11-25Watts says few DAC designers understand sampling theory or noise floor modulation, warns clip-on ferrites worsen the isolated M scaler, and says floating point creates noise floor modulation. Head-Fi, Nov 2019
2020-06-25Watts cites no harmonic distortion with noise at -180 dB, and says audiophiles think simplistically about Class A versus B when what is needed is a linear output stage. Part-Time Audiophile 20:57
2020-07-26Watts says price is irrelevant: Mojo drives 8 ohm speakers, reconstructs transients better than Bartok's minimum phase filters and lacks Bartok's noise floor modulation. Head-Fi, Jul 2020
2021-03-15Watts says quick measurements on non-APx555 gear reveal little, measurements matter but interpretation is paramount, and chip DACs fail on brick-wall response, small-signal accuracy and noise floor modulation. Head-Fi, Mar 2021
2021-06-27Watts agrees a review's 'align' and 'live' terms are undefined, says 'live' suggests brightness from noise floor modulation, and notes Audio Bacon takes no advertising. Head-Fi, Jun 2021
2021-08-31Watts says Stereophile's poor Dave -90.31dB result did not reproduce on his APx555, calls the SYS2722 inadequate, and shows Dave with zero measurable noise floor modulation and jitter. Head-Fi, Aug 2021
2022-02-14Watts says PSU break-in signals RF noise causing noise floor modulation, better fixed by RF filters, and that design knowledge matters far more than parts cost. Head-Fi, Feb 2022
2022-07-11Watts says M Scaler DSD handling matches Hugo 2 and TT2, converting DSD64 through DSD512 to 705 kHz 24-bit; he also praises forum civility and calls audiophile patents marketing. Head-Fi, Jul 2022
2022-08-23Watts says external clocks increase jitter at conversion, any 'improvement' is brighter noise floor modulation from PLLs, and they are a marketing device to sell another box. Head-Fi, Aug 2022
2022-08-24Responding to a reviewer's claim of no time-domain difference between TT2 and a cheap DAC, Watts advises ignoring the 'faux reviews' and measurements and not visiting the site. Head-Fi, Aug 2022
2022-08-25Watts says claiming no impulse-response difference while noting TT2's sharp filter is contradictory, since impulse and frequency responses are FFT equivalents and a sharp filter needs a long impulse response. Head-Fi, Aug 2022
2022-09-18Watts says he was reluctant to do a very expensive DAC because he needed to understand many things, and does not want to milk the market as many companies do. The Source AV 15:00
2022-09-18Watts says companies update products after 3 years; he needed mature technology, and work over COVID on a bigger M Scaler has bottomed out interpolation, after 40 years. The Source AV 15:25
2022-09-18Watts says manufacturers often say 'it's the music' and asks what they mean by that. The Source AV 26:21
2022-09-18Watts says product changes are either trivial or make things worse. needs context The Source AV 29:46
2022-09-18Watts says marketing and sales push for new products, a problem for cheaper products: Mojo sales declined without reviews or buzz once audiophiles had bought one. The Source AV 29:58
2022-10-12Watts says John Franks owns Chord and does all the power amplifier design, and that both think high-end audio takes itself too seriously, hence playful names like Hugo. Upscale Audio 7:37
2022-11-05Watts says an unnamed upcoming product will drive headphones, cites expectation bias, and says only one design path recreates unamplified music, adding it will come when done. needs context Head-Fi, Nov 2022
2023-02-04Watts says others use standard math and trust their brand; with the M Scaler's million taps he can guarantee 16-bit reconstruction accuracy between samples. Dusty Audio 43:46
2023-02-04Watts says Stereophile would condemn him for 1 percent high-frequency distortion, yet accepts it for Bob Stuart and MQA, calling them idiots. Dusty Audio 57:53
2023-02-05Watts criticizes firmware updates that keep changing the sound; when DAVE launched he argued with John Franks, saying it needed replacing in 3 years, while Franks wanted at least 5. Soundnews 53:19
2023-03-18Watts says TT2 has higher distortion than Dave, that third-party Dave measurements fall far short of his own, and quotes Hi-Fi News measuring 0.000007% THD at 1kHz. Head-Fi, Mar 2023
2023-03-28Watts says the seminar will be technical because many manufacturers create myths about DAC topologies that make little technical sense, and he wants listeners to judge better. The Headphone Show 54
2023-03-29Watts says the issue is fake news and unsubstantiated comments, urges care in what people believe, and quotes that everyone is entitled to an opinion but not their own truth. microwirenews 3:47
2023-07-01Watts says the WTA algorithm cannot be reverse engineered, as the FPGA detects impulses, and its 5 variables are tuned to 10 parts per million through thousands of listening tests. Head-Fi, Jul 2023
2023-07-02Watts vents about buyers equating price with quality, a reviewer calling a soft DSD DAC natural, and a reviewer who tones down Chord reviews; he also notes automatic low-power mode. Head-Fi, Jul 2023
2023-08-26Watts explains as a trade member he cannot rank rivals' filters, would never falsely call one worse, and criticizes PGGB's marketing claims and implementation. Head-Fi, Aug 2023
2023-09-02Watts recalls a gentlemanly conversation with an unnamed person, criticizes overpriced high-end products promoted by media, and says forums like Head-Fi democratize reviewing. Head-Fi, Sep 2023
2023-10-01Watts says, seriously, that a Mojo put in a huge fancy copper box with the same performance and its contents hidden would sell at $100,000. The Source AV 7:24
2024-03-20Watts introduces his new seminar 'Digital Isn't' and the myth that digital cables and sources cannot change sound because the data is bit perfect; he says they can. MFG Audio Reviews 0
2024-03-20Watts says Toslink optical, usually considered the worst digital connection, is in his opinion the best, and introduces the contentious myth that linear power supplies must beat switch mode. MFG Audio Reviews 45
2024-03-20Watts says optical cables working at 192 kHz sound the same with his DACs, unlike jitter-sensitive DACs, then calls 'linear supplies are best' his most contentious myth. MFG Audio Reviews 27:01
2024-04-05Watts says well over 90% of DAC sound quality depends on interpolation filter and DAC implementation, criticizes listeners and reviewers, and says Quartet holds five 200T FPGAs. Head-Fi, Apr 2024
2024-12-15Watts says Chord occupies Maidstone's original water pump-house, criticizes reviewers praising recycled old DAC tech as innovation, and says he has been busy finishing Quartet. Head-Fi, Dec 2024
2026-10-02Watts says he wants a scientific explanation for any difference he hears, such as between mains cables, dismisses other designers' unscientific explanations as marketing, and wants listening tests done objectively. HiFi Buys 6:35
2026-10-02Watts says a designer who knocks together an FPGA design in a year with marketing will almost certainly sound worse than a competent but limited chip design. HiFi Buys 34:45
2026-10-02Watts says R2R DACs are popular with specialist audiophile firms because they are easy to assemble but very hard to make measure well, unlike a properly done delta-sigma modulator. HiFi Buys 35:27
2026-10-02Watts says the frustrating thing is that technical people who should know better do not. needs context HiFi Buys 1:57:21
2026-10-02Watts says it is not just marketing but clever technical people being idiots. needs context HiFi Buys 1:57:33
2026-10-02Watts says it is great fun, and other companies' engineers do not talk because they have nothing to say or would dilute it into marketing. HiFi Buys 2:27:12
2026-10-02Watts says such marketing is something a real engineer is not interested in doing. needs context HiFi Buys 2:27:45
2026-10-02Watts says the industry is dysfunctional: despite his talking about transient timing since DAC64 in 1999, and Mojo and Mojo 2 selling well over one hundred thousand devices, nobody discusses it. HiFi Buys 2:27:55
2026-10-02Watts says NFM and small-signal accuracy are easy concepts but hard to implement; a proper FPGA design takes decades of man-years. HiFi Buys 2:28:40
2026-10-02Watts says he never de-engineers a product to sell a pricier one, calling it ethically wrong, and Quartet was a research exercise into interpolation accuracy and its limits. HiFi Buys 2:33:16
2026-10-14Watts quotes the slogan 'Perfect sound forever.' needs context Part-Time Audiophile 47:14
2026-10-17Watts says wide-bandwidth amplifiers just let in rubbish and distortion, and filtering the high frequencies is better if done completely transparently, which digital can do. article, Oct 2026
2026-10-17Watts says DAVE is the right partner but not the perfect DAC; claiming perfection then releasing a better one would make him a liar. needs context article, Oct 2026
2026-10-17Watts says manufacturers keep calling each product the best ever, but he has never called a DAC perfect because he always sees room for improvement. article, Oct 2026