The recommendations would follow some logical needs-based hierarchy first.

Based on the fact you stated you used IEMs primarily I would buy the R8 II. You get streaming, enough power, local playback, portability and firmware updates.

Should you be buying an Abyss Diana then that is the time you switch to a Hugo TT. I must add that the TT is not a Hugo. Its a desktop player with no streaming capability. You could of course plug in a small streaming box into one of its digital inputs to get that such as WIIM or even a cheap DAP, or the R8 II via a digital out.

If you mean a Hugo or Hugo 2 that is a portable DAC/amplifier and you will need either a DAP or phone plugged into it for streaming. For local playback you still need to connect it to something like a PC for playback. You can add a 2Go for streaming and retain portability.

I suggest maybe looking at a Chord Mojo 2 with the Poly module also at a cheaper price which is a very good solution at a fraction of the price of either the HiBy R8 II or Hugo TT and excellent for IEMs but less so for an Abyss Diana (TC?) which needs more power.

Power is key with the Diana, the Hugo TT has it, the Hugo 2 and Mojo 2 a bit less but on par with the R8 II. It is power that will make those headphones perform at their best and sound optimal. For IEMs, that is less of an issue but noise floor will be an issue with a Hugo TT and IEMs. You do not need a Hugo TT with IEMs, its overkill for me.

Hello, Marcus!
No, this is not a hypothetical discussion. I want to purchase HiBy R8 II or Chord Electronics Hugo TT1 for myself (I’m leaning towards Hugo 1,2 to a lesser extent). I will be satisfied with both stationary and offline listening. Although probably the stationary option is quite a bit preferable. Headphones also do not have a strong influence on the decision, and I think they will be selected after the fact, when I have something to listen to. The choice will be made either from what I have now – Noble Audio Khan, Sony IER-Z1R, or from what I would like to have in the future ABYSS DIANA. The genre of music is very different, it cannot be reduced to specifics, the source for music is streaming services, i.e. through Android applications or from a computer. The main criterion for me is the sound quality, although I understand that this concept is too vague.
Which option – HiBy R8 II or Chord Electronics Hugo TT1 would you recommend to me?
Thank you so much for participating)!

HI Alex, treated in isolation the comparison would be illogical. You need to set the context. For example, the planned use of such equipment – is it for home or portable use, is it for IEMs, headphones (efficient, planar, high impedance?), what are you using it for? Streaming, local playback, lossy, lossless?

I am presuming you have a use case for buying one or the other right? Or is this just a purely hypothetical discussion?

Yes, that’s about how I imagined it. I understand that you are limited by a certain structure of representation of the surveyed equipment. Each of which has its own nuances and peculiarities, i.e. subjective weight or category, as well as a complex evaluation formula, also due to various sources of these estimates. It’s all clear.
But I wanted to get an informal approach from someone, a subjective view that removes all contradictions and nuances! And at his own discretion and the assumption of being able to make an irrational (irrational) verdict. Yes, this is a naive, simplistic or frivolous analysis, but for many it is the only way to get to the bottom of it.
For example,
“– It seems to me that the Chord Electronics Hugo TT2 plays much better than the HiBy R8 II, and the Chord Electronics Hugo 1 is slightly inferior to it in sound.
– Why did you decide that? Have you conducted a rigorous scientific experiment?
“Not at all, it just seemed that way to me.”
Can I count on such voluntarism?
After all, for sure, in a blind test, in which it is unknown which source is currently playing – a stationary amplifier, a player or a combination of various equipment, with arbitrarily selected headphones and a random musical composition, a certain scale of preferences is found, ranking equipment outside the framework of any imposed connections.
How does your intuition allocate places without reference to anything?
P.S. I don’t know what the HiBy R8 II or Chord sounds like, and I can’t decide or compare anything here. I just want to get this knowledge from others.

Hi Alex, I am sorry I am not sure I understand, why would you assume the HiBY R8 II sounds better than a TT2 or Hugo 2?

If you have read our How we Score page you would know that the current scores for these other units are not our scores but reader’s scores. Also they are different categories of product.

If I may paraphrase from the linked scoring page to assist you:

“The Award score is given by our reviewers and Editor to products reviewed in the Calendar year and count towards our end-of-year Top Gear and Bang for Buck Awards.’.

Therefore, the score you see on any review from the previous year will be the reader’s score and not an award score.”

And also

“Each category’s score is 100% independent of another category’s score. That means you cannot directly compare the score of one category over another. They have different weightings and are therefore completely self-contained within that category.”

The key for you as a reader is knowing your personal preferences, and comparing the sound impressions of each product to see which one appeals to your preferences the most. Also, they have different power ratings from a few mW up to 2-3W on mean 32 ohm loads meaning some might be more suited to headphones rather than IEMs.

Thank you very much, I have familiarized myself with the rating system. However, the essence of my question is: can we assume that the HiBy R8 II sounds better than the Chord Electronics Hugo 2 or Hugo TT2?? Yes or no? Can someone who has dealt with these devices answer this question unequivocally? Many thanks for this answer!

Hello, please refer to our “how we score page” for a breakdown of our ratings system. You will find the link in our main menu and at the top of every review.

https://headfonics.com/how-we-score/

Many thanks

You can never have too much clarity :) It might burn a bit bright in the highs though I enjoy the open mids and responsive lows.