The Hegel HD30 After 14 Days

To Doug Schneider,

I have just had the pleasure of reading your test of the Hegel HD30 digital-to-analog converter. This DAC has now been in my system the last 14 days, together with a Hegel H360 integrated and Anthony Gallo Acoustics Reference 3.5 speakers. The two units are connected in the so-called DAC-Loop.

The first time I listened to the HD30, it struck me with what a fantastic, open, and spacious sound this DAC was able to present, and this feeling has grown more and more these last 14 days. The HD30 does not seem to add or subtract anything from the Hegel H360’s sound signature; it just presents the sound with an outstanding openness, a fantastic soundstage (both deep and wide), and a lot of air between the instruments in the sound picture. The sound from this DAC is extremely clean, with no artifacts that can cause listening fatigue after a while.

For those music lovers who want to get the last bit of information from their music, I hope they will give themselves an opportunity to read your test of the Hegel HD30 before they buy some other DAC. I personally think the HD30 should be very high up on the list for those looking for a DAC at this price segment. And not because of looks (that is a matter of taste), but because the quality of the sound it is capable of reproducing.

We normally used to say that we listen to an amplifier or whatever, but with the Hegel HD30, I would say we listen through it, because it is not producing any sound of its own.

Best regards,
Bjørnar Berg
Norway

I agree with everything you say! . . . Doug Schneider