Oh Look, A New USB Cable Thread

[Jud]

As shown in my sig, much of my cabling - interconnect and speaker - comes from Mapleshade/Omega Mikro. When I saw Mapleshade at long last had USB cables available, I ordered one to try out. (30 day satisfaction guarantee.) It's the Clearview "Plus" level, which means it's cryoed. Construction is a bit different than other USB cables. Rather than describing it, here's a photo from Mapleshade's website:

 

 

This is consistent with their philosophy that conductors should be thin in order to account for skin effect, that insulation should be as thin as possible, preferably mostly air in order to minimize dielectric "pumping," and in the particular case of USB cables, that the signal and power should be allowed to have a little room rather than being bound together in close proximity.

 

For the Plus version, my understanding is that Mapleshade recommends 200 hours(!) of break-in. But of course I couldn't resist listening to it right out of the box. So how does it sound at this stage, compared to the Audioquest Coffee?

 

I have preferred Audioquest USB cables to all others I've tested, including preferring the $30 Forest to much more expensive cables from Wireworld and Furutech. I like the Coffee a lot; I've heard the Diamond and don't think it is in a different league than the Coffee. The Clearview is a little less than half the price of the Coffee.

 

So even though I've been a customer of Mapleshade/Omega Mikro for many years and have learned to expect some very interesting things from them, I was still surprised to find that I already like the Clearview better.

 

- What it already does better than the Coffee: It's opened things up and clarified them, acoustically speaking. There is a slight congestion in the sound of the Audioquest, slight enough I didn't notice it without the Clearview for comparison. Even when players are occupying locations in the soundstage very close to one another, with the Clearview I can more easily pick out the individual instrumental lines than with the Audioquest. This helps in hearing how the band members are playing off each other. There's also greater clarity or delineation of individual sounds of a given instrument. For instance, for the last minute or so of the title track from Rickie Lee Jones' Flying Cowboys, the drummer plays an ongoing riff. With the Clearview, the individual drum hits are very clearly defined in a you-are-there sort of way, which of course helps a great deal in getting into the groove of a song.

 

These qualities really minimize any listening fatigue and maximize enjoyment on a song like "Cherokee" from Cat Power's Sun album. I've praised this track in Album of the Evening. It's a beautiful mess, not an audiophile production by any stretch. The Clearview doesn't give the track an artificially huge soundstage or anything else that's not in the recording. But while listening with the Audioquest, sounds in the big pastiche that is "Cherokee" seem to come out of nowhere, for no particular reason. With the Clearview, somehow it all hangs together; it becomes evident that this sound on this beat is the counterpoint to that one. Small changes in sound (a bit more echo on the processed vocals, for instance) are easy to hear, letting the artist's dramatic intent come through.

 

- What it doesn't yet do better: The sound isn't yet as full as it should be. Acoustic guitars lack a little more sound from the body, vocals don't have quite enough "chest" in them. But this in my experience is a characteristic that tends to improve with break-in. So we shall see....

[phatoldsun]

As shown in my sig, much of my cabling - interconnect and speaker - comes from Mapleshade/Omega Mikro. When I saw Mapleshade at long last had USB cables available, I ordered one to try out. (30 day satisfaction guarantee.) It's the Clearview "Plus" level, which means it's cryoed. Construction is a bit different than other USB cables. Rather than describing it, here's a photo from Mapleshade's website:

 

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2977[/ATTACH]

 

This is consistent with their philosophy that conductors should be thin in order to account for skin effect, that insulation should be as thin as possible, preferably mostly air in order to minimize dielectric "pumping," and in the particular case of USB cables, that the signal and power should be allowed to have a little room rather than being bound together in close proximity.

 

For the Plus version, my understanding is that Mapleshade recommends 200 hours(!) of break-in. But of course I couldn't resist listening to it right out of the box. So how does it sound at this stage, compared to the Audioquest Coffee?

 

I have preferred Audioquest USB cables to all others I've tested, including preferring the $30 Forest to much more expensive cables from Wireworld and Furutech. I like the Coffee a lot; I've heard the Diamond and don't think it is in a different league than the Coffee. The Clearview is a little less than half the price of the Coffee.

 

So even though I've been a customer of Mapleshade/Omega Mikro for many years and have learned to expect some very interesting things from them, I was still surprised to find that I already like the Clearview better.

 

- What it already does better than the Coffee: It's opened things up and clarified them, acoustically speaking. There is a slight congestion in the sound of the Audioquest, slight enough I didn't notice it without the Clearview for comparison. Even when players are occupying locations in the soundstage very close to one another, with the Clearview I can more easily pick out the individual instrumental lines than with the Audioquest. This helps in hearing how the band members are playing off each other. There's also greater clarity or delineation of individual sounds of a given instrument. For instance, for the last minute or so of the title track from Rickie Lee Jones' Flying Cowboys, the drummer plays an ongoing riff. With the Clearview, the individual drum hits are very clearly defined in a you-are-there sort of way, which of course helps a great deal in getting into the groove of a song.

 

These qualities really minimize any listening fatigue and maximize enjoyment on a song like "Cherokee" from Cat Power's Sun album. I've praised this track in Album of the Evening. It's a beautiful mess, not an audiophile production by any stretch. The Clearview doesn't give the track an artificially huge soundstage or anything else that's not in the recording. But while listening with the Audioquest, sounds in the big pastiche that is "Cherokee" seem to come out of nowhere, for no particular reason. With the Clearview, somehow it all hangs together; it becomes evident that this sound on this beat is the counterpoint to that one. Small changes in sound (a bit more echo on the processed vocals, for instance) are easy to hear, letting the artist's dramatic intent come through.

 

- What it doesn't yet do better: The sound isn't yet as full as it should be. Acoustic guitars lack a little more sound from the body, vocals don't have quite enough "chest" in them. But this in my experience is a characteristic that tends to improve with break-in. So we shall see....

 

I know the thin design is totally intentional, but can you comment on the construction and durability? I've seen the interconnects on Mapleshade's website before and always wondered. How much thicker is the clear wrap compared to, say Saran Wrap?

[Blake]

Thanks for the detailed review Jud. So, without any break-in, you already prefer it to the Coffee? I quite like my Coffee, but I am also a fan of Mapleshade. Please provide your further thoughts after the break-in is completed.

[Jud]

I know the thin design is totally intentional, but can you comment on the construction and durability? I've seen the interconnects on Mapleshade's website before and always wondered. How much thicker is the clear wrap compared to, say Saran Wrap?

 

Yo phat, what's used with the USB cable isn't their usual clear wrap. It appears to be a very thin relatively open-weave gauge of (plastic? - nylon?) netting.

 

I do have interconnects that use the clear plastic wrap. It feels slightly more substantial than Saran Wrap (whether that comes from thickness or slightly less flexible material I can't say). I haven't had any issues myself with the plastic-wrap stuff or with the Omega Mikro cables that have nearly foil-thin conductors with a surround of open-weave very thin gauge copper mesh, except once when I was installing my speaker cables, inserted a banana plug too far, and wound up tearing a conductor when I pulled too hard trying to get the plug out and it slipped out of my hand. Ron Bauman very, very graciously repaired it for me at no charge.

 

I'd say you might not want these running across an open floor if you've got especially inquisitive dogs or little kids, but stuff that's going to be run behind audio stands or furniture should be OK. I've got Mapleshade/Omega Mikro cables that are nearly 20 years old and still doing fine with a 75-pound chocolate Lab running around the house.

[Jud]

OK, updates:

 

- Yes, the Clearlink USB did sound more full the next day after 24 hours of burn-in.

 

- However, the first Clearlink I had was subject to some sort of defect or tickled some bug in my system such that occasionally a several-second burst of loud noise sounding like radio static would come from my speakers. So I returned it for a replacement, received yesterday, that is mercifully free of any such problem.

 

- After reading an email from me mentioning what I liked about the Clearlink but referring to the fact that it lacked some fullness right out of the box before any break-in, Pierre of Mapleshade asked me to give him a call. He told me my power conditioning, particularly the MIT Z-strip and the Z-Cord I was using into my DAC, was in some part responsible for the lack of bass response. Being so impressed with the USB cable, I figured the man might know what he was talking about (you would think I'd have learned this already, having been a customer for 20 years), so I ordered a power cord and power strip from Mapleshade, which arrived yesterday with the replacement USB cable.

 

- I plugged everything in last night and played at low volume, and sacré bleu, fullness, depth, bass from the new USB cable right out of the box. So bass doesn't just grumble along underneath everything, they actually play low harmony notes? Huh, who knew? Yeah, I am definitely keeping this cable, and the power conditioning stuff. Changed my sig. Once the cleaning person is done with her twice-monthly rounds (money well spent, keeps my wife sane), I can't wait to hear what it sounds like with a day's break-in.

[Blake]

What model of Mapleshade power cord did you go with?

[4est]

a beautiful mess

 

What an apt description for Miss Marshal!

 

I love her work and she is a goddess IMO. I mean this in the nicest of ways, but I couldn't help laughing when I read it.

[Jud]

What model of Mapleshade power cord did you go with?

 

Went with the least expensive (Double Helix Mark I) of both the power strip and power cord, due to budget considerations. None of their power conditioning stuff is expensive compared to the usual audiophile brands, but right now it's running the digital part of my system and it sounds better than it ever did plugged into the well-thought-of MIT Z-Strip and Z-Cord. (Z-Strip is currently $1500; MIT power cords run $230-$1400.)

 

So far the system still sounds better with the Z-Stabilizer plugged into the wall, but that could change as the Clearlink USB cable continues to break in. Hard to imagine where it's headed, because it's glorious right now. Had Audirvana Plus on shuffle and it brought up "On the Road to Shiraz" from Ottmar Liebert's Dune, which I bought from HDTracks. It's always sounded good, but the opening guitar notes today were frankly shocking in their realism. (Pierre kind of amazes me. In our phone conversation he was very definitive about the Z-Strip and Z-Cord being bad for the sound - said they removed noise but went too far and sucked some of the life out of the music - but he said he didn't know whether the system would sound better with the Z-Stabilizer removed. That's proved to be exactly the case.)

[Jud]

So the Clearlink has now had about 140 hours of the recommended 200 hour break-in period, and the power strip and power cord have had the same.

 

I preferred the Clearlink to the Audioquest Coffee out of the box, and now that the Clearlink has had some break-in there is frankly no comparison. Hate to sound like a fanboy, but that's the fact, Jack. Putting it generally, with the Coffee it sounds like I'm hearing vocals and instruments through a nice audio system. With the Clearlink, things begin to taste of reality.

 

More specifically, I'm hearing things with the Clearlink I never have with the Coffee. I've noticed a couple of songs by Rickie Lee Jones and Emmylou Harris where percussion backing that was lost in the wash of the vocal with the Coffee comes through with the Clearlink. And that's with the volume lower; I don't need to turn it up as loud with the Clearlink. Each individual instrument and vocal part is located distinctly in space and time. Transient attacks and dynamic changes are *much* more distinct, but without any thinness or artificial "zing." There's no muddiness or "thudding" to bass or drums, but rather individual notes and beats.

 

Even as a long time customer of Mapleshade and Omega Mikro I find myself a little amazed, primarily for two reasons: I really liked the Coffee (as well as the other Audioquest USB cables I've had), and still think it's a good quality cable; and I know Mapleshade makes good stuff, but the Clearlink (Plus version) is half the price of the Coffee.

[Blake]

Jud: Thanks for the follow-up. As a Coffee user, I think I will give the Clearlink a shot, as it is hard to go wrong with a 30-day money back guaranty.

 

One question- how much of the improvement do you estimate is due to the insertion of the new Mapleshade power cable and power strip? In other words, looking at the incremental increase in performance, what portion of the incremental increase is due to the Clearlink USB, and what portion to the power cord and power strip?

[Jud]

Jud: Thanks for the follow-up. As a Coffee user, I think I will give the Clearlink a shot, as it is hard to go wrong with a 30-day money back guaranty.

 

One question- how much of the improvement do you estimate is due to the insertion of the new Mapleshade power cable and power strip? In other words, looking at the incremental increase in performance, what portion of the incremental increase is due to the Clearlink USB, and what portion to the power cord and power strip?

 

Well of course you knew I would put the Coffee back in the system and compare the two directly with the power cord and strip, right? :-)

 

The power cord and strip make a substantial improvement. They seemed to go some way toward cleaning up bass and drums, especially with the Clearlink in the system.

 

But listening to both Clearlink and Coffee with the Mapleshade strip and cord, there's just no comparison between the two now that the Clearlink has had some break-in (and as you know, I liked it better from the start). As I said in my last comment, as someone who liked the Coffee a lot and had it in my system for quite a while, I was surprised by the degree of difference. It's a little like trying to watch shows in standard definition now, especially sports - you wonder how you could have watched a picture like that all that time without consciously realizing the strain of putting together some facsimile of reality from it. I think something similar about what I was hearing from the Coffee, now that I have the Clearlink to compare it to.

 

If you have the budget, a couple of suggestions: See what two Clearlinks, one into the iFi, the other out of it into your converter, can do. Definitely go for the Plus version, I'd say. And maybe do the Plus for the power strip and any cords you need also. Then let me know how it all sounds when it's broken in!

[Oscar09]

I like Jud, he's an honest person. I was just looking at upgrading my Forest Audioquest USB cable. It seems like I have found the answer. Thanks for the follow ups Jud, I appreciate your devotion to this forum. Good man!

[Blake]

Well of course you knew I would put the Coffee back in the system and compare the two directly with the power cord and strip, right? :-)

 

The power cord and strip make a substantial improvement. They seemed to go some way toward cleaning up bass and drums, especially with the Clearlink in the system.

 

But listening to both Clearlink and Coffee with the Mapleshade strip and cord, there's just no comparison between the two now that the Clearlink has had some break-in (and as you know, I liked it better from the start). As I said in my last comment, as someone who liked the Coffee a lot and had it in my system for quite a while, I was surprised by the degree of difference. It's a little like trying to watch shows in standard definition now, especially sports - you wonder how you could have watched a picture like that all that time without consciously realizing the strain of putting together some facsimile of reality from it. I think something similar about what I was hearing from the Coffee, now that I have the Clearlink to compare it to.

 

If you have the budget, a couple of suggestions: See what two Clearlinks, one into the iFi, the other out of it into your converter, can do. Definitely go for the Plus version, I'd say. And maybe do the Plus for the power strip and any cords you need also. Then let me know how it all sounds when it's broken in!

 

Will do. I just put in my order for 2 of the Clearlink USB's.

 

Still pondering the power cord and power strip. I will likely go with the power cord. Not sure about the strip, as I had been planning on purchasing a Blue Circle Audio PLC Thingee FX2 conditioner to replace my PS Audio Duet (need more outlets). With the 30 day guaranty though, I may just go ahead and try to power strip/power cord combo.

[esimms86]

Thanks for the recommendation Jud. I placed an order for a Clearlink USB based on your recommendation. I already have a PS Audio Power Plant 5 so I'm all set from that standpoint. I have Peter St's somewhat generic USB cable to use with my Phasure NOS1. It will be interesting to see if the Clearlink USB makes a difference with the sound of the NOS1. I had used an Audioquest Forest USB briefly but it made no difference which, of course, did not surprise me at that price point. I wasn't willing to travel up the Audiquest chain to purchase their top of the line cable but the Clearlink Plus USB was a lot easier on the wallet and, thus, an easier purchase to make.

 

I picked up a pair of Anti Cable speaker wires and may also pick up a pair of the interconnects as I work on fine tuning my system.

 

Esau

[Jud]

I had the well thought of MIT power strip in my system before the relatively unimpressive looking Mapleshade. The Mapleshade at somewhere between 1/3 and 1/4 the cost of the MIT sounds much better, as does the power cord vs. the MIT Z-Cord. I'd say folks with other power conditioning units may want to set up the means to quickly switch your DACs between your present unit and the Mapleshade and see how they compare in your systems.

[Jud]

Hope that folks ordering the Clearlink come back here and comment after the cable's had some break-in. I think it would be good to get a variety of views whether they agree with mine or not.

[One and a half]

Thanks Jud for the direction on the Mapleshade Audio Shoppe. I thought they only sold music... Now am really keen though on the Samson V2 Equipment rack, have looked for many years for a suitable type and either the racks are ueberkill and with the price to go with it or they are just not deep enough. The Samson are for what they are reasonably priced for the work and effort that's put into them. Now to decide on a 4in or 2in shelf, they have speaker supports as well...The truck is gonna be a bit full.

 

The weight of the USB cable is not going to make much difference to the shipment, may as well put one in to try and see how it compares with the Nordost Blue Heaven USB.

[jhwalker]

So the Clearlink has now had about 140 hours of the recommended 200 hour break-in period, and the power strip and power cord have had the same.

 

I preferred the Clearlink to the Audioquest Coffee out of the box, and now that the Clearlink has had some break-in there is frankly no comparison. Hate to sound like a fanboy, but that's the fact, Jack. Putting it generally, with the Coffee it sounds like I'm hearing vocals and instruments through a nice audio system. With the Clearlink, things begin to taste of reality.

 

More specifically, I'm hearing things with the Clearlink I never have with the Coffee. I've noticed a couple of songs by Rickie Lee Jones and Emmylou Harris where percussion backing that was lost in the wash of the vocal with the Coffee comes through with the Clearlink. And that's with the volume lower; I don't need to turn it up as loud with the Clearlink. Each individual instrument and vocal part is located distinctly in space and time. Transient attacks and dynamic changes are *much* more distinct, but without any thinness or artificial "zing." There's no muddiness or "thudding" to bass or drums, but rather individual notes and beats.

 

Even as a long time customer of Mapleshade and Omega Mikro I find myself a little amazed, primarily for two reasons: I really liked the Coffee (as well as the other Audioquest USB cables I've had), and still think it's a good quality cable; and I know Mapleshade makes good stuff, but the Clearlink (Plus version) is half the price of the Coffee.

 

Jud, do you have any theories *why* this type of cable would sound better than any other USB cable? I'm truly curious - I thought "dialectric" effects, etc., were purely in the analog realm. It seems to me any cable that doesn't drop bits would produce exactly the same sound once the data hits the DAC

 

Not questioning your experience, just trying to understand how it could be.

[One and a half]

Jud, do you have any theories *why* this type of cable would sound better than any other USB cable? I'm truly curious - I thought "dialectric" effects, etc., were purely in the analog realm. It seems to me any cable that doesn't drop bits would produce exactly the same sound once the data hits the DAC

 

Not questioning your experience, just trying to understand how it could be.

 

Most if not all cabling subscribes to the symmetry of design, in an effort to keep the capacitance between the conductor and its insulator as low as possible. Lower capacitance means it interacts less with the signal especially at moderately high frequencies, so the distortion effects of the transmission reduce but aren't eliminated. Plus working out how to keep other noise out and keep the signal in is another major effort. The Mapleshade designs looked at all the conventional methods of cable design and toss them out the window. For a manufacturer to recommend speaker cable for each polarity to be 6in apart, and the interconnects to have no symmetry, rather a random placement of conductors means Mapleshade have understood what works for audio. Instead of using plastics an insulator and keeping everything tight, they use air and lots of it to control capacitance and cross conduction with other cabling, and if you don't bind the cable to anything else you won't get any interaction, which goes for any non shielded cable.

 

I'm shaking my head a little, in understanding how these cables work, but can see the logic behind the construction. Just wonder though how good the brass type material on the interconnects will last as far as conductivity is concerned and the build of moisture and other corrosives deteriorating the surface.

 

Mapleshade offer a 30 day money back guarantee and you can't ask for more than that, which a lot of other manufacturers do not offer.

[mayhem13]

Thanks for trying to speculate as to why the cable is different, but you failed to explain why it might sound better. If we were talking analog interconnects, the term 'signal' and the effects you describe would be accurate, but since we're taliking serial data streams, a quite different, out of the box explanation is needed. While I don't doubt the OPs perceived improvement, I would wager even he would rather just enjoy his new found cable and skip the fringe science explanation.........such musings seem to make a credible, honest subjective report....well.....not so credible.

 

I won't touch the break in thing. Since the Mayan's were wrong, almost anything can happen.

[One and a half]

Thanks for trying to speculate as to why the cable is different, but you failed to explain why it might sound better. If we were talking analog interconnects, the term 'signal' and the effects you describe would be accurate, but since we're taliking serial data streams, a quite different, out of the box explanation is needed..

 

Effects of stray capacitance on signals. that's the technical explanation. If there is little stray capacitance the signal is unaffected by the cable, so the signal is cleaner than for another type of cable. The data from a USB port is serial, differential type, square wave stuff, and is subject to noise just as much as analog signals. It's just we are hopeful that the differential receiver is good enough to reject noise and most of the time, this seems to happen.

[mayhem13]

Even if the chip doesn't reject the noise, this noise still doesn't alter the actual content of the data......and if the EMI was so severe as to affect the differential receivers ability to receive the stream, the result would be clear dropouts of content, not more 'air' between guitars or tighter bass. Such claims as I asserted above need a much more complex, rational answer as to why. If such an answer doesn't exist, I'm OK to let it go as just one of those things that defies explanation.

[jhwalker]

Even if the chip doesn't reject the noise, this noise still doesn't alter the actual content of the data......and if the EMI was so severe as to affect the differential receivers ability to receive the stream, the result would be clear dropouts of content, not more 'air' between guitars or tighter bass. Such claims as I asserted above need a much more complex, rational answer as to why. If such an answer doesn't exist, I'm OK to let it go as just one of those things that defies explanation.

 

I'm in the same place. To explain the types of changes people say they hear, the digital stream would have to change *radically* (i.e., virtually every bit in the stream would have to change / be changed), which just doesn't happen. Any disruptions to the stream would be heard as dropouts, static, etc., not "less airy" or "less bass".

 

But I'm here to learn - maybe someday, someone will make a discovery that turns digital theory on its head and I'll be amazed

[wkhanna]

I have owned Mapleshade Double Helix speaker cables for 6 years.

This has given me the opportunity to compare them to many other cables over time as we have a loose fraternity of local audio enthusiast who meet about every six months at a volunteer’s home. I have had the chance to hear them in my own & a few V different systems, side by side to macho style, wrist-thick cables, complex braided types, flat array & others. While there were differences, in nearly all cases they were slight, & the Mapleshade wires held forth to the most expensive examples, & were obviously superior to some. Those that sounded slightly more detailed, extended or ‘real’ (what ever this supposed to mean in audiophile speak) were in my evaluation not worth the 3 to 18X price difference.

My personally philosophy regarding cables is that all cables change or influence the original signal. The better cable imparts the least amount of change. At the same time, cables can be used as ‘tone’ controls to tailor the character of one’s system toward the ‘sound’ one prefers.

On the power distribution & conditioning topic, my APC H15 power conditioner/ voltagere gulating/ surge protector recently failed. In the interim, I am using a borrowed Adcom surge protector from a V generous friend. For whatever reason, I have noted a slight improvement in my system with APC unit missing from the chain. I have yet to decide on a replacement. After looking at the typical +25 lb ‘entertainment’ & ‘audio’ power protection/conditioning offerings, the Mapleshade alternative at ¼ the price seems more & more attractive. At this point I am seriously considering their surge protecting power strip.

Asalways, JMHO, YMMV

[Jud]

I'm in the same place. To explain the types of changes people say they hear, the digital stream would have to change *radically* (i.e., virtually every bit in the stream would have to change / be changed), which just doesn't happen. Any disruptions to the stream would be heard as dropouts, static, etc., not "less airy" or "less bass".

 

But I'm here to learn - maybe someday, someone will make a discovery that turns digital theory on its head and I'll be amazed

 

Hi, John. Looks like folks jumped in before I got a chance. :-)

 

OK, here's as far as I can think, not being a tech guy, about a couple of things that may be happening:

 

Notice that the design of the Clearlink does not hold the power and signal legs in such close proximity as most USB cables. I suppose this might conceivably result in less low-level electrical noise making it into the analog side of the system through power and ground. And it might result in lower electrical noise into the DAC's clock, where electrical noise can result in worse jitter performance.

 

Two other things that may be going on (but I confess I lack the understanding to reason how it might affect the signal coming through my DAC's async USB input) are the effects of reduced dielectric "pumping" and Mapleshade's provisions to minimize "skin effect" in the conductors. Dielectric "pumping" results in a faint "echo" of the signal being released at a slight delay from the original. Skin effect causes differences in the speed with which different frequencies propagate through the cable. Minimizing these problems means the analog signal through the USB cable that represents the digits in the stream maintains better integrity in terms of timing of the zero-crossing points, helping to minimize jitter. (If I didn't word that last sentence clearly, a close analog to what I'm talking about is nicely represented pictorially in Figure 1 of Damien's paper on integer mode: http://www.amr-audio.co.uk/large_image/MAC%20OSX%20audio%20players%20&%20Integer%20Mode.pdf .) However, as I said above, I'm not sure how or whether any timing effects in the cable might make it through to the conversion process in an async USB DAC, where the DAC's clock is controlling the timing of the digits out of the bitstream.

 

So, to sum up: Maybe there could be reduced impacts from electrical noise in terms of noise getting through to the analog side and jitter performance of the DAC's clock. Beyond that, I'm not tech-savvy enough to have anything solid to say.