POLL: What USB cable are you using?

[losingmyreligion]

 

 

"Here with my Weiss DAC, the FW cable chain did not make a difference in SQ. Both my DAC and drive had two ports, and I have used it both ways."

 

That's been my experience as well.

 

"FW seems to be less picky IME."

 

I strongly agree, but it makes sense as Firewire was originally designed to handle high volumes of streaming data, which was not the case with USB.

 

[losingmyreligion]

 

...

 

[goldsdad]

"The gentleman from AQ thinks it matters just as much as between computer and dac."

 

It certainly matters ... to the AQ rep. His income depends on persuading people to buy AQ cables.

 

 

[goldsdad]

"Did the "gentleman" actually demonstrate only changing the cable between computer and hard drive to noticeable effect?"

 

Did the "gentleman" describe the difference that should be heard before demonstrating a change of cable? In other words, did he create a specific expectation in the audience?

 

 

 

[Paul R]

I think as long as your data cable is of high enough quality you are not taking errors between the disk and the computer, it is of no matter. And you would know if you are taking errors.

 

By of high enough quality, I usually find $10 to $20 cables are fine. An AudioQuest Forest cable is utterly reliable and fits in that price range.

 

 

-Paul

 

 

[losingmyreligion]

 

"no smoke and mirrors demo starting with a 2$ printer cable and working up the AQ product line."

 

 

One more point I'd like to make here. Anyone comparing a USB cable to a $2 Printer cable has set a low standard for a comparison.

 

USB cables were originally designed for computer peripherals. Some don't even work with High Speed USB, and this includes special purpose audiophile cables (from what i understand, as I have NO experience with this personally, but Charles Hansen has reported such).

 

 

Apologies if this sounds like a broken record but my recommendation is to use a Firewire for connections between hard drive and computer (or eSata / Thunderbolt, if you have ports for such).

 

Not only were Firewire cables (originally) specified for streaming audio; they've been in use by pro audio industry for "streaming" audio data as well, so the Firewire cable providers are not simply competing with "$2 printer" cable manufacturers as are the audiophile USB cable providers.

 

The net effect is that you can find cheap, well engineered Firewire cables capable of high quality (audio) data streaming (to a DAC for example) for less than $15 (see GOld-X). No reason to use anything more than this for just sending data from hard drive to player.

 

 

For best results, I even recommend use of Firewire cables between computer and DAC. ;0

 

clay

 

 

 

 

[EuroChamp]

Hi,

 

first I used a cheap no name cable,

then the Wireworld Starlight,

then the Wireworld Platinum Starlight.

 

Now I have my Music Fidelity V-Link built directly into my PC case and the connections are soldered, straight to the mainboard. I am using very short twisted high quality silver wires.

And a separate linear PSU is powering the V-Link.

 

Enjoy listening,

Bernhard

 

[CG]

One more and the last time for me...

 

This is a complete system issue..

 

I mean that in a strict engineering system sense, too.

 

It is not entirely and completely a matter of getting the bits right. That is necessary but not sufficient condition.

 

 

 

[maheshkc]

I am using Transparent Audio usb cable and i am more then happy with it.

 

[christopher3393]

Audioquest Forest 1.5

 

[Mark Powell]

Wal Mart. Or more precisely ASDA (Associated Dairies), its UK subsidiary. 3 dollars 50.

 

[wookie]

Thanks Mark,

Interesting to see "WalMart" and "dCS Debussy" posted together. Love to get my hands on a Debussy to compare to Berkeley. Having seen such a wide array of responses from "Pooh-ha, stick to cheap" to "it makes a HUGE difference" I suppose I can't conclude anything except that system dependance may underlay the whole thing. That said, I suppose I'll just experiment with a moderately-priced USB cable and see what happens here at home. Take Care!

 

[wookie]

Hard to provide a completely comprehensive demo in 20 minutes. Changes subjectively shared among listeners were lower noise floor, improved space around individual voices/instruments and less digital harshness. Who knows, could have been David Copperfield's understudy, but all he did was swap cables leaving volume and all other controls unchanged. Since replies to my inquiry range from "buy at Walmart" to "buy the best USB you can afford" and most who post to CA seem knowledgeable and well intentioned, it seems reasonable to conclude that system dependance is largely at play here and that trying a few cables, starting in the moderate category and working up until I can't hear a difference is a reasonable approach. Thanks.

 

[wookie]

Thanks, and have to love your handle "losing my religion". Maybe I'll change mine to "stepped on a pop top". Take Care,

David

 

[Mark Powell]

You see the two together because I have strong beliefs about cables. Mainly that the variation in audible performance between cables of any price range can be so great that I feel that low cost ones and high priced ones completely overlap in their performance!

 

Regards.

 

[pwfletcher]

I just picked up the AudioQuest Forest USB ... only about $30 and definitely well made. Good reviews too ;-)

 

 

 

 

[goldsdad]

"Did the "gentleman" describe the difference that should be heard before demonstrating a change of cable? In other words, did he create a specific expectation in the audience?"

 

I'll interpret the absence of a reply to that question as "yes".

 

 

[goldsdad]

"could have been David Copperfield's understudy"

 

It's standard practice for an illusionist to use props that aren't what they seem and/or take advantage of an audience's natural suggestibility.

 

I'm not saying that anything dishonest actually did take place, of course.

 

If changing the USB cable connecting computer and external hard drive changes the sound of music then the most likely explanations are that some piece of hardware is defective or the listener imagined an audible difference, in my opinion.

 

 

 

 

[wookie]

The short answer is "no" but he did describe any cable as an antenna, cable of picking up ambient noise, and right next to a computer, which is a pretty good source of it. So without elaborating on what noise does to a digital signal, I guess it's no surprise that the sonic changes were not unlike those of a good power conditioner?

 

[wookie]

There are still plenty of shuysters in the world of sales, but I general accredit people with honesty and have no reason to suspect otherwise in this case. I agree with you, more importantly, that most of us are vulnerable to suggestion. That said, however, suggestion typically reinforces whatever bias we approach new information with, in this case a demo. Let's say there was no real change in sonic performance among the cables demonstrated; in this case, those biased toward believing that cables make a difference will be inclined to hear one, whereas those biased otherwise will not. Bias steers us to reinforce what we already believe. In the case of the AudioQuest demo, most attendees (myself included) were gleefully looking forward to reinforcing their humbug attitudes and bolstering their case against the notion that cables matter. And because so many of us who wanted to believe otherwise left the demo with jaws dropped, counter to our pre-demo bias, I believe the positive response is even more valid. Something to ponder?

 

Also, I'm not an engineer, but I don't understand how recabling defective hardware can fix it? It seems that improving the quality of the cable would only focus attention to bad hardware?

 

[goldsdad]

Thanks. It's good to know that he didn't prime the audience with specific improvements to be listened for. I still would be surprised to find ambient noise picked up by different USB hard drive cables causing audible differences in the sound arriving at my ears. I accept that it's not impossible, of course.

 

 

[zerung]

Acoustic revive USB-1.0SP

 

[goldsdad]

Thanks for your thoughtful response. You make very good points. I am very surprised that the majority of attendees at an audiophile cable demo had the preconception that cables don't matter.

 

 

 

 

[wookie]

I like your dog, btw. I went to the event to talk with Chris Connaker, but there were demos provided by several sponsors that I attended incidentally. The crowd included a few who already have computer-based systems, some who were curious about how to go about doing so, and (as always) a few purveyors of free food. Nice event! The usb demo took me by surprise, but even a few who are in the business walked away impressed.

 

[goldsdad]

"I like your dog, btw"

 

Thanks. He sends you a wag of his tail.