USB cables, please share your experience

[shafesk]

Dear all,

today I decided to compare the Dacmagic (optical) vs the music streamer 2+ on my hi-fi. I've spent half the day trying to discern a difference, I could barely tell the difference if at all by the teeeniest of margins the dacmagic sounds better (TINY). Someone will come along and say that my system isn't revealing enough but if a 2.5K setup isn't revealing enough to tell the differences between two 200 pound dacs then I don't know what is good enough. The thing is, the differences I'm hearing might well be due to the better interconnects I'm using on the dacmagic (qed performance 2s) vs Hrt's Pure AV interconnects. I'm also using a basic usb cable on the HRT.

I want to keep an open mind and want to hear from premium USB cable users, if you are using one then how does it fair compare to a standard cable....whether you think its worth the outlay or should not be touched with a large pole. I do not want to start a cable debate, I'm well aware of the schools of thought here and hence I want to hear from actual users.

Curious as always,

Shafin

 

[BenLaw]

I do not want to start a cable debate

Yeah, right.

 

[CnoEvil]

In the current (Jan 13) HFW, their "Wishful Thinking" for Christmas presents, lists Vertere D-Fi Cables...and I quote:

"No-one questions the sonic differences between speaker cables any more - but there are still those who nay-say the gains a good USB connection can make. Well there's no nay-saying the quality of Vertere's D-Fi range. Hook up a Laptop to your hifi and the extra detail and musical detail they convey is astonishing.

Decent recordings are shorn of their sometimes mechanical digital sheen and come across with real authority. The brainchild of Roksan founder Touraj Moghaddam, the cables provide a startling demonstration of what can be achieved by the most unpromising of sound sources, if you take a little care".

I don't play music through a USB cable, so these are the words and findings of HFW....but bear out what I believe I heard in the demo evening I attended.

 

[chebby]

....bear out what I believe I heard...

And I believe you But what you just wrote is a gaping barn door to those who would have you prove your belief with scientific evidence.

 

[John Duncan]

No doubt he's 'mistaken'... :^)

 

[CnoEvil]

....bear out what I believe I heard...

And I believe you But what you just wrote is a gaping barn door to those who would have you prove your belief with scientific evidence.

:silenced:

 

[BenLaw]

No-one questions the sonic differences between speaker cables.

HFW clearly do not frequent this forum very much.

 

[CnoEvil]

No-one questions the sonic differences between speaker cables.

HFW clearly do not frequent this forum very much.

 

[CnoEvil]

No doubt he's 'mistaken'... :^)

If he came on here though, he'd soon be put right. :shifty:

 

[the record spot]

....bear out what I believe I heard...

And I believe you But what you just wrote is a gaping barn door to those who would have you prove your belief with scientific evidence.

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

 

[SteveR750]

And to Shafesk:

IMO no difference between any USB cable whatsoever. I'm more concerned with hum / ground loops using this type of connection to a PC, and IME it's down to the DAC manufacturer. There wasn't really that much difference between DACs when I tested some of them, let alone cables. I use a £5 or so gold plated thing from Amazon, sounds the same as the £15 gold plated monster wrapped Lindy.

 

[MUSICRAFT]

Hi shafesk

I use a basic USB cable (with a Chord Electronics QBD76 DAC) which I bought at the local market for £1.

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[drummerman]

Hi shafesk

I use a basic USB cable (with a Chord Electronics QBD76 DAC) which I bought at the local market for £1.

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

Ah dont worry. A better cable would probably have been wasted ... unless you meant you paid £1 for the chord. Decent price considering metal prices have risen sharply lately.

'But as our Lab Report clearly suggests, there was something seemingly not quite right with our review sample. Roll off the very highest frequencies by 1 or 2dB and a DAC might sound ‘smooth’. When its response is fully 10dB down at 20kHz it sounds as if your speakers’ tweeters have been covered with a cloth. Everything that I played sounded warm and cuddly and, er, noticeably dull. What a pity! Clearly this is something Chord will investigate, to ensure it hasn’t been shipping units like this to its dealers. If unfortunately it has, then fingers crossed it’s simply an issue with the driver software that can be rectified easily ‘in the field’.' Extract HI-FI News ... a £4000 DAC

regards

 

[mykspence]

Hi shafesk

I use a basic USB cable (with a Chord Electronics QBD76 DAC) which I bought at the local market for £1.

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

Ah dont worry. A better cable would probably have been wasted ... unless you meant you paid £1 for the chord.

Rick's use of brackets showed exactly what he meant.

 

[Anonymous]

I predominately use black ones as they match my kit, I suspect they sound better than grey ones, which can look a bit dull.

 

[Ben123]

I changed the usb cable from the standard one that came with the rpac to one with these RF filter type things on and couldnt hear a difference. Maybe the standard cable was better but im just guessing.

Tempted to try a kimber to answer the question for myself once and for all, if nothing else, (and yes i understand the underlying tech). Especially on the rpac which uses usb for power and data.

 

[drummerman]

Hi shafesk

I use a basic USB cable (with a Chord Electronics QBD76 DAC) which I bought at the local market for £1.

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

Ah dont worry. A better cable would probably have been wasted ... unless you meant you paid £1 for the chord.

Rick's use of brackets showed exactly what he meant.

Oh, terribly sorry

regards

 

[SteveR750]

Mine's gold plated, so I'm confident it's the best contact. I've see how the digits can get lost in the gap, bit like jumping on the tube when drunk.

 

[steve_1979]

USB cables, please share your experience

Shall I.... :rant:

Nah. :silenced:

 

[paradiziac]

hence I want to hear from actual users.

I tried a £50 Wireworld USB cable on an MF v-dac and the difference over a printer USB cable was negligible. I returned the cable.

A few system upgrades later, I repeated the experiment with Siltech and Oyaide cables and heard a clear improvement over generic leads. I happily own the Oyaide.

The main point I would make is that I only heard differences in the digital cables after changing to high quality analogue interconnects and good speaker cables.

As to whether it's money well spent, only you can decide. I think the first priority should always be the components (source, amp, speakers).

 

[bebelacus]

dont know about usb but i tried a minijack to 2 rca purchased from a hypermarket. then i got a qed reference. i am not experienced with hifi as many here but the difference was serious.

i couldnt hear the difference yet between some cheap speaker cables and medium priced ones though.

i have a wireworld ultraviolet usb and i will get a cheap one to test it against just for fun. i will.call a friend and we will do blind tests.

 

[Crossie]

See if you can borrow an expensive USB lead. After you have convinced yourself that it is absolutely no difference to a cheap one, give it back.

Job done.

 

[idc]

If you listen to an expensive audiophile USB cable and to you it makes the sound quality better, keep it, the sound quality sounds better. Hifi and music should be a route to happiness with music and IMO anything that makes the listening experience better is worthwhile.

Just beware that the evidence that a USB or indeed any other cable can inherantly (as in its construction, materials used) affect SQ in any way is nil. And please do not suggest to anyone else that because it sounds better to you it is a better cable than any other USB cable.

 

[ifor]

I'll open by saying that I don't use USB for audio and it's unlikely I ever will so cannot comment from experience.

It seems to me that there is a risk of assuming that all audiophile USB cables are equal. I doubt they are. There are most likely some which are just bog standard cables with bundled audiophile marketing aimed at emptying your wallet. There may well be some that are genuinely audiophile being built by people who really know their stuff. All I'm saying is that a single comparison will likely not be decisive, unless of course you happen to have included a genuine audiophile cable in the comparison.

 

[shafesk]

In the current (Jan 13) HFW, their "Wishful Thinking" for Christmas presents, lists Vertere D-Fi Cables...and I quote:

"No-one questions the sonic differences between speaker cables any more - but there are still those who nay-say the gains a good USB connection can make. Well there's no nay-saying the quality of Vertere's D-Fi range. Hook up a Laptop to your hifi and the extra detail and musical detail they convey is astonishing.

Decent recordings are shorn of their sometimes mechanical digital sheen and come across with real authority. The brainchild of Roksan founder Touraj Moghaddam, the cables provide a startling demonstration of what can be achieved by the most unpromising of sound sources, if you take a little care".

I don't play music through a USB cable, so these are the words and findings of HFW....but bear out what I believe I heard in the demo evening I attended.

Well I know hi-fi companies vouch for USB cables, most of them have highly revealing and hugely expensive systems through which I'm sure differences shine. I was thinking more of the Average Joe with his mid priced setup. The Vertere cables seemed to have made a differece to a modest setup but I can hardly justify spending 100 pounds on a usb cable for a 220 pound dac, I don't know if it'll make as much a difference to the HRT as a change in dac will to the setup if I get a sub 400 pound dac for instance. Surely people have tried cheaper options right?