Three way USB cable shootout
Clipdat
Posts: 12,933
I recently spent several months evaluating three different USB cables on my PC audio rig, and I figured I'd post up my thoughts and impressions. It was a great experience, and I learned a lot about the sound signatures of these cables!
I used my Topping D10 DAC with a variety of WAV and FLAC files in Winamp 5.666, with the Maiko WASAPI plugin for bit perfect playback. With each cable I tested, I listened to it for a few weeks, and then swapped in the next cable, and let it break in for about 20 hours before making a final observation/judgement. I went through this cycle twice to ensure that I got a lot of time listening to each cable.
First up is the Oyaide "Neo d+ Series Class B" USB Cable - 1M - $29.95.
Conductor: Silver plated Oxygen Free Copper / power : AWG21 / signal : AWG25
Structure: Flat (Inverted concentric structure)
Shield: Double shielding w/individually shielded pairs
Insulator: Polyolefin
Outer: Flexible PVC
Terminals: Gold plated bronze alloy
Body: PBT + Glass Fiber 30% with PVC
This cable seems to be marketed toward DJ/professional use, but Oyaide's website has a lot to say, boasting about it's HiFi performance as well. I actually used this cable the longest, as it was my first foray into aftermarket USB cables. So I had previously logged some time on this cable using previous USB DACs that I owned.
Using my insight and experienced gained from the other two cables I tested, I can now share some detailed listening impressions about the sonic signature that this cable brings to the table. Simply put, it artificially boosts and accents the upper midrange and lower highs, yet at the same time rolls off the upper highs. Additionally, it's low end is lacking - bass is very anemic.
This cable might be good for listening to classical, small acoustic ensembles, or solo vocalists, where you want as much focus on the upper midrange as possible. In a way, it allows you to "see" more into that section of the music. However, because it's so accented, I perceive the sound to lack body and have a thin characteristic to it. This characteristic, combined with the anemic bass makes me unlikely to use this cable for critical listening.
In a way, this is somewhat like the "Generic 14ga OFC" speaker cable of USB cables. It might sound fine, until you try something better.
Next up, is the Audioquest Forest USB - 1.5m - $39.95.
- Solid 0.5% Silver Conductors
- Solid Long-Grain Copper (LGC)
- polyethylene insulation
- triple shielded (foil/mylar/braided copper)
I'm sure everyone reading this is familiar with this popular best seller from Audioquest. It seems to have a lot going for it, with it's quality materials and entry level price! It's also garnered several positive reviews from various HiFi publications.
Just like how Audioquest's entry level "Type 2" speaker cable is an improvement versus generic stranded wire, I believe this Forest cable offers some easily heard improvements over a typical USB cable.
Top to bottom, the sound is a lot more balanced and neutral versus the Oyaide cable. I don't detect any boosted or rolled off frequencies. Musicality and smoothness are increased, with a more detailed upper frequency presentation. When I say "more detailed", I don't mean to imply that the highs are bright or in any way strident. Bass is present and accurate, with several layers of depth. Overall, the cable has a slightly warm presentation to it that works well for a variety of music.
I think this is a great "daily driver" type of cable for those looking to get something a little nicer. I would recommended it, especially considering the price.
Lastly, we have the Audioquest Carbon USB - 1.5m - $169.95
- Solid 5% Silver Conductors
- triple shielded (foil/mylar/braided copper)
- Hard-Cell Foam Insulation
- Solid Long-Grain Copper (LGC)
Again, I'm sure everyone knows about Audioquest's Carbon line of cables. It felt a little strange spending $170 for a 1.5m USB cord. Not a cheap cable by any means! Especially since my DAC only costs $90! (But, performs well above this price, in my opinion!)
The very first time I tried out the Carbon, I didn't know what to expect, and I was skeptical that it would offer any noticeable improvements over the Forest. Fortunately, my fears were quickly dismissed after logging a few hours with it! This cable definitely has a different sound signature than the Forest!
One of the first things I noticed was that high frequency information like cymbals, high hats, higher guitar notes, higher pitched singing, etc. all seemed to have an unpleasant harshness or glare to them. I tried a variety of music and I kept experiencing this unpleasant aural sensation of harshness to the treble that resulted in a physically fatiguing sensation in my ears.
I decided to break the cable in by playing music through it for 50-60 hours. After that, I'm happy to report that the harshness and glare was completely gone, and what was left is an abundance of detail. That might be the best way to describe this cable, detailed. Additionally, the soundstage shifted slightly forward and more between the two speakers. The sound was less localized to each individual speaker, and had a much more coherent presentation than the other two cables.
All of the musical information was there, top to bottom, with exquisite detail. As with the Forest, I didn't detect any boosting or enhancement of certain frequency ranges. However, since there was now so much more detail being presented, low frequency information was much more present, defined, and had more depth to it. Instead of just hearing a simple bassline, I could now hear several elements within the bassline.
For the bass heavy electronic music that I love, this was fantastic. But also for more traditional music, the advantage was immediately apparent. For example, with "Steely Dan - Peg", it was difficult to discern the great bass guitar riff when listening on the Oyaide cable. With the Carbon, the bassline was easily heard and really helped to bolster the song as it should.
Throughout my listening tests with the Carbon, I had three special moments where I just took a moment and thought to myself "I love the way this sounds!". It was a subconscious emotional reaction that I had to the music, and the way it was being presented. I did not experience this emotional sensation when listening to the Oyaide or the Forest cable.
In conclusion, I believe the additional detail, top to bottom coherent presentation, and overall musicality of the Carbon USB cable help to achieve a more emotionally involving connection to the music. Highly recommended trying this cable out for yourself, albeit after a thorough break-in! Fantastic performance!
I used my Topping D10 DAC with a variety of WAV and FLAC files in Winamp 5.666, with the Maiko WASAPI plugin for bit perfect playback. With each cable I tested, I listened to it for a few weeks, and then swapped in the next cable, and let it break in for about 20 hours before making a final observation/judgement. I went through this cycle twice to ensure that I got a lot of time listening to each cable.
First up is the Oyaide "Neo d+ Series Class B" USB Cable - 1M - $29.95.
Conductor: Silver plated Oxygen Free Copper / power : AWG21 / signal : AWG25
Structure: Flat (Inverted concentric structure)
Shield: Double shielding w/individually shielded pairs
Insulator: Polyolefin
Outer: Flexible PVC
Terminals: Gold plated bronze alloy
Body: PBT + Glass Fiber 30% with PVC
This cable seems to be marketed toward DJ/professional use, but Oyaide's website has a lot to say, boasting about it's HiFi performance as well. I actually used this cable the longest, as it was my first foray into aftermarket USB cables. So I had previously logged some time on this cable using previous USB DACs that I owned.
Using my insight and experienced gained from the other two cables I tested, I can now share some detailed listening impressions about the sonic signature that this cable brings to the table. Simply put, it artificially boosts and accents the upper midrange and lower highs, yet at the same time rolls off the upper highs. Additionally, it's low end is lacking - bass is very anemic.
This cable might be good for listening to classical, small acoustic ensembles, or solo vocalists, where you want as much focus on the upper midrange as possible. In a way, it allows you to "see" more into that section of the music. However, because it's so accented, I perceive the sound to lack body and have a thin characteristic to it. This characteristic, combined with the anemic bass makes me unlikely to use this cable for critical listening.
In a way, this is somewhat like the "Generic 14ga OFC" speaker cable of USB cables. It might sound fine, until you try something better.
Next up, is the Audioquest Forest USB - 1.5m - $39.95.
- Solid 0.5% Silver Conductors
- Solid Long-Grain Copper (LGC)
- polyethylene insulation
- triple shielded (foil/mylar/braided copper)
I'm sure everyone reading this is familiar with this popular best seller from Audioquest. It seems to have a lot going for it, with it's quality materials and entry level price! It's also garnered several positive reviews from various HiFi publications.
Just like how Audioquest's entry level "Type 2" speaker cable is an improvement versus generic stranded wire, I believe this Forest cable offers some easily heard improvements over a typical USB cable.
Top to bottom, the sound is a lot more balanced and neutral versus the Oyaide cable. I don't detect any boosted or rolled off frequencies. Musicality and smoothness are increased, with a more detailed upper frequency presentation. When I say "more detailed", I don't mean to imply that the highs are bright or in any way strident. Bass is present and accurate, with several layers of depth. Overall, the cable has a slightly warm presentation to it that works well for a variety of music.
I think this is a great "daily driver" type of cable for those looking to get something a little nicer. I would recommended it, especially considering the price.
Lastly, we have the Audioquest Carbon USB - 1.5m - $169.95
- Solid 5% Silver Conductors
- triple shielded (foil/mylar/braided copper)
- Hard-Cell Foam Insulation
- Solid Long-Grain Copper (LGC)
Again, I'm sure everyone knows about Audioquest's Carbon line of cables. It felt a little strange spending $170 for a 1.5m USB cord. Not a cheap cable by any means! Especially since my DAC only costs $90! (But, performs well above this price, in my opinion!)
The very first time I tried out the Carbon, I didn't know what to expect, and I was skeptical that it would offer any noticeable improvements over the Forest. Fortunately, my fears were quickly dismissed after logging a few hours with it! This cable definitely has a different sound signature than the Forest!
One of the first things I noticed was that high frequency information like cymbals, high hats, higher guitar notes, higher pitched singing, etc. all seemed to have an unpleasant harshness or glare to them. I tried a variety of music and I kept experiencing this unpleasant aural sensation of harshness to the treble that resulted in a physically fatiguing sensation in my ears.
I decided to break the cable in by playing music through it for 50-60 hours. After that, I'm happy to report that the harshness and glare was completely gone, and what was left is an abundance of detail. That might be the best way to describe this cable, detailed. Additionally, the soundstage shifted slightly forward and more between the two speakers. The sound was less localized to each individual speaker, and had a much more coherent presentation than the other two cables.
All of the musical information was there, top to bottom, with exquisite detail. As with the Forest, I didn't detect any boosting or enhancement of certain frequency ranges. However, since there was now so much more detail being presented, low frequency information was much more present, defined, and had more depth to it. Instead of just hearing a simple bassline, I could now hear several elements within the bassline.
For the bass heavy electronic music that I love, this was fantastic. But also for more traditional music, the advantage was immediately apparent. For example, with "Steely Dan - Peg", it was difficult to discern the great bass guitar riff when listening on the Oyaide cable. With the Carbon, the bassline was easily heard and really helped to bolster the song as it should.
Throughout my listening tests with the Carbon, I had three special moments where I just took a moment and thought to myself "I love the way this sounds!". It was a subconscious emotional reaction that I had to the music, and the way it was being presented. I did not experience this emotional sensation when listening to the Oyaide or the Forest cable.
In conclusion, I believe the additional detail, top to bottom coherent presentation, and overall musicality of the Carbon USB cable help to achieve a more emotionally involving connection to the music. Highly recommended trying this cable out for yourself, albeit after a thorough break-in! Fantastic performance!
Comments
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$170 for a cable on a $90 Dac? I'm not saying that the Carbon wont make a difference, I'm sure it does, im just not understanding the cost ratio from cable to Dac. I have the Choclate AQ's 2 of them in HDMI and I'm quite pleased with them.Home Theater
Parasound Halo A 31 OnkyoTX-NR838 Sony XBR55X850B 55" 4K RtiA9 Fronts CsiA6 Center RtiA3 Rears FxiA6 Side Surrounds Dual Psw 111's Oppo 105D Signal Ultra Speaker Cables & IC's Signal Magic Power Cable Technics SL Q300 Panamax MR4300 Audioquest Chocolate HDMI Cables Audioquest Forest USB Cable
2 Channel
Adcom 555II Vincent SA-T1 Marantz SA 15S2 Denon DR-M11 Clearaudio Bluemotion SDA 2.3tl's (Z) edition MIT Terminator II Speaker Cables & IC's Adcom 545II Adcom Gtp-450 Marantz CD5004 Technics M245X SDA 2B's, SDA CRS+
Stuff for the Head
JD LABS C5 Headphone Amplifier, Sennheiser HD 598, Polk Audio Buckle, Polk Audio Hinge, Velodyne vPulse, Bose IE2, Sennheiser CX 200 Street II, Sennheiser MX 365
Shower & Off the beaten path Rigs
Polk Audio Boom Swimmer, Polk Audio Urchin
-
His purpose was to discern differences in sound between USB cables at different price points. I'd say he succeeded in that quest. Yet another testimonial to "everything matters" in the chain.HT SYSTEM-
Sony 850c 4k
Pioneer elite vhx 21
Sony 4k BRP
SVS SB-2000
Polk Sig. 20's
Polk FX500 surrounds
Cables-
Acoustic zen Satori speaker cables
Acoustic zen Matrix 2 IC's
Wireworld eclipse 7 ic's
Audio metallurgy ga-o digital cable
Kitchen
Sonos zp90
Grant Fidelity tube dac
B&k 1420
lsi 9's -
Totally agree a great way to discern differences in sound I have a box full of different cables, it's a crazy hobby we are all looking to experiment and find that product that suits your needs. It's also the best bang for the buck, its always fun to experiment, but if your spending more and settling on cables that cost more than the your Dac then I would settle for a more expensive Dac.
If I bought a Audio Technica turntable that was budget friendly I'm not going to spend more on the cartridge than what the table is worth, I'm sure a better cartridge would improve the sound, but do you really want to spend more money on a better cartridge for it.
I think the OP's shoot out was a success and did help to distinguish the difference in cables, I did the same thing recently with AQ USB cables and Wireworld cables the Wireworld cable was the winner and at $100 the Wireworld was a small fraction of the cost of the Dac.Home Theater
Parasound Halo A 31 OnkyoTX-NR838 Sony XBR55X850B 55" 4K RtiA9 Fronts CsiA6 Center RtiA3 Rears FxiA6 Side Surrounds Dual Psw 111's Oppo 105D Signal Ultra Speaker Cables & IC's Signal Magic Power Cable Technics SL Q300 Panamax MR4300 Audioquest Chocolate HDMI Cables Audioquest Forest USB Cable
2 Channel
Adcom 555II Vincent SA-T1 Marantz SA 15S2 Denon DR-M11 Clearaudio Bluemotion SDA 2.3tl's (Z) edition MIT Terminator II Speaker Cables & IC's Adcom 545II Adcom Gtp-450 Marantz CD5004 Technics M245X SDA 2B's, SDA CRS+
Stuff for the Head
JD LABS C5 Headphone Amplifier, Sennheiser HD 598, Polk Audio Buckle, Polk Audio Hinge, Velodyne vPulse, Bose IE2, Sennheiser CX 200 Street II, Sennheiser MX 365
Shower & Off the beaten path Rigs
Polk Audio Boom Swimmer, Polk Audio Urchin -
Don't judge a book by it's cover. The Topping D10 performs well above what it's modest price point would indicate.
I highly suggest anyone who is even remotely curious about it's performance to pick one up from Amazon, and try one for yourself before writing it off of or prejudging it due to it's price. It's actually on sale right now for $76.47. -
At no point did I call your baby ugly or dis the Topping D10. I agree with your findings a good shootout with the Carbon winning and enhancing your listening pleasure. I'm sorry if you thought my initial post was to judge the D10 it was not meant to, it was only about having to spend more money on the cable than what its hooked up to.Home Theater
Parasound Halo A 31 OnkyoTX-NR838 Sony XBR55X850B 55" 4K RtiA9 Fronts CsiA6 Center RtiA3 Rears FxiA6 Side Surrounds Dual Psw 111's Oppo 105D Signal Ultra Speaker Cables & IC's Signal Magic Power Cable Technics SL Q300 Panamax MR4300 Audioquest Chocolate HDMI Cables Audioquest Forest USB Cable
2 Channel
Adcom 555II Vincent SA-T1 Marantz SA 15S2 Denon DR-M11 Clearaudio Bluemotion SDA 2.3tl's (Z) edition MIT Terminator II Speaker Cables & IC's Adcom 545II Adcom Gtp-450 Marantz CD5004 Technics M245X SDA 2B's, SDA CRS+
Stuff for the Head
JD LABS C5 Headphone Amplifier, Sennheiser HD 598, Polk Audio Buckle, Polk Audio Hinge, Velodyne vPulse, Bose IE2, Sennheiser CX 200 Street II, Sennheiser MX 365
Shower & Off the beaten path Rigs
Polk Audio Boom Swimmer, Polk Audio Urchin -
hey great write up @Clipdat! Very helpful. Thanks for taking the time to write it up!
Have you happened to get your ears on the belkin gold usb cable? Seems to be another entry-level darling.
And while i generally agree with Steve on the component to cable price ratio, I do agree with Drew that sometimes you have components that you really like that punch well above their price-point that are just begging to be connected to more expensive components and cables, and it sounds like this is an example of that. There have been times when my ratios have been out of whack, especially when I get really good deals and used gear, but even sometimes with new...ymmvLiving Room 2.2: Usher BE-718 "tiny dancers"; Dual DIY Dayton audio RSS210HF-4 Subs with Dayton SPA-250 amps; Arcam SA30; Musical Fidelity A308; Sony UBP-x1000es
Game Room 5.1.4: Denon AVR-X4200w; Sony UBP-x700; Definitive Technology Power Monitor 900 mains, CLR-3000 center, StudioMonitor 350 surrounds, ProMonitor 800 atmos x4; Sub - Monoprice Monolith 15in THX Ultra
Bedroom 2.1 Harmon Kardon HK3490; Bluesounds Node N130; Polk RT25i; ACI Titan Subwoofer -
CN you post a picture of your baby so I can see if he's ugly?
Oh, nice review. -
At no point did I call your baby ugly or dis the Topping D10. I agree with your findings a good shootout with the Carbon winning and enhancing your listening pleasure. I'm sorry if you thought my initial post was to judge the D10 it was not meant to, it was only about having to spend more money on the cable than what its hooked up to.
All good man, I'm not upset or anything.
I just wanted to let people know that the D10's performance isn't related to it's price. It's really a standout product, and as my listening tests have shown, it's easily revealing enough to show difference with various cables.hey great write up @Clipdat! Very helpful. Thanks for taking the time to write it up!
Have you happened to get your ears on the belkin gold usb cable? Seems to be another entry-level darling.
And while i generally agree with Steve on the component to cable price ratio, I do agree with Drew that sometimes you have components that you really like that punch well above their price-point that are just begging to be connected to more expensive components and cables, and it sounds like this is an example of that. There have been times when my ratios have been out of whack, especially when I get really good deals and used gear, but even sometimes with new...ymmv
I haven't heard the Belkin cable, but I would be interested in trying it out. After evaluating these three cables, I feel even stronger about my cable reviewing strategies and what to listen for. This was a great experience and I feel like I learned a lot!
And I agree with you, it does seem silly to have a $170 cable hooked up to a $90 DAC, but I'm starting to learn that certain things in this hobby don't make a whole lot of sense, and that if you let go of preconceived notions and expectations, you can really open your mind up to what is possible in terms of high end audio reproduction. Talking with @DSkip a lot recently has really expanded my mind in this area. Sometimes things don't make a lot of "sense", but hearing is believing. -
A lot of things in this hobby don't make a lot of sense. I have my DAC hooked up to a $3500 dialysis machine.
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afterburnt wrote: »A lot of things in this hobby don't make a lot of sense. I have my DAC hooked up to a $3500 dialysis machine.
and your kidneys love the tone it gives off..... -
Well done Drew! Nice review. I’ve learned to trust your ears. I’m running an AQ Cinamon right now, but thinking there’s a Carbon in my near future!Basement: Polk SDA SRS 1.2tl's, Cary SLP-05 Pre with ultimate upgrade,McIntosh MCD301 CD/SACD player, Northstar Designs Excelsio DAC, Cambridge 851N streamer, McIntosh MC300 Amp, Silnote Morpheus Ref2, Series2 Digital Cables, Silnote Morpheus Ref2 Series2 XLR's, Furman 15PFi Power Conditioner, Pangea Power Cables, MIT Shotgun S3 IC's, MIT Shotgun S1 Bi-Wire speaker cables
Office: PC, EAR Acute CD Player, EAR 834L Pre, Northstar Designs Intenso DAC, Antique Sound Labs AV8 Monoblocks, Denon UDR-F10 Cassette, Acoustic Technologies Classic FR Speakers, SVS SB12 Plus sub, MIT AVt2 speaker cables, IFI Purifier2, AQ Cinnamon USB cable, Groneberg Quatro Reference IC's
Spare Room: Dayens Ampino Integrated Amp, Tjoeb 99 tube CD player (modified Marantz CD-38), Analysis Plus Oval 9's, Zu Jumpers, AudioEngine B1 Streamer, Klipsch RB-61 v2, SVS PB1000 sub, Blue Jeans RCA IC's, Shunyata Hydra 8 Power Conditioner
Living Room: Peachtree Nova Integrated, Cambridge CXN v2 Streamer, Rotel RCD-1072 CD player, Furman 15PFi Power Conditioner, Polk RT265 In Wall Speakers, Polk DSW Pro 660wi sub
Garage #1: Cambridge Audio 640A Integrated Amp, Project Box-E BT Streamer, Polk Tsi200 Bookies, Douglas Speaker Cables, Shunyata Power Conditioner
Garage #2: Cambridge Audio EVO150 Integrated Amplifier, Polk L200's, Analysis Plus Silver Oval 2 Speaker Cables, IC's TBD. -
Good job on the review. I also have Carbon USB cables. I have Cabon level cables all over my system.Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
I’ve learned to trust your ears.
Thanks Dave, that means a lot to me. I'm glad you liked the review.
I'd like to get into professionally reviewing gear, but it seems like a hard area to break into. How cool would it be to write for Stereophile? -
Nice review Drew.Yamaha RX-A2070, Musical Fidelity M6si integrated amp, Benchmark Dac1, Bluesound NODE 2i, Audiolab 6000CDT CD Transport, Parasound Zphono USB Phono Preamp, Fluance RT85, Ortofon 2M Bronze, Polk L600's, L400, L900's, RC80i's, SVS 3000 Micro, Audioquest Interconnects and Digital Cables, Nordost Silver Shadow Digital Cable, Cullen Gold and Crossover Series Power Cables, Douglas Connection Alpha 12AWG OCC Speaker Cables, Douglas Connection Alpha Analog Interconnect Cables, Douglas Connection Alpha 11 OCC Custom Power Cable, Signal Power Cable, Furman PL-8C 15 Power Conditioner, Sony 65" 900F, Sony UBP-X700, Fios, Apple TV 4K, Audioquest Chocolate HDMI Cables.
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Nice review, indeed, with pictures and all. This is making me rethink my current digital connection of SPDIF digital coax. I had always thought the coax was supposedly better since it was made for the purpose of audio, whereas USB was meant for data. But as with many things, the 'best' solution depends on the situation. I believe it may be time for some experimentation. Thanks, Clipdat, for raising my awareness. "This may not matter to you, but it does to me for various reasons, many of them illogical or irrational, but the vinyl hobby is not really logical or rational..." - member on Vinyl Engine
"Sometimes I do what I want to do. The rest of the time, I do what I have to." - Cicero, in Gladiator
Regarding collectibles: "It's not who gets it. It's who gets stuck with it." - Jimmy Fallon -
Doesn't matter which connection you use, a good cable can make a difference. The only connection I've ever had a hard time discerning differences in, was Toslink.HT SYSTEM-
Sony 850c 4k
Pioneer elite vhx 21
Sony 4k BRP
SVS SB-2000
Polk Sig. 20's
Polk FX500 surrounds
Cables-
Acoustic zen Satori speaker cables
Acoustic zen Matrix 2 IC's
Wireworld eclipse 7 ic's
Audio metallurgy ga-o digital cable
Kitchen
Sonos zp90
Grant Fidelity tube dac
B&k 1420
lsi 9's -
Nice review, indeed, with pictures and all. This is making me rethink my current digital connection of SPDIF digital coax. I had always thought the coax was supposedly better since it was made for the purpose of audio, whereas USB was meant for data. But as with many things, the 'best' solution depends on the situation. I believe it may be time for some experimentation. Thanks, Clipdat, for raising my awareness.
I'm working on a three way digital coaxial cable shootout review right now! What cable are you using currently? I wouldn't just arbitrarily jump to USB over coaxial. There's very different sounds to digital coaxial cables as I've just discovered first hand. -
you'd likely starve to death. I just do not think it is a high paying career path.
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Oh, mine is nothing special...got it at an electronics surplus store. It was thick and had substantial connectors, and I was in a hurry. You should have seen the look on the employees' faces when I asked for 'digital coax'. They directed me towards RF coax cables...like for your TV. I said, "No, it has RCA plugs on it...goes into the orange-colored jacks on the device." Deer in the headlights. I had to find it myself. I've thrown the packaging away, but I'll try to look at the brand on the cable itself when I get home.Nice review, indeed, with pictures and all. This is making me rethink my current digital connection of SPDIF digital coax. I had always thought the coax was supposedly better since it was made for the purpose of audio, whereas USB was meant for data. But as with many things, the 'best' solution depends on the situation. I believe it may be time for some experimentation. Thanks, Clipdat, for raising my awareness.
I'm working on a three way digital coaxial cable shootout review right now! What cable are you using currently? I wouldn't just arbitrarily jump to USB over coaxial. There's very different sounds to digital coaxial cables as I've just discovered first hand.
Interested to read your review!
BTW: Not to be picky, but shouldn't these go into our 'Going Digital' forum section?"This may not matter to you, but it does to me for various reasons, many of them illogical or irrational, but the vinyl hobby is not really logical or rational..." - member on Vinyl Engine
"Sometimes I do what I want to do. The rest of the time, I do what I have to." - Cicero, in Gladiator
Regarding collectibles: "It's not who gets it. It's who gets stuck with it." - Jimmy Fallon
