USB cable recommendation


I have an Aurender N150 and a Garlubidor Divinity DAC. I'm trying to figure out if my Transparent USB cable is limiting my hardware. I asked AI to make a suggestion, and they recommended a Shunyata Theta, Audioquest Diamond and Audioquest Carbon. Now I guess I'm looking for a human's suggestion.

dpm2340

 

@nubiann 

I have no interest in engaging with you on this or any other audio related topic.
I will close this conversation with the following -

1. I listen to my system with my ears. Not with an oscilloscope. 

2. My system is highly resolving, my room is acoustically treated and my ears, thank god, work properly. This allows me to pick out differences, large or small, between components, cables, cartridges, different versions of masters of the same albums on digital and analog

3. Once again, we’re not printing word documents. USB in audio is highly dependent on implementation in both streamer and DAC. It will sound different. 
4. Digital signal that traverses via USB is encapsulated in an anslog signal and is represented as voltage fluctuations. USB is made of some sort of alloy, be it copper or silver, the only method to exchange data is voltage fluctuations.
And as such, USB cable is susceptible to external interference factors such as EMI/RFI as well as variations in conductivity between different grades of coppet, silver, etc. With USB the clock in a receiving device, which in our case is DAC, will be responsible for timing the signal  With noise added to the transmission over copper or silver, will impact the effectiveness and efficiency of the receiver clock. Thus changing the sound quality.

When you have a system that can resolve these differences and you have an ear to pick these changes out, and you stop reading ASR nonsense and actually listen instead of reading that garbage, let me know. For now, take care and enjoy the rest of your weekend.

 

The Cable Company will allow you to do a shootout. I tried Shunyata Alpha vs Wireworld Platinum vs Synergistic Reference Atmosphere SX and the SX won pretty easily, once it finally burned in. Please let us know how it all works out for you.

Also I make no claims related to the superior performance of exepnsive USB cables, that has fallen to you. I just see the USB standard and accept basic requirement that this type of interconnect benefits from proper shielding, mechanical contruction keeping the length as short as possible. In this respect there are many reasonably priced cables that will be a match for these ridiculously priced, prettied esoteric offerings.

@nubiann  But you’re claiming budget cables sound just as good as more expensive cables without having done comparisons yourself and basing it solely on theory and limited measurements.  There are scores of people here who’ve heard very significant differences between USB cables in their systems and relatively very few who find more expensive cables make little/no difference.  Yes that’s admittedly subjective evidence, but when it’s so heavily skewed in one direction surely it’s indicative of something at least worth consideration and not just completely dismissed as everyone just fooling themselves.  Does that really seem like the more likely scenario to you?  Plus, several manufactures offer generous return periods (Veritas, DH Labs, etc.) where you’re only out a few bucks for return shipping if you don’t hear a significant improvement so really very little reason to not just try for yourself.  But I get it that it’s much easier to just dismiss it all as puffery and that everyone else must be wrong rather than make any effort and possibly risk your beliefs being upended.  God forbid you should actually try it out for yourself and see. 🙄

@soix ASR measures output voltage of a dac and claims that no matter what cable you use it will all sound the same because the voltage coming out of a $99 reference chinese dac (that sounds just as good as any high end dac and even better because it measures so good) is the same with every cable, and the crowd goes hail amir, these minions with $99 dacs and amazon basics usb cables come here to tell you what you are able and unable to hear. 

And tell you hey my system is not a subject of this conversation and it doesn’t matter…but yes it does matter and has direct influence on the statements they make. 
 

So if you are running a $99 reference dac and feed it via amazon basics usb, congratulations…you bought a business class ticket on Amir’s magic carpet. Enjoy your flight. 

The WW Platinum is a highly recommended USB cable and I had one for a few years. But for a little more money,  you can buy an Audio Sensibility Signature Silver USB that is considerably better sounding.