Recommended USB Cables.

Well as good as the AB USB cable is you should check out the Network Acoustics ENO USB cable. It is just stellar! My new standard and I have heard and built many a USB cable 🙂

Now is does cost much more than mine unfortunately.  

Another vote for Network Acoustics’s USB III.  

The Network Acoustics ENO cables look very good, but unfortunately they do not specificy of the conductors are solid-core or what awg size they are.  Most of all the USB cables I have seen are 28awg stranded wire.  At least ENO uses OCC copper, which is good.

I do not have direct experience with USB cables (I only made one for myself, but don't have good USB transport).  However, all other testing for both digital cables (S/PDIF and AES/EBU) as well as analog cables all show that high grade solid-core conductors are superior.  In the case of digital cables, silver does actually improve things.

The two/three cables I would probably consider are:

Nordost Tyr 2 USB ($1600 for 2 meter) 20awg conductors.

Nordost Valhalla 2 (probably $4.5k for 2 meter) 20awg conductors.

Oyaide Continential 5S ($495 for 1.8 meter) 24awg conductors

The Nordost cables get seriously expensive.  My experience with Nordost Heimdall 2 Digital COAX is that it has a lot of depth in the sound, but it's somewhat laid back in the upper mids/highs. 

The Oyaide is solid-core pure silver 24awg conductor, which could be very good.

If anyone has direct experience with these, please post.

I am currently using an Audioquest Diamond to connect a Chord 2Go/2Yu to my Weiss DAC.  I was pleasantly surprised at how good it sounds.  Improved clarity but difficult to describe beyond that it in that it seems to have no discernable coloration on my sound.  

I just compared this to a Kimber Select AG I had in on trade and thought they were similar in terms of quality.  Again, very clear with great detail but not coloration.  

I also had a customer just buy a Shunyata Omega and he said it was like he bought a whole new component it had such a big positive impact on his system.  I have not heard this personally though.  

I am also on the search for that magical sounding digital USB cable.  Whats most important to me is its ability to reproduce the harmonics richness and tone of instruments.  Musicality is essential, then resolving power.  If it cant do that first I'm not interested.  I think the next one i will try is the Cardas USB clear.  Im currently using the Aural Symhonics xxv USB ( big fan of Aural Symhonics cables, but haven't been a fan of their digital cables in the past ) and my impression is they are a bit lean across the whole spectrum and resolving power is just decent.  My search continues.