budget USB S/PDIF converter?

digital out from a PC is a waste. Ive built a PC music server from scratch, played with the ASUS Essence STX, Musicstream II async USB DAC, and am using a Vlink async USB converter to PS Audio Dlink III DAC now. No onboard PC option ever sounded close to an async USB option. Buy the Musicstreamer II if you are cash strapped,

There is a PCI card with USB ports on it that evidently makes USB from a PC desktop more listenable. Have not heard it yet myself though..

Steve N.
Empirical Audio

any chance that the PC industry will use digital audio out over CAT-5 cable in the future? Ran into a shop at the Capital Audio show who thought this was a better cable option than USB.

I just bought a HLLY MMK-I 24bit/96k USB to SPDIF off eBay for $70 or so. It works amazingly well. Add a 10v dc wall wart and it kicks it up another notch. Remove the power feed leg in the USB cable altogether and it sounds even better. It doesn't do anything over 96k, however. What a great sounding unit. No complaints.

thanks again everyone.

i'm debating between shiit bifrost and emotiva dac.

re: USB vs optical, it seems optical produces better results. as for a high end sound card, isn't that redundant (or rather pointless?) if you're out to a nice DAC? i thought the whole point of a PC music server is to circumvent all internal hardware to get to the DAC as directly as possible.