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USB cable hype

Can someone explain the need for expensive USB cables for short runs? The only parameter of concern is impedance. I personally have verified error-free transmission in the Gbps range regardless of cable make/model as long as the cable length is short. There is no magic. It is just about impedance control to minimize loss and jitter. This is inexpensive in the MHz range. I will pay more for a cable that it is well built. I will not pay more for hocus pocus.
axle
sonic_genius
528 posts
 
No Hype, IMO. I have compared $2 Monoprice USB cables to the Wireworld Starlight Platinum and I can easily hear the difference. Much more detail whereas the $2 cable sounds colored and flat. Since the WW is really too expensive, I settled on the Cabledyne Silver Reference USB cable for about one third the price (sounds just as good, IMO).
onhwy61's avatar
onhwy61
5,273 posts
 
There's still an awful lot of hype if one cable sounds the same as another cable but at 3x the price.
theduke
372 posts
 
I don't have tons of money to blow on expensive cables and I retain a healthy amount of skepticism when it comes to cable claims. That said, I was unprepared for the huge improvement in sonics when I went from the (4% silver) Pangea USB-PC to the (100% silver) Pangea USB-AG. I know digital is all about 1's and 0's but the improvement was immediatey noticeable. I have no other explanation other than to flatly state the 100% silver cable was so much better.
zd542
5,339 posts
 
"My question wasn't about the cable's effects on SQ. It was about failure: At what distance does a vanilla USB cable start to fail?"

You have an odd way of asking questions. Reading your original post, I would have never guessed the above quote is what you are asking for.

"I'm sure the answer varies with drivers and date rate. For example, we know that PCM should travel farther than DSD."

I'm not sure how you came up with that. PCM data can be transferred in more than 1 way. 75ohm coax, Toslink, 110ohm balanced, AT&T ST fibre optic, I2S, USB.....
axle OP
49 posts
 
"I'm not sure how you came up with that. PCM data can be transferred in more than 1 way. 75ohm coax, Toslink, 110ohm balanced, AT&T ST fibre optic, I2S, USB....."

Basic physics explains why faster data rates cannot travel as far as slower data rates.
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