Will a quality USB cable make a difference....

This got off track fast. My question was a simple one requiring a simple straight answer to; "can you detect an audible difference (improvement) with a higher quality USB cable when used between a STORAGE DEVICE (EXTERNAL DRIVE) AND A MUSIC SERVER (NO DAC)?". I've concluded no, simply based on the fact the data is not being transferred through a sensitive link between a digital source and DAC or converter. My example is the same as the music files being stored on/retrieved from a drive connected to a computer or on a network. It's not until that data is being transferred between the digital source (music player, streamer,...) and a DAC/converter that the cables quality comes into effect and becomes imperative. That's my unqualified, non-tech, take on this subject. If you have experience to the contrary I would like to hear.

Ok, I set up the Dell Windows 7 laptop as the server for the Tranquility SE DAC using iTunes as the playback software, and it was as though the oxygen was sucked out of the soul of the system. Yeah, I tried different USB cords, but I couldn't hear a difference. The whole system just went flat, no depth, no point sourcing, no ghostly instrumentation: just flat, dry and soul-less.

I hooked the Tranquility back on to the MacMini 2010 and returned to bliss.

I can truly understand how the difference between USB cords cannot be perceived when using a laptop.

Thanks for the opportunity. I would have never tried this otherwise. It was ugly but worth knowing what I have.

:) listening,

Ed

To my ears a usb cable is a usb cable. 1's and zero's.

I switched from iTunes to foobar and I still can't hear the difference between the Belden Gold and Nordost USB cable.

If you were using itunes on a PC, its no wonder. You will never achieve good SQ this way. You should do more reading on the forums.

Are you now using Kernel Streaming plug-in with Foobar2K on XP or Wasapi on Vista/Win7?

If not, then the same, you will never get it.

What device are you using to get S/PDIF output? Is it a USB DAC? Async USB interface?

Steve N.
Empirical Audio