Going back to your USB cable, buy the most expensive USB cable your budget can afford, but pls. do that for reliability if you want, not audio quality. Paying "XXX" EUR for a USB cable will not get you better audio. You will get the same audio quality from a "X" EUR USB cable. The audio quality is a function of the original encoding, the I'd been a long time believer that USB cable could make no difference and for last 5 years used a cheap generic of suitable length (e.g. amazon basics). Bits are bits etc and I read articles that supported my belief. Recently finally decided to try an audio cable on advice of trusted dealer and bought Audioquest Pearl. Apr 19, 2023. #562. True. IF there is an audible difference, it's about clocking and/or RFI. Certainly, there shouldn't be differences caused by any cables, digital or analog, but manufacturers and their designers screw up. Objective data is only ONE element but hearing is the ultimate test and should always be the determining factor. Studios do NOT rely only on "specs" they chose by listening as their final determination in making a purchase. It's like saying all USB cables are the same or A/C cables etc,. Try them - blind is good and you know they're not all the IOW, for that generic type of USB cable, shorter cables introduce less distortion than longer ones. Interesting, as I often read, on AK, that USB cables don't matter, as it's all 1s and 0s. So, this study puts that canard to rest. There was no test done on USB cables of different types, where the topology might present a performance enhancement. You do what you can to get a motherboard / USB board that does not get noise on the USB ouput. And a low-noise PSU. Personally, if I were designing a device for playing audio files back I would make it so that all of the data would be placed into a substantial RAM space. USB cables make a HUGE difference in the sound quality. At least if you have a fairly high end, resolving system. If you have a $500 DAC, I can see how spending $1000 on the USB cable doesn’t make much sense. But on more resolving systems, OMG, the USB cable makes a big difference. Solidly on the pro-cable side was Sheldon Ginn, President, Kevro International, which distributes Tributaries cables in Canada. “Every day cables get the job done,” Ginn wrote, “but good speaker wire, interconnects and power cable … can make the difference between an enjoyable listen and one that produces goosebumps.”. Y5GWJBG.