[upstateguy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wavoman /img/forum/go_quote.gif True, but IMO not all bitstream errors are inaudible. Take a cheap no-name USB 1.1 cable with big-ass ferrite beads and use it to stream 24/96 digital audio from your PC to your DAC, then compare with a decent cable. I did this and I hear mush from the cheap-y. Could be placebo effect, no doubt. So we are going to test this again with a blind testing protocol at a NJ mini-meet around XMAS time. Will report.

Hey L

I posted about the exact same experience, but in reverse.

I wanted to see how my Stello sounded with USB, so I hooked it up with the first cable I had laying around. It was a USB 1.1 from and old external CD burner, I think. Later I tried a few of my new USB 2.0 cables and none of them sounded as good as "the old cable with big-ass ferrite beads" . Now here is an example of reverse placebo, because I fully expected any of my new cables to sound better than that old gray one..... but the old one sounds cleaner and clearer.

E


here's the first cable I grabbed (and still use)

and here's one of the others I tried

 

[wavoman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by upstateguy /img/forum/go_quote.gif I posted about the exact same experience, but in reverse...I fully expected any of my new cables to sound better than that old gray one..... but the old one sounds cleaner and clearer.

Well the 1.1 cable looks thick and well-made, and beads were legal in the 1.1 spec. But the real point is: you heard a difference. Now we have to repeat this under rigorous conditions. Slight timing differences should be inaudible, just like small amounts of bit loss, and since the 2.0 cables were good stock, you should hear no difference. Worth exploring via a listener-blind, randomized, A-B (with false compairsons for benchmarks thrown in) tests.

The Absolute Sound rags on all blind experiments, but there are holes in their arguments so big you can drive a Hummer thru them. More in our other threads!

But -- you can't post pix like that and offer nothing else! What are those crazy RCA "pass thru" Y-connectors, who made that glass TOSLink ... and is that a stock power cable I spy??

 

[wavoman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pars /img/forum/go_quote.gif I would say 1.5m min., but I haven't done the math. Clocking in SPDIF is at ~2.8MHz IIRC.

Thanks for the answer! Most of my S/PDIF coax cables are 1 meter. Ooops! I should have read this (which agrees with you re 1.5 meters):

spdif

However Steve does say that higher quality transports will let you get away with shorter cables.

 

[upstateguy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wavoman /img/forum/go_quote.gif Well the 1.1 cable looks thick and well-made, and beads were legal in the 1.1 spec. But the real point is: you heard a difference. Now we have to repeat this under rigorous conditions. Slight timing differences should be inaudible, just like small amounts of bit loss, and since the 2.0 cables were good stock, you should hear no difference. Worth exploring via a listener-blind, randomized, A-B (with false compairsons for benchmarks thrown in) tests. The Absolute Sound rags on all blind experiments, but there are holes in their arguments so big you can drive a Hummer thru them. More in our other threads! But -- you can't post pix like that and offer nothing else! What are those crazy RCA "pass thru" Y-connectors, who made that glass TOSLink ... and is that a stock power cable I spy??

Hey L

First, you should know I don't believe in cables.......

Volex power cord from carlton bates, can also get from mouser and the power cord Justin send with the GS-1.

Phoenix Gold PRO419 RCA "Y" Adapter from parts express (but they no longer carry it so I also have their Dayton Y adapters too)

I have an earlier model than this one

3ft Dayton glass cable from parts express

E

 

[wavoman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by upstateguy /img/forum/go_quote.gif First, you should know I don't believe in cables.......

You believe enough to answer me at 3:30 in the morning!

Thanks for the links, need some of this, a few dime bags of cables and doo-dads to get my weekend fix.

 

[hohum]

I'm assuming this minimum cable length only applies to coaxial... or does toslink have a 'recommended' minimum length aswell? Please forgive me for asking, I'm new to all this digital connection malarky.

My guess is having too long a distance is an issue with toslink, and very short cables won't matter?

 

[Chri5peed]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hohum /img/forum/go_quote.gif My guess is having too long a distance is an issue with toslink, and very short cables won't matter?

Why would you think this? A beam of light can travel unhindered for miles.

 

[I<3SQ]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hohum /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm assuming this minimum cable length only applies to coaxial... or does toslink have a 'recommended' minimum length aswell? Please forgive me for asking, I'm new to all this digital connection malarky. My guess is having too long a distance is an issue with toslink, and very short cables won't matter?

With cable runs over 10ft, you're more prone to having interference with the digi coax vs. toslink

 

[hohum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chri5peed /img/forum/go_quote.gif Why would you think this? A beam of light can travel unhindered for miles.

Because I've read elsewhere that coaxial is better for use over longer distances, while toslink is hampered in this respect due to high light signal attenuation (or something along those lines).

 

[sinus1982]

that's correct, hohum.
The shorter the better. But this is also true for coax cables just like for any other electrical cable (rca for example)

 

[Patrick82]

There is a lot of noise going through the computer and DAC so the best is optical. Optical is definitely the best when using a soundcard that outputs 24bits.

Using 16bit Toslink with my dCS Verdi Encore sounded much worse than Toslink with 24bit EMU0404 from computer.