[BobMajor]

I was looking to get better sound from a very high end system by buying a somewhat more expensive USB cable that would run from my computer running Win7 and JRiver Media Center to my DAC, the Empirical Audio Overdrive.
I chose the Moon Audio Silver Dragon USB cable (about $300).
Not only did it deliver stunning improved sound but it also solved a problem that I'd been having with playing tracks.
My problem was that if I tried to fast forward in a track the player would skip to the next track. I thought it was a problem with JRiver. But it wasn't. Apparently the generic USB cable connecting the asynchronous DAC with the computer wasn't delivering the signal accurately enough to communicate the signal properly. So there are real differences in how USB cables transfer information.

 

[EdibleStereos]

  I was looking to get better sound from a very high end system by buying a somewhat more expensive USB cable that would run from my computer running Win7 and JRiver Media Center to my DAC, the Empirical Audio Overdrive.
I chose the Moon Audio Silver Dragon USB cable (about $300).
Not only did it deliver stunning improved sound but it also solved a problem that I'd been having with playing tracks.
My problem was that if I tried to fast forward in a track the player would skip to the next track. I thought it was a problem with JRiver. But it wasn't. Apparently the generic USB cable connecting the asynchronous DAC with the computer wasn't delivering the signal accurately enough to communicate the signal properly. So there are real differences in how USB cables transfer information.

This sounds more like you initially had a damaged cable. Switching to a non-defective cable probably would have brought about the same benefits at 1/100th the cost.

 

[Lorspeaker]

 

This sounds more like you initially had a damaged cable. Switching to a non-defective cable probably would have brought about the same benefits at 1/100th the cost.

 
 
Bob can easily test this out....  should be interesting.

 

[Gandah]

  I was looking to get better sound from a very high end system by buying a somewhat more expensive USB cable that would run from my computer running Win7 and JRiver Media Center to my DAC, the Empirical Audio Overdrive.
I chose the Moon Audio Silver Dragon USB cable (about $300).
Not only did it deliver stunning improved sound but it also solved a problem that I'd been having with playing tracks.
My problem was that if I tried to fast forward in a track the player would skip to the next track. I thought it was a problem with JRiver. But it wasn't. Apparently the generic USB cable connecting the asynchronous DAC with the computer wasn't delivering the signal accurately enough to communicate the signal properly. So there are real differences in how USB cables transfer information.

 

This sounds more like you initially had a damaged cable. Switching to a non-defective cable probably would have brought about the same benefits at 1/100th the cost.

 
Good to hear your thoughts on the Moon Audio USB cable

 
I have to say I've done a complete 360 turnaround on the way I think about digital cabling, and have had to eat some rather big chunks of humble pie...... For a long time I couldn't understand why anyone would buy expensive USB cables when it's just 1s 0s which gets re-calculated at the source...... Because I thought like this and thought I was sooooooo right I wouldn't even consider testing different cables, to me it was logic and common sense that prevails this silly idea.
 
However after rearranging my setup I had to find a longer USB cable, which I found in my box of computer cables, I don't even know what this cable was used for...... To put it mildly the sound quality was horrendous "headphones out of computer bad" So in that experience I pulled out all the cables I could find and tried them all 15 in total, after 3 days of testing to my amazed "logical mind" I had 3 cables that sounded even better than my original USB cable, and out of the 3 one sounded quite different hard to explain "more forgiving more laidback" if I has to say.
 
Anyhow, I'm now converted to the belief USB cables do matter, but still really don't understand how and why, so in these new findings I have also placed a order for the Black Dragon USB cable

 

[Lorspeaker]

180 degrees

 

[Gandah]

  180 degrees

lol yes 180

 

[Lorspeaker]

went thru a few branded usb cables...
cabledyne usb cable gives alot of depth n details on my audiogd setup.. so i settled on that. 

 

[drez]

According to my experience yes, USB cables matter.  Some are good, some are bad.  A lot of the audiophile ones are certified - as in have the USB sticker on the packaging but still sound different.  
 
Why?  Many possible reasons – signal integrity, noise, only persons who design audio gear can say.
 
Often ticking feature boxes doesn't work though, but if the signal bandwidth measures well, the dielectric is low loss, and the dimensions between the signal pair tightly controlled, that's a good start.  Hard to tell this from marketing material though...
 
Usual guides on how much to spend probably still apply – so it's probably better to be sensible and not spend all the money on a cable.

 

[castleofargh]

not only would I really like to understand how it would happen, given how USB cable is supposedly something that has to respond to a few normalized parameters. but more, I would like to hear it.
any relatively cheap usb cable to recommend that would "be different"? (I'm not gonna put 150$ in a USB cable for a test,  when I have probably 15 of those all around the house).
 
also I'd like to remind everybody of the "sighted bias" possibility. ask someone to change them for you like 10times would persuade me a lot more.

 

[wolfwalker78]

If  cable sounds different, better or worse, it should be measurable and explainable and repeatable.  This isn't magic.
I personally hope I never hear the difference, because I really do not want to have to live with spending more than $20 on any
given cable. 

 

[Lorspeaker]

i think cabledyne.com is giving 40days trial... give it a listen. 

 

[BirdManOfCT]

   
Good to hear your thoughts on the Moon Audio USB cable

 
I have to say I've done a complete 360 turnaround on the way I think about digital cabling, and have had to eat some rather big chunks of humble pie...... For a long time I couldn't understand why anyone would buy expensive USB cables when it's just 1s 0s which gets re-calculated at the source...... Because I thought like this and thought I was sooooooo right I wouldn't even consider testing different cables, to me it was logic and common sense that prevails this silly idea.
 
However after rearranging my setup I had to find a longer USB cable, which I found in my box of computer cables, I don't even know what this cable was used for...... To put it mildly the sound quality was horrendous "headphones out of computer bad" So in that experience I pulled out all the cables I could find and tried them all 15 in total, after 3 days of testing to my amazed "logical mind" I had 3 cables that sounded even better than my original USB cable, and out of the 3 one sounded quite different hard to explain "more forgiving more laidback" if I has to say.
 
Anyhow, I'm now converted to the belief USB cables do matter, but still really don't understand how and why, so in these new findings I have also placed a order for the Black Dragon USB cable

Thanks for sharing that!

 

[BirdManOfCT]

  If  cable sounds different, better or worse, it should be measurable and explainable and repeatable.  This isn't magic.
I personally hope I never hear the difference, because I really do not want to have to live with spending more than $20 on any
given cable. 

Should be, but easier said than done. And don't forget the observer effect.

 

[BeatsWork]

And this is why I like Schiit
 
USB PYST. This is the complete redefinition of USB cables. It actually, physically transports you* into an alternate universe where superbly-mastered, 24/192 music streams 24/7, free of charge to all listeners, for all genres. Supermodels in this alternate world are all deeply into high-end audio, and will beg to go out with you. Butterflies swirl in fantastic colors over clean-lined porcelain cityscapes, everyone is a millionaire, and flying cars run on air. It's a beautiful place to be! 
 
*Or not. It may have been a hallucination. USB PYSTs are actually just nice, 1M long, USB 2.0-rated cables that have thicker than normal power conductors and silver-plated copper data lines. We think the electrons like silver better, or something. Or not. 
 
In any case, you can get PYST, or you can save some money at Monoprice.

 

[BeatsWork]

Anyone with expensive USB cable willing to do an experiment?  Take a direct out recording from your DAC with stock cable.  Switch out the USB cable and repeat.  You can then use Audacity to create a 180 phase copy which you sum against the 1st recording leaving only differences..  Any change in SQ should then clearly be audible and visualized.  See article  http://sdk.bongiovidps.com/2013/09/26/audio-null-test/