Watch out for those American-made things. Based on this, you have to heat those Schiit USBs with a hairdrier to make them work. (
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...ing-recognized-anymore-by-windows.5943/page-3) I am sure I could dig up another 50 cases of USB issues with American-made products. Should we then consider that all American-models are not worth purchasing?
Let me also give you my latest issue with an American company. Grace Design. I love my m900, but recently I plugged in the cheap feeling adapter and it broke (pictures on the m9xx thread). Yes, it's made in China, but it's part of the standard kit that comes with the American made m900. So I contacted support. They said that I can buy another for $35, even though I explained to them that I did nothing wrong, hit the outlet at 1mm off a perfect 90 degree angle. The adapter always felt cheap and the USB port is loose. So should I buy another one for $35 - yes $35 for a cheap thing that breaks with 6 months of normal use? They recommend it, because it's been specially selected for low-noise, they say. Does my warranty cover this? Apparently not.
So, my point is, there are experiences and experiences. Relax and have a measured approach to your conclusions. Just go back to your original post and realize why you caused such reactions. If you would have posted along the lines of this happened, has it happened to others, seems to me that this is an issue... fine. But no, you came in on a warpath declaring the RME ADI-2 DAC worthless FOTM.
Perhaps you misinterpreted the intent here? I am not on "the warpath" as you put it, just disappointed (for good reason) about a device from a company that claims their USB implementation is outstanding, while it has design issues. What this comes down to is whether or not you believe the USB implementation on the ADI-2 DAC has a design issue. I believe it does, you disagree, and that's perfectly fine. I have $10 USB devices that have better surge protection than the RME that costs 100 times more, to me this is an issue that needs to be known by people who purchased or are thinking or purchasing the unit. If you'd rather stick your head in the sand and cross your fingers your unit keeps working as it has, that's also perfectly fine.
Do you know of any company that recommends turning off both the computer and the device itself before plugging in
a USB cable? It's pretty ridiculous!
FOTM does not mean anything more than FOTM, why jump to the conclusion that it means the device is worthless, or even bad? There have been plenty of FOTM devices and headphones that became, after a few years, real contenders in their price ranges. At the end of the day, the DAC sounds great, the functionality it offers for the money is awesome, and sound quality/measurement wise, it competes with DACs several times its price. However, the fact that it was designed in a way where you can fry the USB by plugging in a "hot" cable is definitely not something I would expect from a device in that price range. The only negative thing about a FOTM device is that it hasn't been around long enough to prove its reliability. Some make it, and stick around, some don't.
If you need to defend RME to the death on this, so be it, and if you think I am overreacting in writing off the device because it seems to me it has a major design flaw, all is well. I don't control your wallet or bank account, and you are still free to spend your money however you desire. You're comparing apples and oranges though, when you speak of the issue you had with the Grace m900 and this particular issue. You actually physically broke (an albeit cheap) adapter. You knew the adapter was cheap when you purchased the amp, it makes sense that your warranty would not cover physical damage. When I bought the RME, one of its strongest selling point was an innovative USB implementation. The issue I am having is not related to me physically breaking anything or mistreating the device in anyway (whether you choose to believe otherwise is your problem), it comes from normal day-to-day operation of the device. If you're perfectly fine knowing this, and would be willing to buy the unit again, more power to you! Personally, had I known this was an issue, I would not have purchased the unit. In fact, I purchased it partly because the USB implementation was highly acclaimed.
At the end of the day, it's not the end of the world, and I will either sell the replacement or get a refund. No biggie. This is however, still a forum where we discuss and give opinion on gear we purchase, and not everything said needs to be positive when it isn't warranted. Prior to this issue happening, I had nothing but good things to say about this unit, and still do concerning everything other than the USB implementation, and (in my opinion) the headphone amp, which is subpar. That being said, I did not buy it for its headphone amp's quality, and so haven't even mentioned that until now. The issue here is not that "I am on the warpath", but that some people need reassurance that they spent their money wisely when buying this unit. It could be that this is the case, it could also be that your USB ports will fail after 2 years, who knows. In any case, my criticizing a unit's design is not a personal attack towards you or anyone else. I came in this thread to tell about my experience, hoping to get a few troubleshooting hints (which some people gave without getting butthurt), research the issue some more, and draw reasonable conclusions from all of it. I posted pretty much the same thing in other HiFi forums, where the responses I got were along the lines of "It looks like a few different people have had the same issue. It seems the RME USB implementation may have design issues." without anyone getting their feelings hurt as if I insulted their wives. They took it for what it's worth, and wished me luck with the RMA and my next purchase.
