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Re: USB cable debate Awaste of time

February 6th, 2020, 4:39 pm

Jim G wrote:Not at all what I'm saying, Pete. Definitely not condemning anybody's stereo. Systems are different and capable of different things. Like the day you and I listened to our dacs at Charlie's. Until that moment I never realized how poorly my dac soundstages in 3 dimensions compared to his (or yours). But Charlie's dac in my system didn't soundstage any better than mine because my 2 way horn system can't soundstage like his. The dacs were very similar in my system. Charlie's system also has shortcomings too, like everyone else's.

I think the caveat should be, "in my system, I can't/can hear a difference between "x" and "y" with the understanding it may be different elsewhere.

Proving a null hypothesis (there is no difference) is extremely difficult. Confirming a difference in a properly designed listening session is not so difficult.

Re: USB cable debate Awaste of time

February 6th, 2020, 4:57 pm

I started this thread with just that. In my system I could not hear the difference this means one of three things either my hearing is shot (very possible I will be 75 in the spring), my system sucks, or there is no differences in USB cables.
I think my hearing is not that bad because I do hear a lot of these subtle differences. I freely admit my system could be at fault only because I have had my hand into every part of it. Who the hell am I to say I have a viable system. I do want to pursue this USB cable thing as well as the ethernet cable as well, which logically is even more questionable whether they can make a differences.
I do know on the analog system the cables make big differences. I also know just the fact of unplugging and plugging in a RCA connector will refresh the connection by breaking the corrosion that has developed since the last time I changed the cable. I know that line voltage in my house varies over time. I know the temperature and humidity changes all over the place. I know some days I feel great and others not so much. All of this matters and colors my judgement I make. WTF!!

Re: USB cable debate Awaste of time

February 6th, 2020, 5:21 pm

Pelliott321 wrote:I started this thread with just that. In my system I could not hear the difference this means one of three things either my hearing is shot (very possible I will be 75 in the spring), my system sucks, or there is no differences in USB cables.....

Again, it doesn't (imo) mean your system sucks if a change in your system isn't audible, and the same change in another system is clearly audible.

Re: USB cable debate Awaste of time

February 6th, 2020, 6:09 pm

Jim G wrote:Again, it doesn't (imo) mean your system sucks if a change in your system isn't audible, and the same change in another system is clearly audible.


Absolutely! If you can’t tell the difference between usb cables in your system and someone else can in theirs, it COULD mean that your DAC is good enough to sound great even with a POS usb cable, and the DAC in the other system needs a better cable to sound its best... Of course it could also mean that whatever you have feeding the usb cable sucks so bad that no cable can fix it. Not enough data to know one way or the other. The reason you can’t hear a difference could also be something in the system that isn’t part of the digital subsystem at all... Nobody said this was easy :sad-roulette:

Roscoe

Re: USB cable debate Awaste of time

February 6th, 2020, 8:11 pm

Given what was said, is the $500 DAC so bad when compared to the $2k DAC? Is the cheap cable so bad that we can't even enjoy the music?
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