KIMBER KABLE: Do High-end USB Cables Make A Difference?

[nugget]

This is the answer to a question/request "if you can compare USB 2 to USB 3 and USB C"... Not sure if I understand your question.

Why would you care about the range of a USB cable unless you wanted to put your DAC five meters away from your PC? The downside of USB3 was stated as "lower range." (3 meters vs 5 meters)

 

[Head_Unit]

maybe distortion that makes the treble linger longer or have that shimmering body lol)

Maybe Wireworld or someone can design a USB cable plus that will induce errors mimicking Inner-groove distortion and so on, for "A More Vinyl-Like Audio Experience™"

 

[Chuckser]

That is a 1kHz signal i.e. the same bit pattern over and over. Not exactly a challenge for any cable. The buffer would also be resonating with the same bit pattern. The farads in the capacitors would be energized with that pattern. A totally useless test.

 

[Wes]

That is a 1kHz signal i.e. the same bit pattern over and over. Not exactly a challenge for any cable. The buffer would also be resonating with the same bit pattern. The farads in the capacitors would be energized with that pattern. A totally useless test.

what tests do you propose?

 

[mansr]

what tests do you propose?

Something with a bit of flux, the better to exercise the capacitors.

 

[amirm]

That is a 1kHz signal i.e. the same bit pattern over and over. Not exactly a challenge for any cable.

How would a cable "know" that it is a sine wave sequence of values and act differently? Is a cable trained to tell a sine wave from music?

BTW, this jitter test uses infinite harmonics of the main frequency, not one tone:

So your premise is not correct anyway.

 

[Wes]

well, the cable itself might be subject to confirmation bias

 

[mhardy6647]

Something with a bit of flux, the better to exercise the capacitors.

I read this too fast the first time; I thought it said to exorcise the capacitors.

 

[AudioSceptic]

Something with a bit of flux, the better to exercise the capacitors.

How is the DeLorean these days?

 

[L30N]

one more cables

''Busted!''

 

[Veri]

And this is the info what I am looking for - and not the circle jerk where everyone confirms Kimberly is a rip off. Is there a thread with a list of tested, cheap/price worthy USB cables? I don't wanna spend 100 Euros ordering 10 different cheap ones and test them one by one just to find the one which works.

I can spoil that for you, buy 10 cheap cables and unless either is broken, they will all work.

 

[becks]

And this is exactly the point. Without buying various cheap cables to test which one is broken (because the brand sells crappy stuff in general) - is there a list of brands building solid cables?

I "only" have experiences with the various cables shipped or bought to charge my phones, but while all cables share the same connectors, some work better than others, and some simply refuse to work, e.g. by providing a higher recharging speed when used with my phone while the one my wife uses has no issues.

Don't wanna spend time/money on producing more trash just to find the cheap one which really works.

 

[mansr]

Who buys USB cables anyway?

 

[Veri]

And this is exactly the point. Without buying various cheap cables to test which one is broken (because the brand sells crappy stuff in general) - is there a list of brands building solid cables?

I "only" have experiences with the various cables shipped or bought to charge my phones, but while all cables share the same connectors, some work better than others, and some simply refuse to work, e.g. by providing a higher recharging speed when used with my phone while the one my wife uses has no issues.

Don't wanna spend time/money on producing more trash just to find the cheap one which really works.

These are pretty good can be found all over eBay too I think:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002YELKYU/

Schiit also has a basic PYST USB cable that is totally fine:
https://www.schiit.com/products/pyst-cables

 

[becks]

Who buys USB cables anyway?

I buy, because sometimes they break. Sometimes I loose one while travelling. And in other cases I need different length because the one I use is either too short or so too long (especially in the car, I don't like to have 2m cable on the floor when i can use a 50cm one instead). And then sometimes I need cables with different plugs. Or the cable refuses to work with my phone. I still have a bunch which simply don't provide fast charging when I connect my phone, while others do - and both brands mention they support the charging mechanism.

 

[becks]

These are pretty good can be found all over eBay too I think:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002YELKYU/

Schiit also has a basic PYST USB cable that is totally fine:
https://www.schiit.com/products/pyst-cables

These are already in a range way above the cheap 3-5 USD thin wire things I typically find in a lot of the electronic gadgets coming from China. Yes, Belkin might be an option but as they are in the same price range like Oehlbach cables, I might stick with those (e.g. Oehlbach USB-Evolution B). I bought some Cinch cables from that brand 25 years ago and they still work without problems.

 

[mansr]

If one of my USB cables breaks, I just pick another from the large heap of cables that came with various things.

 

[becks]

If one of my USB cables breaks, I just pick another from the large heap of cables that came with various things.

Then I don't buy the right things, because no electric gadget I bought so far came with 2m USB cables (just to pick one of the many options I buy another one).

 

[Katji]

Without buying various cheap cables to test which one is broken (because the brand sells crappy stuff in general) - is there a list of brands building solid cables?

Lindy and Ugreen.

I really doubt there is such a list. You know what audiophile forums are like, and those "Top 5" and "Best whatever" things are sort of clickbait stuff.

PS: Unless you really meant solid cables.

 

[Veri]

PS: Unless you really meant solid cables.

Really solid? Like, not see-through?