Nordost Tyr 2 Review (USB Cable)

[Metronomy]

Once you get past the basic understanding that most of mankind will do anything and I mean anything to make a buck or is just obsessed with GREED then it's not hard at all to imagine.You want to know why it happens...just follow the money.

I understand everything, however there must have been a company meeting where some genius asked, "why don't we make a $2000 usb cable?" They would have had a person who refused to produce it because it was useless, they would have saved themselves the image damage that is cascading throughout the list. (Sorry Google translation from Italian)

 

[solderdude]

BER testing for USB cables and finding max. transfer rates would, without a doubt, show differences between USB cables.
So testing for BW of the data wiring and measuring resistance of the power, return wire and screen (including inducing noise from outside) would be a welcome test protocol.

Its the price and alleged audiophool improvements that make this cable well... ummm..

 

[anmpr1]

You mean I waxed the AP USB cable for hours for nothing? I thought for sure it would speed up the transmission of electrons within it....

Here's the thing. If you are going to go to all the trouble of doing it, you should at least make sure to do it right. Waxing the cable is a start, but every real audiophile knows that you have to use the right wax, for the right type of music. I think Fremer wrote it up once, in an Analog Planet article.

For Jimmy Buffet and/or the Dead, you need Wave Bandit. For Ohio Express or the Fruitgum Company, you have to use Bubblegum. Marvin Gaye requires Sex Wax. If you're making cassette dubs for your car, you have to use Nak. Fu Fighters have their own signature wax.

 

[welsh]

Maybe like homeopathic dilutions these cables make a difference no one can see. (Pun intended)

Heard the one about the suicidal homeopathist? He took an underdose…

 

[doug2761]

So glad that I found this site a couple of year's back when I was transitioning from spinning disks to streaming. Cables had always been something that I figured spending a comfortable amount on was just wise prevention. Too many contradictory articles from various sources just made it a jumble. It didn't need to be that way and now it isn't. Measurements like these reinforce the wisdom of applying facts to the buying decisions. So glad that I didn't get fooled into high-priced USB cables that do nothing. Of course there's the legacy cables in my system that I thought were wise at the time.

 

[anmpr1]

A lot of comments are made towards the companies who produce the cables, but we have to realize that the reviewers who promote these cables are also to blame.

Funny to read about this stuff, but other than a good laugh, not much point in it. Maybe some will be saved; most true believers are, however, both hopeless and hapless.

Courtesy of Vic Serinus @ Stereophile, writing about the fifty-three thousand dollar darTZeewhiz 108, a rather colorful amplifier:

Twenty years ago, people told me that with one or two-meter interconnects, the echoes were so short that they wouldn't matter. But when you listen, the difference is just amazing. This is because hearing is so sensitive. You hear more than frequency; you hear timing. We can hear things you cannot measure.

 

[Azathoth]

Good review and testing, no surprise it doesn't do anything since well, USB is designed to work well anyways so long as the cable is in spec, and that does not have to cost you this much.

 

[welsh]

Sound quality can only be determined in the mind of the listener. To paraphrase Descartes ,I hear therefore I am.

Or, more accurately, ‘Something hears therefore something is’.

 

[welsh]

IF "Descartes" THAN start thinking ELSE stick with what you know AND stay in dogma. Descartes brought back us as the mesure from divine whatever. In the mean time we progressed quite when it comes to measurements and tools all do more hand work (kraftwerk) wouldn't hurt.

???

 

[PeteL]

My problem with some USB cables has been bandwidth. They work fine on most everything and then fail with DSD sources. I have that now. I had frequent noise only on DSD and I bought a new cable (only $15) and all is OK now.

Makes sense? Similar to an extension cord wire diameter?

There are some cables from greyish market channel that don't follow any specifications, it's possible that you can buy some duds for 1.99$ and have problems, but if they are certified and you don't use more than 5m for USB2 you should be fine (normally DACS don't use USB3.).How long is your cable?

 

[MaxBuck]

For me, the best part of Nordost's marketing language was its description of the "acumen" of this cable. Really impressive nonsense.

 

[nyxnyxnyx]

May I ask that what kind of tests and experiments cable believers use to verify the result (besides sighted listening)?
Not that I doubt Amir's method of testing, but for the longest time I haven't seen or heard the argument(s) from their side, and now I'm really interested to hear it.
I suspect that not all cable lovers are essentially clueless about technical aspects. At least a small part of them must have sufficient knowledge of what makes a cable qualify or not?
Or is it the psychology aspect that make people choose to be denial? Assuming someone bought expensive audio accessories for $$$$ and the undeniable truth turns out to be that they only function as good as average consumer counterparts, that person might experience a sour mood.

I also know the old saying "You get what you pay for". Do you guys think that's also another reason for people to believe in cables? Premium price does not equal premium quality, but at the very least it brings a sense of relief and trust to the customers.

 

[Aperiodic]

Although these 'magic cable' (and tube component) reviews always have a predictable outcome, it is still good to hold their manufacturers' feet to the fire, as Amir points out. If it saves even one audiophile from being played for a sucker, it will have done a public service. Of course, spending at these levels for something like this is more about conspicuous consumption than music anyway, so many would continue anyway. "It is easier to fool someone than to convince someone that they have been fooled." -Mark Twain

 

[peniku8]

There is a thin line between snake oil products and scams, and I think the difference is in the marketing, which is imo on the scam side here.
They promise this cable will improve your computer audio performance. Not "you will percieve a difference", which hints to psychoacoustics, so the latter statement is indeed true. They can't get out of it by saying 'you can't measure the difference, you can only hear it', because they have to prove their point of marketing, not the other way around. I don't care what millionaires do with their money, but this kind of marketing really scams money out of the average consumer and it's disgusting. I remember when I was 15 and had bought my first own sound system, that I was thinking about buying a 150€ power cable because it promised to make everything so much better. The speakers were just a little more than that and I couldn't afford much else, so I'm glad I knew electronics a bit already and was too skeptic to buy it, even though it had so many 5 star ratings backing up their claims.
I'm sorry for everyone who spent more than a tenth of their budget on cabling. Unless you need extremely long cable runs, where the price of copper alone justifies it, but that's an edge case I guess.

 

[Aperiodic]

You mean I waxed the AP USB cable for hours for nothing? I thought for sure it would speed up the transmission of electrons within it....

You need to get the wax INSIDE the cable.

 

[nyxnyxnyx]

I also just remembered this:
In the transducer landscape (speakers, headphones, iems...) we can often see how people prefer something much cheaper/less prestige more than something expensive/totl/hifi/whatever. And usually the notion of this preference is easily accepted and understandable.

Yet, in the world of cable debates, I don't recall seeing individuals who experienced a vast amount of different cables saying they prefer the much cheaper ones rather than the prestige ones. Why is it like that?
In fact, I've read some old threads in various audio forums about audio accessories discussions. One of the first things people say to the cynical folks is always related to their hearing. It always baffles me a little bit when I think about it.

 

[Astoneroad]

Or, more accurately, ‘Something hears therefore something is’.

Isn't dat puttin' da cart before the da horse?

 

[Aperiodic]

Guessing the one person who rated it golfing panther got conned into buying the cable.

Probably someone with a twisted sense of humor. Or maybe they have it connected to the recently tested $7499 Marantz CD player and the heavens parted when they pushed 'Play'...

 

[Offler]

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I just want to point out on Specifications and used material.

Oxygen Free Copper (OFC) is material used for coolers in PCs or in heating devices. Its less prone to decay over time than regular copper, especially when the material has to be heated and cooled down often. Its really not that expensive.

Using it in cables? Well, why not. Cables should have better life-expectancy, but the material is still not much more expensive than common copper wiring.

Silver plating might increase life expectancy as well, but its completely unreasonable when there is plastic insulation on top of it. And there are other really cheap ways how to protect the wiring.

There are reasonable ways how to use and price cables with OFC. If you require high voltages, or there is a risk the cable might heat up.

But it will definitely not have any effect on sound quality.

 

[DrIacozKnows]

I'm now wondering if Nordost is affiliate of PS Audio.

I can't stop laughing!