Which Do You Think Would Make A Bigger Difference - USB Cable Or SOtM tX-USBexp

radioactive

radioactive

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Which do you think would make a bigger improvement in sound quality in my system? I currently play back digital from my CAPS Zuma which feeds my DCS Debussy via USB.

1. SOtM tX-USBexp - SOtM
2. Wireworld Platinum Starlight USB 1M Cable.

When I built the Zuma, I opted to not get the SOtM USB card as it seemed a bit overkill as I knew my DAC had a great USB section -- it just didn't seem necessary. Now I'm not sure.

Here's the description of the USB card -- The SOtM tX-USBexp is an advanced audiophile PCIe to USB audio card like no other. This audio card has a unique design incorporating an ULNR(Ultra low noise regulator) for digital, clock, USB power circuit. Power input noise filters. PCI express slot noise filters. Xtremely Low Jitter clock. Active noise canceller for clock power. You can also use the audio card's external power connector to bypass your computers internal power supply and feed the card with the SOtM mBPS-d2s Intellegent Battery Power Supply for an additional boot in performance. It simply does not get any better than this!

I'm not sure about the effect high quality USB (and digital) cables can have on audio performance. I'm a believer in the value of a good analog cables -- somewhat lesser of a believer in power cables. That said, all of my other cables are upgraded.

Bryan
 
Both! ;)

But if I had to pick one....SOTM card and get the really good budget USB cable that HiFi news picked a few months ago in their shootout.
 
USB Cable...

A properly implemented system should have no distinguishable difference between that idiotic and overpriced card. Oh wait - you did a CAPS... meh.

I'd still probably go USB cable.
 
Did I miss something? By "Meh" are you suggesting the ZUMA is junk or something? It's by far the best PC I've ever had for music only purposes --Here's what I like about it:

1. SSD hard drive (no spinning platters)
2. No fans - heat-pipe cooled
3. Dead silent
4. Super fast (I put 32GB of RAM in it and got the I73770-T instead of the K or S so it has a TDP of 45W, which doesn't put out much heat at all).
5. JRiver as a playback solution controlled by JRemote on iPad.

What's not to like about this? The only thing I didn't really do was the SOTM card which I thought was overkill.

-E- said:
USB Cable...

A properly implemented system should have no distinguishable difference between that idiotic and overpriced card. Oh wait - you did a CAPS... meh.

I'd still probably go USB cable.
Click to expand...
 
radioactive said:
Did I miss something? By "Meh" are you suggesting the ZUMA is junk or something? It's by far the best PC I've ever had for music only purposes --Here's what I like about it:

1. SSD hard drive (no spinning platters)
2. No fans - heat-pipe cooled
3. Dead silent
4. Super fast (I put 32GB of RAM in it and got the I73770-T instead of the K or S so it has a TDP of 45W, which doesn't put out much heat at all).
5. JRiver as a playback solution controlled by JRemote on iPad.

What's not to like about this? The only thing I didn't really do was the SOTM card which I thought was overkill.
Click to expand...

The key thing is your #4. You did (very) right by going with the T, but 32gb is absolutely unnecessary, and probably hindering overall system performance (based on what the application of your CAPS is).
 
-E- said:
The key thing is your #4. You did (very) right by going with the T, but 32gb is absolutely unnecessary, and probably hindering overall system performance (based on what the application of your CAPS is).
Click to expand...

That's a pretty crazy statement. Having surplus RAM does not negatively affect system performance, nor does it degrade audio sound quality. If you really think it does, please provide a reference to any such technical review or scientific article indicating so.

I've compared my ZUMA to a lot of different music servers recently and find its performance on par and often better than all I've evaluated (from products sold as a single box solution like the MAN301 to a Sooloos and then to a Mac).
 
radioactive said:
That's a pretty crazy statement. Having surplus RAM does not negatively affect system performance, nor does it degrade audio sound quality.
Click to expand...

I never said it degraded sound quality.

I said system performance.

What are your voltages, timings, and speeds clocked at? Since you aren't using anywhere near even 1/4 of that RAM, you could simply be slowing yourself down compared to using lower voltage, higher speed, lower latency sticks. Happens more often than you might think...
 
It won't degrade performance either. Slow ram, bad timings, etc are totally different things than more ram than your os is using. And I said, "having surplus RAM does not negatively affect system performance" in addition to it not degrading sound quality. Get your facts right. Bringing up poor quality RAM is a red herring.


-E- said:
I never said it degraded sound quality.

I said system performance.

What are your voltages, timings, and speeds clocked at? Since you aren't using anywhere near even 1/4 of that RAM, you could simply be slowing yourself down compared to using lower voltage, higher speed, lower latency sticks. Happens more often than you might think...
Click to expand...
 
OMG here we go again with this...
I've seen this movie 987 times now. There is no ending.
 
Yep, nothing I can do with the "more is always better" crowd.

Ignorance is bliss.
 
It's science. If you really believe this is true put a reference to any publication indicating so. Simply claiming that more RAM than some arbitrary amount is not any kind of science I've heard of. Sorry, but I have an engineering background (degrees even), have worked in the computer and networking industry for many years and know better than what you're claiming. Go sell crazy some place else.


-E- said:
Yep, nothing I can do with the "more is always better" crowd.

Ignorance is bliss.
Click to expand...
 
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