3 ms·

One theory I read (for good quality USB cables to a DAC) is that reduced packet loss reduces jitter, which means that the clock rate of the DAC doesn't have to

One theory I read (for good quality USB cables to a DAC) is that reduced packet loss reduces jitter, which means that the clock rate of the DAC doesn't have to adjust in order to keep the buffer populated, but not overflowing. Sounds plausible, but I'm not sure that packet loss is high enough to actually cause this.

AdrianB1 8y ago
A working USB cable does not create packet loss and definitely does not fix packet loss; if packet loss occurs because of the cable, the cable is defective, nothing else. There is no good quality and bad quality, there are cables that work as expected and cables that are defective.
- stordoff 8y ago
  More or less what I thought about the network cable in GP's post - if the network cable is changing how your FLACs sound, it's _broken_.
- oneplane 8y ago
  But there is capacity, and USB1.1 may need less than USB2. That said, we can assume that we are talking about USB cables that are tested/verified/certified, which means they have to follow a few rules about how much Mhz bandwidth it supports, how much EMI it can deal with and how much drop in power it's going to cause. But of course, those are measurable facts and still have nothing to do with the data packets getting 'warm' or 'fuller' or some other subjective term.
atoav 8y ago
Yeah but still, the biggest loss is going to happen within your plug/jack connection. So if you really care, solder your cables in. Better than every gold plated connector your audiophile purse is ever going to buy. Also: Acoustics are what matters the most (and they are the hardest to get right, just by throwing money at the problem, that is why it is not usually beeing discussed that much).
sjwright 8y ago
Jitter is itself an audiophile scam. The audible consequences of extreme jitter is an increased noise floor, which itself is being drowned out by the sound in a typical "quiet" room.

AdrianB1 8y ago

A working USB cable does not create packet loss and definitely does not fix packet loss; if packet loss occurs because of the cable, the cable is defective, nothing else. There is no good quality and bad quality, there are cables that work as expected and cables that are defective.

stordoff 8y ago
More or less what I thought about the network cable in GP's post - if the network cable is changing how your FLACs sound, it's _broken_.
oneplane 8y ago
But there is capacity, and USB1.1 may need less than USB2. That said, we can assume that we are talking about USB cables that are tested/verified/certified, which means they have to follow a few rules about how much Mhz bandwidth it supports, how much EMI it can deal with and how much drop in power it's going to cause. But of course, those are measurable facts and still have nothing to do with the data packets getting 'warm' or 'fuller' or some other subjective term.

atoav 8y ago

Yeah but still, the biggest loss is going to happen within your plug/jack connection. So if you really care, solder your cables in. Better than every gold plated connector your audiophile purse is ever going to buy. Also: Acoustics are what matters the most (and they are the hardest to get right, just by throwing money at the problem, that is why it is not usually beeing discussed that much).

sjwright 8y ago

Jitter is itself an audiophile scam. The audible consequences of extreme jitter is an increased noise floor, which itself is being drowned out by the sound in a typical "quiet" room.