Schiit USB Cable Advice Sought

[Digital Man]

Hi All, Is the Schiit PYST USB cable worth the asking price ? How good is it ? also, what would be a good optical cable for Schiit gear ? Thanks 

[Annarobertson1947]

I bought this for my Vali2 , its very nicely constructed, and, an ideal length so no cables dragging at rear of units

[Digital Man]

Hi, I will just go ahead and buy one, did you also try a mini optical cable with your setup ? also, how did you find the Vali and which version of the Vali is it ?

[Ittaku]

Certainly looks to be a reasonable price. Schiit generally avoid witchcraft in their products. Generally I recommend from the cromo line from here:

https://www.lindy.com.au/cables-adapters/usb/usb-2-0?connections=212

 

Edited July 28, 2020 by Ittaku

[roh008]

1 hour ago, Ittaku said:

Certainly looks to be a reasonable price. Schiit generally avoid witchcraft in their products. Generally I recommend from the cromo line from here:

https://www.lindy.com.au/cables-adapters/usb/usb-2-0?connections=212

 

i would have been able to give feedback on Lindy cables had I purchased the correct one  - went with USB 3.0 Type B which I found out once it arrived is a different connector than USB 2 Type B

[muon*]

12 minutes ago, roh008 said:

i would have been able to give feedback on Lindy cables had I purchased the correct one  - went with USB 3.0 Type B which I found out once it arrived is a different connector than USB 2 Type B

Still they fail to make things backwards compatible as in this example, bloody industry!

[Ittaku]

4 minutes ago, muon* said:

Still they fail to make things backwards compatible as in this example, bloody industry!

It's not always a bad thing, and in this scenario it wasn't all bad as USB3 requirements are far greater than USB2 (being 10x the bandwidth and full duplex instead of half), and having dedicated different cables makes it clear whereas you would have people using USB2 cables and wondering why things weren't working.

[muon*]

15 minutes ago, Ittaku said:

It's not always a bad thing, and in this scenario it wasn't all bad as USB3 requirements are far greater than USB2 (being 10x the bandwidth and full duplex instead of half), and having dedicated different cables makes it clear whereas you would have people using USB2 cables and wondering why things weren't working.

Just a bug bear of mine ever since i introduced myself to computers

[Ittaku]

5 minutes ago, muon* said:

Just a bug bear of mine ever since i introduced myself to computers

Oh I understand and agree fully. However the USB group are extremely thoughtful in their design choices so I don't hold a grudge with that one in particular as they wouldn't have taken the idea of a new type B plug lightly. Talking from experience, getting USB3 to run at full speed (with say an external hard drive) really requires quality cables that reach the spec, and most alleged USB3 hubs fail. There's so much garbage hardware out there that isn't meeting their specs (and that creates a whole market for audiophile garbage that is slightly better than cheap throwaway cables at up to 1000x the cost for no damn good reason.)

[muon*]

1 minute ago, Ittaku said:

Oh I understand and agree fully. However the USB group are extremely thoughtful in their design choices so I don't hold a grudge with that one in particular as they wouldn't have taken the idea of a new type B plug lightly. Talking from experience, getting USB3 to run at full speed (with say an external hard drive) really requires quality cables that reach the spec, and most alleged USB3 hubs fail. There's so much garbage hardware out there that isn't meeting their specs (and that creates a whole market for audiophile garbage that is slightly better than cheap throwaway cables at up to 1000x the cost for no damn good reason.)

There are lots of non compatible moves that have been made that are quite justified, I understand these, doesn't mean that it annoys me any less

[Steffen]

Hence USB type C – one connector to rule them all.

 

I personally can’t wait for USB type A, B and all that micro, mini and other rubbish to go away.

[roh008]

7 hours ago, Ittaku said:

It's not always a bad thing, and in this scenario it wasn't all bad as USB3 requirements are far greater than USB2 (being 10x the bandwidth and full duplex instead of half), and having dedicated different cables makes it clear whereas you would have people using USB2 cables and wondering why things weren't working.

I think USB have done good job in standardisation - but remember USB C which is much smaller can deliver power and when implemented with Intel's Thunderbolt deliver 40GB/s bandwidth (found on Macbooks) makes me think they were being painful and could have kept the same size as USB 2.0.

In fact on reflection they did stuff up as they kept the name USB Type B the same for USB 3. So actually they really did stuff up on this one.

Edited July 29, 2020 by roh008

[roh008]

5 hours ago, Steffen said:

Hence USB type C – one connector to rule them all.

 

I personally can’t wait for USB type A, B and all that micro, mini and other rubbish to go away.

Can't wait for Apple to ditch the lightening cable - there are enough legacy devices and cables and ports for USB A/B - but lightening is only found from iPhone 5-11 and even the new iPads have ditched it.

[roh008]

9 hours ago, Ittaku said:

Certainly looks to be a reasonable price. Schiit generally avoid witchcraft in their products. Generally I recommend from the cromo line from here:

https://www.lindy.com.au/cables-adapters/usb/usb-2-0?connections=212

 

I am glad someone running your equipment doesn't go crazy with recommending uber expensive USB cables. However, have you tried that Cromo for example vs say Audio Quest Carbon or a Curious Cable?

EDIT - just saw your speaker cables - I stand corrected

I stepped up from a cheap no brand USB to Audioquest Cinnamon and was quite happy with it. I'm now thinking that a step up to a Carbon cable might be worth a shot. Unfortunately, my run needs to be more than 1 meter so becomes $$

 

 

Edited July 29, 2020 by roh008

[Ittaku]

15 minutes ago, roh008 said:

I am glad someone running your equipment doesn't go crazy with recommending uber expensive USB cables. However, have you tried that Cromo for example vs say Audio Quest Carbon or a Curious Cable?

Yep, and everything sounds the same to me.

[Ittaku]

And what do my speaker cables have to do with my USB cables? Analogue cables are a completely different ballgame to digital.

[Steffen]

3 hours ago, roh008 said:

Can't wait for Apple to ditch the lightening cable - there are enough legacy devices and cables and ports for USB A/B - but lightening is only found from iPhone 5-11 and even the new iPads have ditched it.

The problem with the Lightning connector is not a problem in two ways:

1. It’s not a problem for people who don’t use Apple devices, because they never encounter them.
2. It’s not a problem for people who use Apple devices that require them, because the cable always comes with the device, and replacements are easily sourced from Apple.

Technically, the Lightning connector is superior (even to USB type C) in many ways, and it can morph into anything Apple wants it to be. The reason USB type C was adopted for iPad Pros has most likely to do with <TBA, still working this out>

 

If you want to argue the line of Apple running a cable racket by pushing a proprietary connector, you’re in the wrong forum. Around this place, nobody who considers $50 for a cable a high price will be taken seriously  

 

 

 

Edited July 29, 2020 by Steffen
tpyos

[roh008]

21 hours ago, Ittaku said:

And what do my speaker cables have to do with my USB cables? Analogue cables are a completely different ballgame to digital.

I guess the main thing is that you tested the $30 Cromo vs $300 brand X to make the conclusion. But if you hadn't then the same thought process you had there would apply to a well constructed speaker cable at $20-30/metre. If it's well constructed it doesn't have to cost $300/metre 

[Ittaku]

4 minutes ago, roh008 said:

I guess the main thing is that you tested the $30 Cromo vs $300 brand X to make the conclusion. But if you hadn't then the same thought process you had there would apply to a well constructed speaker cable at $20-30/metre. If it's well constructed it doesn't have to cost $300/metre 

Try finding a 7 gauge biwire pair of speaker cables made with oxygen free copper (let alone separately teflon insulated strands of 6 9s copper). It's cosmetic as much as functional.

[roh008]

18 hours ago, Steffen said:

The problem with the Lightning connector is not a problem in two ways:

1. It’s not a problem for people who don’t use Apple devices, because they never encounter them.
2. It’s not a problem for people who use Apple devices that require them, because the cable always comes with the device, and replacements are easily sourced from Apple.

Technically, the Lightning connector is superior (even to USB type C) in many ways, and it can morph into anything Apple wants it to be. The reason USB type C was adopted for iPad Pros has most likely to do with <TBA, still working this out>

 

If you want to argue the line of Apple running a cable racket by pushing a proprietary connector, you’re in the wrong forum. Around this place, nobody who considers $50 for a cable a high price will be taken seriously  

 

 

 

haha i'll just agree to disagree, mainly because I use both platforms and therefore it does impact users who are in both ecosystems. I will point out Lightening connector specs don't match current USB C standards and also if they were as good they would be implemented on their macbook pro line instead of USB C/Thunderbolt connectors. Hopefully that also helps with why they have ditched it on the iPad Pro and also their iPhones  will probably follow the same path shortly

Edited July 30, 2020 by roh008

[roh008]

1 minute ago, Ittaku said:

Try finding a 7 gauge biwire pair of speaker cables made with oxygen free copper (let alone separately teflon insulated strands of 6 9s copper). It's cosmetic as much as functional.

sorry don't get me wrong if it makes a positive difference then that is the point.

 

For me I wouldn't believe changing my USB cable would make a difference the cable  I came from worked as a printer cable just fine. It worked for my music too. I wasn't expecting a difference but so many people have talked about Curious Cable, Audioquest Carbon among many others - I thought I would give it a go. I dipped my toe in to a low Hi-Fi quality USB cable and I personally feel it made a positive difference.

 

When I saw your system set up (higher end than mine) I figured (incorrectly) that you either overlooked the USB quality cable or as you have now clarified, found that it didn't have much impact on the outcome of the sound when comparing it to a $300 USB cable.

[Ittaku]

5 minutes ago, roh008 said:

When I saw your system set up (higher end than mine) I figured (incorrectly) that you either overlooked the USB quality cable or as you have now clarified, found that it didn't have much impact on the outcome of the sound when comparing it to a $300 USB cable.

Right. I compared it with cables up to a $1500 USB cable I believe it was, and couldn't hear a difference from the throwaway $2 cables in my collection here. Your mileage obviously varies. I hear differences in analogue cables, but they're much more subtle than people make them out to be. I only hear differences in any sort of digital cable when they're positively broken.