2. pc-audio
  3. 1150170453

any words of wisdom for usb noise problems?

i thought usb connections would be trouble-free after placing waveterminal u24 between my desktop pc and the dac in my panasonic reciever (office system). itunes runs dead quiet there. i am trying to implement a pc feed into my levinson preamp in main system. when the usb cable makes contact between my laptop pc and the u24 running into the preamp i get substantial noise, which is substantially worse when a usb hard drive is also attached.i googled "usb noise" and saw references to some midi users' and photo printer issues and some filter products (argh!- hope to avoid this step). also mention of computer screens as possible culprits any suggestions or similar experiences?
wkraft

Showing 2 responses by audioengr

audioengr
3,282 posts
 
As long as we are all advertising here, I'll pipe in too.

This is precisely why I use pulse transformers to galvanically isolate the PC from the Audio System.

Steve N.
Empirical Audio
Manufacturer
audioengr
3,282 posts
 
There are two fundamental problems with the Waveterminal:

1) it uses the power from the USB cable
2) it does not have any isolation to break the ground from the computer to the audio system

These things are difficult to get around without modding the thing. The Opticis will help with (2), but not (1).

steve N.
Empirical Audio
Manufacturer
More to discover