Applications of USB 3.0 in Music Storage.

No one is yelling here Ballan. Perhaps on some other Threads, where there are those who try to bury the severe inconvenience of trying to assemble a PC Music Storage System. Yet, they keep on touting the convenience of the whole thing. I don't see a damn thing wrong with someone sticking with a CD Player, and paying someone else to design their Front End for them as opposed to struggling to build it themselves. I believe that it was one of the reasons why many shifted from LP to CD, despite the lack of sound quality. I believe it was for the convenience of Plug and Play with the CD Player. The Sound Quality of CD eventually improved, although never as good as LP. Still, I am going to miss that Plug and Play feeling from the old days. I am being told that this is the new tomorrow, and I must conform, so be it. Excuse me while I have to muddle through the next 100,000 possible combinations. Keep on hearing about alot of people having an easier go at it with their Macs, might be a lesson here, somewhere.

I don't have all the answers either, which is why I hang out here. ;)

I will say that I've tried all kinds of DACs and connections, and currently the optical output of my Mac directly into the DAC seems to get the best results. I understand that others prefer USB, but I don't think you should rule out SPDIF. I use Apple Lossless and AIFF files.

I am being very tempted to try a Weiss INT202 or HiFace Evo.

Now....I'm going to go hide before I get yelled out.... ;)

Ballan-I haven't got a clue "what" is the best connection for Audio. If you have an opinion as what you feel sounds best to you, feel free to share it. From my experience so far, there is so much misinformation on the Net about PC Music Storage that it makes decision buying almost impossible. I wouldn't mind a hundred choices, but more than a thousand with a couple hundred thousand possible combinations is a little overwhelming. Less we forget Music Program (Device), Filing System, Sample Rate, Sample Rate Convertion that only triples the number of possible combinations. Its no wonder that many are still holding onto their CD Players as a life preserver in an Ocean of Music Storage mayhem and confusion. We are all used to paying someone else to design our System Front Ends for us, not having to design it ourselves. This is NOT how I measure convenience. Only thing that I can do is muddle through the misinformation, and confusion, inevitably make mistakes, dust myself off and keep plowing on through this mayhem. I don't see ANY concensus on the best PC connection for Audio by any stretch of the imagination, opinions vary wildly. From what I have heard so far, many of the distinctions are small as the Technology continues to advance on all fronts for all types of connections. Of course small distinctions can be reasonably critical for many, including myself, but I have a limit as to how much I am willing to pay. $5000.00 for an Asynchronous USB to SPDIF or AES/EBU connector, when $5000.00 would probably give you a reasonably good sounding entire Stereo System? If you can afford it, go for it, more power to you. I think that I will hang back for a while.

Thanks for the Input guys. I will keep these things in mind. The Computer that I am having built won't be the final version, but a platform for modification as I can experiment with various Outputs/PCI Cards/Sampling Rates/and Music Programs. USB 3.0 is backwards compatable with USB 2.0, there is only two Inlets/Outlets along with half a dozen USB 2.0. The ASUS board for USB 3.0 was only $30.00, but I needed an upgraded Motherboard that provided PCI Express sockets. Upgraded Motherboard, upgraded to Windows 7, utilization of USB 3.0 with External Hard Drive equiped with USB 3.0, upgraded to Blue Ray Universal Optical Drive. Will it make any difference to Sound Quality when I rip CD's? Probably not, but it will be a starting point for experimentation. USB is only my first choice for connecting to my Stereo System DAC, but NOT my final choice. Use it for now, save up for PCI Card that Outputs 24/192 in AES/EBU. Still unsure about Switching Mode Power Supply driving PCI Card, I will listen for myself though. Apparently there is a problem with PC controlled Sampling Rate induced jitter via USB, Asynchronous Mode Converter might be preferred. Perhaps Isynchronous will sound good enough. USB is not necessarily my preferred Connector, Manufacturers of USB/SPDIF Converters or USB Input DACS seem reluctant to build their devices robust enough to handle 24/192, atleast they only advertise 24/96 capability. If you throw in the complexity of various competing Music Programs, Sampling Rates, Competing Systems (MAC), various Filing Systems, competing PC Outputs, this is a daunting task indeed. I am indeed going to need that Good Luck that www.lynxstudio offers! USB is just the first thing on my checklist to experiment with and listen for myself. I am not thoroughly pulling the trigger, but I do need a platform to begin listening for myself and making choice decisions about Sound Quality. Let your ears decide, modify and upgrade as you go along. As complex as this thing is, there is not much else one can do. I do appreciate the advice, and will keep it in mind. I still have to contend with those who argue strongly for the alternative. This makes it mandatory that I listen for myself before deciding. I still appreciate the advice though, and will definitely keep it in mind. Would be interesting though, to at least try a USB 3.0/SPDIF or AES/EBU Converter though. I do know of a particular Electronics guy that might be interested in building one. Probably would need another ASUS USB 3.0 Board as Input, but it only costs $30.00. If it doesn't work, I can still use USB 3.0 Inlet/Outlet with an external 3.0 equipted Hard Drive. MAC vs. PC, who knows! I will still continue to keep my options open with PC though.

Since you a having a computer built, it certainly sounds like you are veering down the pc/Microsoft OS avenue. If that is the case, you will want to research a bit more. For instance, below is a link to a pci card which outputs 24/192 via an aes/ebu (balanced cable) which is very highly regarded, probably the best way currently to transmit digital. Berkeley recommends it as their interface of choice.

http://www.lynxstudio.com/product_detail.asp?i=16

I am not endorsing any product her, only trying to show you that if you are building a pc from the ground up, you should consider doing it thoroughly before pulling the trigger. I am a Mac guy and output 24/192 via my USB with no issues, hiccups or the like. Good luck.

Are you sure you want to dedicate yourself to USB? Is USB the best connection for audio?

Thanks Jasonsobel. Everything that I could gather on the M2tech Website claimed 24 bit/96 kHz capability only, figured that this was as high as it could go.

USB 2.0 has enough through-put to handle 24 bit / 192 kHz files, it's just that many implementations are lacking, which cause the max data through-put to decrease significantly. The M2tech Hi-face is a USB to S/PDIF device, and it handles stereo files up to and including 24/192.

Thanks Larry_s. I keep coming across USB Input DAC's that claim that their highest sampling rate that their USB Input can handle is 24/96, even though they may have a 24/196 D/A built in. One High End Manufacturer even claimed that their USB Input can only handle sampling rates between 38 to 48 kHz, CD being 44.1. Their DAC still utilizes a 24/196 D/A Converter. They claim that the problem is the limited bandwidth of USB 2.0. I can't even find a USB to SPDIF Converter that the Manufacturer claims can handle 24/196 Music Files. The best that I can find are Converters that claim to handle 24/96, and that's it.
Still a Novice at this, but why no 24/196? Any Converters and DAC's whose USB Input can handle 24/196 Music Files?

USB 3.0 is basically faster USB 2.0. Unless you need the extra speed/bandwidth, USB 3.0 won't give anything more than USB 2.0 wrt music playback. USB 2.0 disk drives work just fine for storing musics files so USB 3.0 should work just fine, too. USB hardware doesn't have any impact on music quality unless the hardware is broken. USB is just a data bus.