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Cable advice for moderate system

Hi folks...i am helping a non-audiophile friend decide on cabling for a new HRT MusicStreamer DAC that he will be plugging into his system which consists of Thiel 0.5 speakers, Rotel RA-1062 integrated and RCD-1072 CD player. He has Kimber Hero ICs connecting his CD player to his integrated and bulk Kimber speaker wire that were terminated at a local audio shop. I guess the question is what IC and USB cable should he use with the $99 HRT MusicStreamer DAC without going crazy given the price of the DAC itself is less than a C-note. Also his laptop/seating position is about 8 feet away from the system, so is it better to do a short USB length to the HRT and long ICs to the RA-1062 or vice versa. Any suggestions would be much appreciated.
cmalak
7 responses Add your response
trebejo
102 posts
 
The USB cable is a non-issue. Ask computer people about this and you will get a blank look. 0s and 1s will come across just fine as long as the cable is not defective.

The IC should be adequate and well made. These guys will customize it, length, plug, everything,

http://www.redco.com/
jessenov
3 posts
 
"USB cable is a non-issue"? "0s and 1s will come across just fine"?

Geez... I thought it's an audiophile forum, where people know what they are talking about...
jmcgrogan2's avatar
jmcgrogan2
6,346 posts
 
01-12-10: Jessenov
Geez... I thought it's an audiophile forum, where people know what they are talking about...

Do not get Trebejo started, you'll regret it, just walk away. Fair warning.

Cheers,
John
stereo5's avatar
stereo5
6,405 posts
 
I am using my Music Streamer plugged into a 20K system. I am using a Kimber USB cable (50.00 new) and a MIT AVT 3 cable (50.00 new). For a grand total of 200 including the dac, I have a serious computer based front end.
cmalak OP
681 posts
 
Stereo 5...thx for the post. Are you using a laptop or desktop front end? Is it set-up on your rack or close by? I am just trying to figure out whether it's better to have long USB run and short IC or vice versa. Thx
jessenov
3 posts
 

01-12-10: Jmcgrogan2
Do not get Trebejo started, you'll regret it, just walk away. Fair warning.

Thanks man. Taking your advice seriously - I'm outta here.
stereo5's avatar
stereo5
6,405 posts
 
I am using a HP Pavillion Multimedia laptop running Vista 64 bit. I am using the latest iTunes and all my music is in Apple Lossless format. I have a 3 foot usb cable and for the time being, it is on top of the dustcover to my turntable at the top of my audio rack.

You will find that the dac puts out a lot of output, it's much louder than my cd players or tuner. HRT says to run the volume on computer wide open and adjust from preamp, but I found that way doesn't give me enough range on the volume control. I am running the sound from the laptop at 75% and the sound is excellent, almost as good as my 2500.00 cd player.
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