Newbie question re: USB quality

BC,

Does not surprise me that USB done well can beat CD/spdif.

It's the done well part that matters.

I didnt buy it Bcgator. My buddy brought it over so he could hear my Esoteric transport through it so he could really hear what it can do. He still has it and loves it and its hooked up to a Baetis server and a cd transport, forget which one. We both dismissed the USB as the most inferior. Now, question for you. You own one. Have you compared the spdif in from the usb in from a native spdif (and then usb) source? I suspect the answer is no and you are contesting I, you have listened to both - and dont own one.

Guys - just ask yourself the question - why do puters have USB? It AINT for audio!

Cerrot, I'm not sure I'm following your question. I'll do any comparisons I can, if I have the equipment to do them. Are you asking if I've done a comparison of SPDIF vs. USB from the SAME source? If that's the question, unfortunately my computer doesn't have SPDIF out, only toslink and USB. So I can compare toslink vs. USB from the same source (computer), but not SPDIF. Likewise, from my CDP I can compare SPDIF vs. toslink, but my CDP does not have USB out. I don't have any single source that has USB and SPDIF together.

The only SPDIF comparison vs. USB I can do is connecting a CDP into the Peachtree via SPDIF and the computer into the Peachtree via USB, and play the same exact song at the same exact time on the computer and on the CDP and switch back and forth between the two instantly by just hitting the input selector buttons. Is that what you're asking? Please clarify so I understand your wording, thanks.

>>>Guys - just ask yourself the question - why do puters have USB? It AINT for audio!

Cerrot, I'm not sure why you keep saying this. The idea behind USB was to improve connectivity while allowing for adequate bandwidth - the idea behind it wasn't based specifically around a particular kind of data, it was to improve connectivity and allow hot-swapping without rebooting, and the daisy-chaining of devices. The type of data wasn't the crux of USB, it was the allowance of easier connectivity, although of course bandwidth played a big role in the design of USB and the bandwidth of USB is more than enough for audio data from a computer. You keep intimating that USB was designed for mice, or printers - that isn't true. It was designed for better connectivity overall, of everything - it just so happened that mice, printers and keyboards benefited first because those were the devices that most people had connected. But it was just as beneficial for graphic designers connecting those $5000 Epson photo scanners as for the grandma with her $10 mouse.

USB was introduced while I was going through my computer-geek phase, building my own machines, and I've read the white papers on USB. I know exactly why it was designed and the problems it was made to alleviate. It wasn't designed for audio specifically, just as it wasn't designed for high-end photo scanners specifically. USB was not about limiting or accomodating any specific end use, it was about removing connectivity limitations.