robpriore

I thought this was really cool: it's a basic laptop running Tidal powering a $200K plus system! https://www.stereophile.com/content/raidhos-new-little-big-x2t-extreme-floorstander Equipment list is stellar: Another contributor to this system's superlative sound was the top-quality components in the rest of the chain. Quoting from the submitted equipment list, which mixes prices in euros and dollars, we're talking huge Moon 888 monoblocks (€70,000/each, Moon 780 v2 DAC (€19,000), Moon 850P preamp (€35,000), Plixir Power Conditioner 2 × BAC300 ($5400/each), Plixir Power Conditioner BAC400 ($1500), USB Disruptor ($129), and Nordost cabling.

It's a good way to get people talking, which seems to be working. It's also a good place to alert folks to new products. And with that, and a lot of requests from people, we've introduced a USB cable that simply cuts the 5 volt power lead for DAC's that don't need the 5 volt power. It's called DaBigGenius™ No 5 Volt Audio Grade USB Cable I know that DIY's can build this, though our DaBigGenius™ cables do incorporate external USB cable fittings that don't carry current, which is not always the case with USB cables. Also, some folks don't have the various tools and expertise to make this kind of cable, nor the will or inclination. So if your DAC doesn't need the 5 volt power, and you don't want to make your own cables, then this is a low cost ($35) alternative to a lot of other dirty USB power solutions sometimes costing quite a bit more. Finally, can someone please help me understand how this USB cable can possibly sell for $9000 - Crystal Cable's Crystal USB Absolute Dream Anybody on here own this cable?

The post you quote is not published. I was trying to figure out why you're so upset about the patent status of a device you've never seen or tried. Did you create a similar product but never bring it to market? Do you have a similar product for sale now? I would be interested to sell more products on my site to give folks more of a selection and exposure to different methods and philosophies. In fact, if any of you guys have USB Disruptor type products but maybe are not the best at Internet marketing, ads, design, etc., I'm happy to help. You can sell your products on my site. I'm not writing this to be sarcastic, I'm serious. I absolutely love my stereo, I'm so over obsessed it's uncanny. But it's high art, the highest, higher than Opera (that's a philosophy joke, Neitzche thought Opera was the highest art form because it embodied music, art work, and acting, well he never heard CSN Wooden Ships on my stereo!) I think that was Neitzche anyway. I am truly dedicated to finding a way to bring blissful audio to as many people as possible, which means a much more mainstream product is needed. I am pretty tired of people not having HiFi's anymore. In the 1970's there was a HiFi shop in every town. People had them, it was better - people were way happier and I think the music had a lot to do with it. Social visits are inordinately loaded with Bluetooth one-speaker solutions - it's the new HiFi, so small, so convenient. And like they spent so much on the home, gorgeous houses, plenty of room, and a crappy Bluetooth one box. I just see this over and over, it's like the majority have totally gone bananas. The USB Disruptor and its derivatives are just the beginning, it's the beginning of a development cycle that I hope leads to more people, way more people, getting involved in HiFi. The HiFi market is tiny, like $300M. The big dollars, billions, go to Sonos, Beats, Bose, etc. To me that's crazy, CRAZY! I'm shouting because those products are just not the "end" they so desperately, and effectively I might add, want us to believe. So you can see I'm working on a much larger goal, and would really like other folks to get involved. I mean that, I think the market needs to be taken back from the one boxes and it's going to need some collaboration to succeed.

Of course those comments are made by folks who have not tried the product yet. The comments would be different, were that the case.

I thought this was pretty interesting, his comments about ethernet too: [h=5]Hi Rob,[/h][h=5]First let me say that I’m the worst person at articulating what I hear so if I don’t make sense, it’s me not you. Second, I quiet like their.. umm.. format. A similar thing I had before was an iFi iPurifier which is a rigid piece and I always felt it must have loaded my usb port funny (as in supplying a moment/torque where there’s supposed to be very little) so your seem more suitable for sticking on the back of a DAC and forgetting about it.[/h][h=5]So what do I think of your disruptors sound-wise? I use them in 2 different setups. The first is my umm.. desktop setup using an Antipodes DX server into a Schiit Gungnir (old version, but USB gen 2) and then to a Cavalli Audio Liquid Gold headphone amp, ending up with a pair of LCD3’s or HD800. With this setup, (using LCD3’s) notes seem tighter. It’s only marginal, but there’s definitely more bite to guitars and drum beats. Definition seems better all-round which is nice. The changes are subtle, but then again, as far as USB sources go, I think my Antipodes DX is one of the better ones out there. (I’ve tried a few other USB tweaks and actually found no improvement at all, so well done!) Definitely “tighter”. Like everything went more “Dire Straits”, if you see what I mean.[/h][h=5]The second set up is mac mini->PS Audio Direct Stream. This is a speaker setup but at the moment I’m using a really crap amp driving budget speakers so hardly fair. A $6k DAC into a $199 amp and to $299 speakers! On this there’s certainly an improvement again in simply the… “clarity” of the sound. I can’t really point out where it is in the frequency spectrum, but it really did make the speakers sound a touch less confused like they normally do. What I really noticed with this is a little long so bear with me. My PS Audio DAC actually has an ethernet input – this takes files from a DLNA server into the DAC’s i2s input and from a budget SYNOLOGY NAS, this is the best input for this DAC, imo. While USB for this DAC is pretty amazing, ethernet beats it quite clearly. What’s nice about your disruptor is that it seems to take USB quite a bit closer to the LAN route. It doesn’t quite beat it, but I am now happy to compromise and go with USB’s combination of sq and convenience.[/h][h=5]So, sadly I can’t give you any jumping up and down with excitement type comments but I think for the price, these things are hard to beat. A complete no-brainer for anyone with a USB DAC and honestly, I think they will show themselves more clearly in lesser systems for sure. If I have the opportunity, I will try it on my lesser systems and see what they do.[/h][h=5]Congratulations on making something really great value in hifi. Such things are rare indeed. Best of luck![/h]

Hi Jud, thanks for asking. Here's what he said: Impulse test is theoretically useful measure for filters. It basically shows how the filter shapes and delays signals in the time domain. It might be possible to construct an impulse in MATLAB the same way that I made the sine waves and then send this through the DAC chain, but I don't know how well we could test this. I think the sine test is more representative as it gives more time to sample and FFT the signal. However, the impulse test would give the time domain response that everyone wants to see. Maybe a square wave test would show the same thing and be much easier to capture on a scope. Let me mull it over and see what I can come up with. As you can see there are challenges, perhaps he'll think of a way to do it.

I love your Buckaroo Banzai pic! I thought I recognized that. Big Boo TAY! Have you considered that if you kill the power connection from the source, it means the power never leaves the chip itself, so maybe it can't leak into the data lines in the first place. Just wondering if you considered that possibility, because you say to everyone that "replacing the power supply provides limited benefit" but that is not the experience I have had personally, nor my many clients.

Facts only: Thank you for the question. USB Disruptor cuts the computer 5 volt power from the computer. It does not introduce additional circuits for the data signal to pass through prior to the DAC, like the Regen. The approach is minimalist, which reflects my own personal philosophy of HiFi. To me, less is often more. The cost of my product is also considerably less than Regen. My customers with Regen's report improvements while using the devices together.

Pretty cool!

You missed the sarcasm, and I was asking the person to be more specific, they said the power supply specs were not at all impressive, or something like that. So I wanted to know why the experts I've contracted to build my supplies apparently know little about power supplies. I said I wanted the QUIETEST and that is what they built, at least to my ears.

Anyone who has the right equipment and is willing to explain their procedure in sufficient detail that someone else with similar equipment might reproduce it. This is exactly the case, I have given detailed descriptions of how to reproduce the effects. This is part of the instructions and I used to have this on the site but took it down, but here is what comes with the unit: Setup and testing – We advise you to consider testing USB Disruptor in the way described below in order to train your ears. This is a good way to isolate the differences. I used an average USB powered headphone amp/DAC combo for testing. I used a highly rated though low cost professional over the ear headphone. I used Jriver 19, the DAC automatically sets to WASAPI output, and for this test HD Tracks 96/24 The Carpenters, Top of the World. I’m giving you the exact track so you can duplicate my testing procedure exactly, so that you will hear exactly the difference. First listen with USB Disruptor connected. Play Top of the World and listen for the electric piano, it should be to the left, but almost below your ears, not the extreme left. If it’s not to the left then your headphones are backwards. Now listen to Karen’s voice, it should be defined, she should sound just to the right and a little below the ears, it should be separate from the electric piano, there should be a space that you can hear between Karen and the electric piano. See the diagram below. Now disconnect USB Disruptor, start by unplugging the computer side first. Connect your USB cable direct now, skipping USB Disruptor, and repeat the test. What you hear is the noise, and it fills the quiet spaces with noise. The space between the singer and electric piano is basically gone. The diagram below is descriptive of our A/B testing experience. Thank you, I'm going to add this back to the site. Looks like people would have found this helpful, as I originally thought. Sometimes it's best to go with your first instinct, I think I remember reading that's been studied.

That would not be the case because the speakers stay in the same position in your home, you just switch the USB Disruptor in and out of the signal and you can hear the changes.

Jud, if you had the unit would you be able to run the test you suggested? Or other tests?

okay Chris, it feels like these guys are taking shots at me and im just trying to keep the record straight. I was to understand that I could post replies to direct questions. Is that okay? I dont want to be banned, but what about blatant and false assertions? How do I protect the truth? Other manufacturers must face this guantlet, what do you tell them? Anyway, I'm sorry for not paying closer attention and will do so from now on. Kind regards, Rob