# Wireworld Ultraviolet USB competition



## techenvy

hey now, ive been lookin for a small usb cable and this is at the top of my list,
 anyone kknow of any others which are on par with the wire world ultraviolet around the same price or cheaper?

 thanks

 and i v found a 1 meter and a .5 meter, now ive been told the shorter usb cable makes big difference, but with a high end usb cable like this would that still matter as much?


 thankyou headfi


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## directconnex1

Hey techenvy,
   
  I've read about a few USB cables comparable to the Wireworld Ultraviolet USB but I don't recall the other brands specifically (I know Chris Connaker at Computer Audiophile endorses the Kimber which may be less expensive but I'm not sure).
   
  Regarding cable length, even being hifi, like the Ultraviolet, shorter will be better. Not so short that you have no play.. but just long enough to "make the connection". Of course this depends on your equipment and preferences but in my experience using a modest comparison rig I found discernible differences in the output based on length. I listened with a generic USB cable (6 foot), Ultraviolet USB (0.5, 1 and 2 meter) and also Starlight USB (0.5 and 2 meter).
   
  In my experience, the shortest lengths produced better audio (clearer, nearer, cleaner).
   
  I hope this helps.
   
  Cable Chris


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## techenvy

hey thanks,  
   right now im gettin pretty descent results with a stock nuforce hdp usb cable cause it is  about a foot in a  half,,,   i had a usb to mini usb that was longer and did not sound near as good, but the dac was also weak link too. the nuforce usb sounds very good to my ears
   
  cheers


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## MoldBuster

I sold David's cables for many years before I got smart and founded a company in a different field which actually makes me money (selling high end gear is a labor of love 'cause you certainly don't make a lot of $$!). I always found his Wireworld cables to be very honest and had a zero defect rate in literally thousands of pairs I sold. I still use Eclipse 5 balanced cables in my big system. They are also a very nice group of people to deal with. Hard to go wrong with Wireworld.


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## xtbk9999

Hi can anyone explain how a cable such as Ultraviolet can improve the sound?  I've heard good cables are suppose to feed power into the dac more stably. But what could I expect from it.. the ability to give more details in music or improve soundstage?
   
  thanks.


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## directconnex1

hey xtbk9999,
   
  I don't know the methods used but I do know Wireworld engineers the cable design so that the squarewave stays "sharper" and rounds off less than conventional cable designs. Realistically, the differences you can expect with a Wireworld USB Audio cable are night and day.
   
  When I did the generic USB, Ultraviolet & Starlight USB Audio cable comparisons the improvements were dramatic in the effect that the better cables allowed far more detail like instead of just hearing the notes of the guitar I could actually hear the fingering and plucking of the guitar (Beatles, i forget which song). In addition to that kind of detail the overall sound becomes more open opposed to sounding restrained or coming out of a box. My eleven year old son remarked that the generic cable sounded like a radio station and the Starlight sounded like "CD" in comparison.
   
  I don't know anything about power feeds and such. I only know what I heard and it didn't require any effort to hear the overall differences between cables however it was also interesting to note the nuances of the music from one listen to another.
   
  Cheers


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## faileas

In theory, anything digital works, or dosen't. Packet loss might show itself as distortion, or things not working, but the entire point of digital over analogue is that it works the same no matter what your gear is, as long as its not broken, and within spec.
   
  While digital signals are 1s and 0s in theory, practially signals are never zero strength - its weaker and stronger, and pretty much never square - and your devices are designed to work around that non squareness... so.. i'm not convinced, from a purely intellectual level that USB cables will make a drastic difference - which from your description seems to be more the difference, to me between mp3 320kbps and Flac.


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## directconnex1

Experience trumps theory every time, and even then, there is much more to be learned.
   
  Question everything. Don't just take anyones word for it. Who knows what you'll find out for yourself?
   
  All else aside, Happy Listening!


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## Gibalok

Are there any reason to upgrade from Ultraviloet to Starlight?


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## allhifi

xtbk9999 said:


> Hi can anyone explain how a cable such as Ultraviolet can improve the sound?  I've heard good cables are suppose to feed power into the dac more stably. But what could I expect from it.. the ability to give more details in music or improve soundstage?
> 
> thanks.



Just listen.

pj


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## allhifi

directconnex1 said:


> hey xtbk9999,
> 
> I don't know the methods used but I do know Wireworld engineers the cable design so that the squarewave stays "sharper" and rounds off less than conventional cable designs. Realistically, the differences you can expect with a Wireworld USB Audio cable are night and day.
> 
> ...



directconnex1: Very nicely said. 

pj


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## allhifi

faileas said:


> In theory, anything digital works, or dosen't. Packet loss might show itself as distortion, or things not working, but the entire point of digital over analogue is that it works the same no matter what your gear is, as long as its not broken, and within spec.
> 
> While digital signals are 1s and 0s in theory, practially signals are never zero strength - its weaker and stronger, and pretty much never square - and your devices are designed to work around that non squareness... so.. i'm not convinced, from a purely intellectual level that USB cables will make a drastic difference - which from your description seems to be more the difference, to me between mp3 320kbps and Flac.



failis: 

"...i'm not convinced, from a purely intellectual level that USB cables will make a drastic difference ..."

Intellectual level ?  A billion dollar industry (cable company's; many around for 30 + years), growing customer base, countless, credible hi-fi magazines acknowledge/support better cabling .... and, YOU'RE not convinced ! (Lol)

pj


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## allhifi

Gibalok said:


> Are there any reason to upgrade from Ultraviloet to Starlight?



Other than SQ (sound quality), no.

pj


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## allhifi

directconnex1 said:


> Experience trumps theory every time, and even then, there is much more to be learned.
> 
> Question everything. Don't just take anyones word for it. Who knows what you'll find out for yourself?
> 
> All else aside, Happy Listening!



directguy:  Once again, a sign of maturity, sensibility, but mostly, 'awareness': " ...Experience trumps theory every time, and even then, there is much more to be learned."

This part in particular most insightful (and true) " ... there is much more to be learned" 

pj


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## moriez

@allhifi

You're responding in a 8+ years old thread :] Most haven't logged in for a long time.


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## allhifi

Lol. I did not know/realize ! (age of post)

BUT, even so, it's worthy for subsequent readers (budding audiophiles) to realize the inaccuracy and sheer foolish naivety of the 'Dinosaur Club' when discussing hi-fi cabling.

It surprises me these Lunk-Heads:
A) even exist today, and 
B) are allowed to speak/listened to (are given a voice)?

In any case, your reply (age of post) made me laugh; now if only my discovery of "new" music (that ranges typically from 10-30 years old), could be so 'recent' I'd be progressing !

Cheers,

 pj


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