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As I said, I was not a believer in noticeable changes in sound from different USB cables.

Long ago I bought the 2nd cheapest AQ USB the "Forest" green USB cable. It was fine. Nothing special. I've used it for maybe 6-years or more.

Last month I found a used AQ Carbon USB .75m for a little over $100. So, why not? The Carbon is like 2 models above the Forest I was using. I expected zero difference. But I could spend $100 to prove that better SQ was not a product of better USB cables. I was very surprised that it was instantly noticeably better sounding. Naturally, if that was the case what about better still??

I have ready many reviews of all manner of different brands of cables and there seem to be a zillion choices. There were a couple of $400 cables that had glowing online reviews (i.e. Tubulus Concentus and Curious, etc) but I just didn't have a lot of trust in these. I do know that a lot of reviewers have raved about the AQ Diamond products, in general. But the Diamond USB retails for like $699 and up. I found used examples for $450-$500.

I decided to wait. Then on A'gon I found a guy selling a used Diamond with a "best offer" option and I pitched him a lower price that would be easier to for me to swallow as a test.

I unplugged the Carbon USB and plugged in the Diamond and again, instantly there was an improved clarity, a definition around notes, cymbals and an overall tightening of the presentation. A shocking amount of improvement.

Of course, I still wonder about those other USB cables are they better???? But I'm not going to go down that rabbit hole.


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