About USB cables in general

[Greg]

That’s good to know. Please can you supply links to these knowledge sources?

I ask because my general view sides with the OP. I have always been a sceptic but recently bought a reasonable quality USB cable and I was convinced it improved the sound. My ITC friend rubbished my perception. I’m now in a quandary as to whether that was an ‘expectation bias’ experience or whether it really did make a difference.

Like, I expect, every other streaming listener, I just want to create the best sound to listen to, so look forward to your reply. No axe to grind here. I just want straight facts and information.

The only way for you to determine for sure if this is expectation bias or outside of your brain would be to go through a often considered tedious ABX test between the two cables. 

This being said, and for full disclosure I’m leaning more on the bits are bits side of the fence and cables are cable, if you perceive the overall result at being better and if you can afford it, why not just enjoying it?

Here is the trick in my mind, although there is an objective and measurable part of the path of the music (basically between the source and our ears or brain) the last few inches (within our brain) is where a lot of the magic occurs. 

Jean-Marie

The listening experience is a very personal sensory impression and not a technical measure! Enjoying music is subjective and emotional.

Indeed. I agree, but some technical knowledge or guidance from an unbiased person with the technical knowledge inverably allows us to cut a few corners, save a pound/dollar or two and lead us to a much refined set of choices when we come to select our choice of gear we prefer to use. Those of us who are technically ignorant really benefit from the guidance of those who understand, provided they are honest (not commercially connected in any way) and not inclined towards any aspect of marketing. The natural problem is those who really know are inconsequence employed within the industry exactly because of what they know. Finding an impartial expert willing to share what they know is often equivalent to finding a needle in a haystack.