QED Reference High Resolution USB Digital Audio Cable

New improved, updated Reference High Resolution USB cable, by QED. Featuring a slimmer, more flexible profile and enhanced performance.

In common with all QED cables, Reference High Resolution USB is informed by the results of exhaustive research into cable design which was begun in 1995 and recently detailed in the updated Genesis Report. This report sets out the design principles to which the company adhere and which resulted in the development of a range of cables which represent the ultimate expression of sound through science without compromise.

Each QED cable in its range is based on the flagship model and although they may be variously influenced by price, size or ease-of-use, each retains the basic original features of that model. This gives even the entry-level cable in each range a sonic advantage over their similarly priced competitors. Reference High Resolution USB is the state-of-the-art offering from QED and as such represents the pinnacle of our understanding of this complex cable application.

QED Reference High Resolution USB uses a tightly controlled, 24 AWG, 99.999% oxygen-free copper twisted-pair featuring low-permittivity, foamed-polyethylene dielectrics, which is uniformly bound by an aluminium/mylar wrap. This arrangement is similar to that used in our high performance HDMI cables and is not usually found in a USB cable. Because the impedance of the data lane is kept strictly within defined limits of 90 Ω +/- 5% with a rise time of just 100 ps for a 3 m cable, it exceeds the specification given in the USB 2.0 standard by more than half; therefore the timing error or jitter added to the isochronous data stream is kept to a minimum. This has the effect of increasing the enjoyment of actually listening to music being conveyed by the cable to an extent large enough for it to be statistically significant in listening tests conducted in our bespoke listening facilities.

Features

• Impedance Controlled Data Lane
• Clean Path Audio™ Technology
• Ferrite Insulation™ Technology
• Ultra-low Jitter Geometry
• High Resolution USB Audio

Specifications

• Outside Diameter: 7 mm
• Characteristic Impedance: 90 Ω +/- 5%
• Signal Pair Attenuation: < -0.11 dB/m @ 480 MHz
• Propagation Delay: 26 ns max
• Propagation Delay Skew: 68 ps max
• Maximum Data Rate: 480 Mb/s
• Worst case time related jitter: < 76 ps pk-pk (5 m cable measured at 480 Mb/s; 440 mV rms)

More Information

• Reference High-Resolution USB Cable, by QED