Alpha USB

About the Alpha USB

The Berkeley Audio Design Alpha USB is a noise-isolating, reclocking digital audio interface designed to extract the highest possible audio quality from computer and music server sources. It features an asynchronous USB 2.0 High Speed audio input and switch-selectable digital audio outputs: coaxial SPDIF via a 75Ω BNC connector or balanced AES/EBU via a 110Ω XLR connector. The device supports sampling rates up to 192 kHz and word lengths up to 24-bit. Great care is taken to electrically isolate the noisy USB input from the digital audio output, with the USB receiver powered by the computer and the output master clocks and line drivers powered by a separate isolated linear power supply. This design eliminates DC connection and provides capacitive and inductive isolation, dramatically reducing jitter and noise for improved audio realism. The Alpha USB is compatible with Apple Macintosh (Snow Leopard and later), Windows 10 (release 1703 and above), and Linux systems (ALSA 1.0.23 or above). It is designed for continuous operation with a power consumption of 3W and includes a user guide and power cord. Dimensions are approximately 10.5" W x 2.3" H x 5" D, weighing about 2.5 lbs.