The annual Yearbook from Hi-Fi Choice is a compendium of the best audio components to pass through the magazine’s pages in the preceding 12 months. Among them is Furutech’s GT2 NCF USB-B cable, carefully crafted to enhance the sound quality of any digital audio system.

While standard USB cables may be fine for connecting printers to your PC, they’re “not really up to the job for audio applications” writes reviewer Neville Roberts. “Using them to connect your PC to an external DAC can result in unwanted effects on the data signal being transmitted. These effects can manifest themselves as errors in the digital data stream, which the DAC in turn has to correct.”

Furutech’s GT2 NCF USB-B cable contains silver-plated OCC conductors treated with the company’s proprietary two-stage ‘Alpha’ process, designed to improve conductor conductivity. The conductors are then insulated with a high-density polyethylene dielectric and screened by a three-layer shielding. The connectors are 24k gold-plated USB 2.0, with a USB Type A connector at one end and Type B at the other.

The connectors’ shell is a multi-material hybrid construction that incorporates Furutech’s own NCF (Nano Crystal Formula) material – a crystalline component that converts thermal energy into far infrared and generates negative ions that eliminate static. This is combined with nano-sized ceramic particles and carbon powder, which collectively provide excellent electrical and mechanical damping.

Roberts hooks up the GT2 NCF USB-B cable to a Windows 11 PC and a Furutech ADL Stratos DAC.

Playing a hi-res 24-bit/192kHz WAV of Corelli’s ‘Concerto Grosso Op.6 No.4’ performed by Interpreti Veneziani, “The energetic performance comes through very clearly and the accuracy of instrument placement within the soundstage is superb.”

Moving on to Matthew Halsall’s ‘This Time’ as a 16-bit/44kHz WAV, he finds “the trumpet very clear and bright, while the accompanying flute and sax are really open. The bass is also punchy and powerful.”

Suitable for any digital audio system, the GT2 NCF USB-B cable is “well pricecd” and comes in several lengths ranging from 0.6m to 5m.

Read Neville Roberts’ review in the Hi-Fi Choice Yearbook 2025.

Discover the full range of Furutech’s high-performance cables and accessories at furutech.com and locate your nearest specialist retailer via UK distributor www.soundfowndations.co.uk