Following up our post on the Wavelength Brick and Cosecant USB DACs, here are a couple other USB transport options you'll want to seriously look at if you're going to make the big jump to USB audio.

Pictured, the $499 Red Wine USB Select (we covered earlier) uses pure battery power to feed its little digital engine. Also, Vinnie Rossi of Red Wine will trick your USB Select out in whatever ways you can imagine (add amps, pre-amps, DACs, wood finishing, etc), all you have to do is ask.

Also on the cutting edge of USB transportation is Empirical Audio with their USB Freeway and USB Off-Ramp Turbo solutions. The USB Freeway starts at $500 and the USB Off-Ramp Turbo adds Empirical's Superclock3 for a total price of $950. For $425 you can get battery power for your Off-Ramp Turbo or Freeway. Also check out Empirical's site for a great guide to getting the most of USB audio.

So you know, the difference between Empirical Audio/Red Wine (unless you get the built-in DAC) and Wavelength is the lack of an internal digital to analog converter. For those of you with killer DACs already, the Red Wine USB Select or Empirical Audio is what you want -- it's a purer approach that, for $500, is something any audiophile has got to check out.

Red Wine Audio USB Select
Empirical Audio USB Freeway and Off-Ramp [click "Computer Audio" on left side]