High-quality playback in the digital realm is no longer a wishful pursuit but a viable destination. Digital audio has established its clear and designated place in high-end audio.
There is no longer a need for debates about analog versus digital as rivals; digital has found its fitting place. All kinds of digital playback – whether streaming, playing from NAS, or hard drives – require properly system-matched associated components, and USB audio cables are one of the fundamental pieces of the puzzle.
It took decades for analog to reach its peak and full potential. The digital universe has also undergone transitions, but we have now reached a point where music reproduction at the highest level has matured.
It is now a matter of properly setting up the system, understanding the key elements, and finding the necessary balance to create an environment that delivers the pure and raw energy of music with all its subtleties.
A K O Y A
No one can ignore the influence of the Polish presence in high-end audio, reflecting the importance and impact of products from Poland, which are already among the best in the professional audio industry.
The company has produced high-end audio cables since 2019, while its Guitar / PRO series cables have been manufactured for nearly 20 years and have been used by some of the most renowned artists and in many studios.
In recent years, the brand has consistently worked to improve transmission stability in USB cables, eliminating connectivity issues that many manufacturers still encounter. The AKOYA cable is the result of five years of intensive work on the development of David Laboga’s digital cables.
Introducing new design solutions required extensive testing and experimentation through trial and error, resulting in various models, including RUBY MK3 and EMERALD MK2.
At the same time, David Laboga aimed to create something truly special – a cable that would not simply be an improved version of the RUBY, but a genuine step forward, with a vision of a notable difference between RUBY and AKOYA, apparent from the very first seconds of listening.
The cable is made from high-quality copper. As with other models, conductors of varying cross-sections and purity are used to achieve the best possible sound, without being guided solely by measurements or technical data. For David Laboga, in the end, music is listened to, not measured.
Compared to earlier models such as RUBY MK2, the new AKOYA (like the RUBY MK3) is lighter, more flexible, and significantly more comfortable to use, allowing greater freedom when positioning the cable within a system.
The cable housing is hand-stitched with calf leather, and the connectors are custom-made from a single block of aluminum.
The standard length offered is 1.25 m, with a 1 m version also available, but neither shorter nor longer versions are produced to preserve optimal sound quality and transmission stability.
M U S I C
David Laboga Akoya Reference USB’s curated inner workings reflect the unique character of the music, no matter the genre, helping to create a dynamic and aurally engaging environment that complements the music for what it is, while allowing navigation through the ever-contrasting juxtaposition of buttery slow or hyper fast-paced narratives.
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Give Me Back My Heart by Dollar carries the unmistakable late-70s polish – bright, poised, and emotionally direct – yet beneath its lustrous surface, there is much more than simple pop escapism. The song unfolds with a carefully gauged sense of drama, balancing satiny fetter with sudden bursts of rhythmic urgency.
It locomotes between buttery, almost hovered passages and snappy, forward-driving sections, creating a push and pull that keeps the listener regaled. What may initially seem like lightweight romantic pop unhurriedly divulges as a layered structure, where melody and arrangement work together with premeditated exactitude.
AKOYA operates at the intersection of emotional gravity and calculated technicality, embodying a rare music accessibility, avoiding digital fatigue, maintaining clarity and openness while delivering emotional and dynamic impact in equal measure.
Laboga Reference USB cable balance demonstrates how thoughtful cable intent can converge into something emotionally enduring rather than merely aurally decorative, with a tactile quality that becomes increasingly apparent as you listen more closely.
The transient edges are never rounded or smoothed, but presented as they are – sometimes sharp and brittle, sometimes more attuned to the softer timbre and tone of non-metallic instruments – while still preserving dynamic contrast and maintaining the emotional arc.
Some USB cables expand the stereo image in unexpected ways – startling in their width – giving this track a surreal spatial presence and interfering with the song’s narrative.
As an antidote, AKOYA reproduces the sonic sphere and dynamics without altering the character or distorting the vertical and horizontal expanse, allowing the interplay between vocal lines and instrumentation to feel both close-knit and expansive, with a unique cinematic technicolor appeal.
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A rare kind of trio alchemy is at work on Bill Frisell / Ron Carter / Paul Motian, offering an intriguing playground for discovery and evaluation.
This recording does not push anything to the fore; instead, it unfolds the exquisite interplay of three masters. Bill Frisell leads, Ron Carter anchors the bass notes with potent calm, and Paul Motian moves with remarkable timing.
With AKOYA, the unwavering dialogue and interaction reveal something very different, removing the tension that some USB cables fail to address and offering a new kind of clarity – the essential juxtaposition of proximity and restraint that makes this album so special.
Consistently avoiding digital fatigue, AKOYA delivers an open and weightier presentation – a rare balance – without taming or altering the timing that gives the trio its distinctive temperament. Instruments resonate with greater objective proximity in the physical space, more naturally and realistically – not spotlit or exaggerated, but vividly present with their own aura.
AKOYA avoids drastic spikes, unlike some USB cables that try to impress with instant sonic spectacle, and instead aims for faithful representation and reproduction of original intent. The sonic change extends like ripples on water – subtle, not superficial, yet undeniably transformative.
In digital playback, regardless of price, USB transmission can fluctuate, with zeros and ones dissipating into endless fractions of blur rather than focus. That blur erodes contrast, softens timing, and ultimately diminishes interactiveness. AKOYA achieves a unique recalibration: diminished haze, improved microdynamic integrity, and a firmer sense of musical flow.
AKOYA cements the trio’s fragile elasticity, perfectly mirroring the delicate yet authoritative architecture that Frisell, Carter, and Motian create.
C O N C L U S I O N
No matter how subtle, details should never be underestimated in digital audio playback. When too much focus is placed solely on the technical side (which must be addressed), the necessary space to understand performance shifts – positive or negative – is too often neglected.
The addition of the David Laboga AKOYA Reference USB Cable will not leave the listener in the comfort of subtlety. It operates where musical momentum is reflected above mere softness, responding to musical variety, especially in handling musical energy.
Anyone who examines the cable’s craftsmanship can apprehend the power harnessed by carefully selected components that allow for stark musical contrast.
AKOYA transcends mere decoding of the music-filled space, authorizing the formation of a controlled environment with standout low-end control, impressive openness, and enhanced natural energy distribution, allowing for greater clarity and focus that matches objective reality.
Surprisingly, many USB cables introduce a sense of soft clipping, smearing time and amplitude, which consequently affects harmonics. On the contrary, David Laboga AKOYA Reference USB Cable operates with unique organicity, responding instantly to sudden musical changes without rolling off high-frequency transients, limiting top peak levels, or squaring off attacks.
While some, even far more expensive USB cables, present only the faintest enhancement or induce artificial stimulation or excess, the David Laboga AKOYA Reference USB Cable conducts a valid balance.
The positive impact of AKOYA is reflected in its depth, similar to comparing an oil painting to a print, where even when using the best lenses, technically, the color and a sense of depth are present, but there is no authentic natural abysm.
David Laboga’s proudly handmade reference USB cable reflects his brand ethos, valuing balance over sonic excess. AKOYA is a product that adds value to everyday listening, allows music to be felt, and helps listeners reconnect with it.
In this industry, maintaining enthusiasm requires more than just financial interest. It is essential to keep an open mind and remain receptive to discoveries that make a meaningful difference.
The David Laboga AKOYA Reference USB Cable is one such product, coming from someone with deep appreciation for music and both professional and high-end audio industries.
Akoya is a favorably potent USB cable that opens notable pathways and meaningful connections with music, and I am pleased to recognize Laboga’s passion, dedication, and contribution with the 2026 Mono & Stereo Highly Recommended Product Award. °
Price
- AKOYA 1 m: €4,800
- AKOYA 1.25 m: €5,200
Contact
David Laboga Custom Audio
Music Distribution
Wrocław 54-066
Poland
Email : info@dlcables.com
Web: www.dlcustomaudio.com
Whatsapp: +34600991056