Digital Optical OR Digital Coax???

cable quality makes a difference in the analog world but in the digital realm a toslink is a toslink and a coax is a coax. Some are just prettier than others. A digital signal either goes from point A to point B or it doesn't. By the way the fiber (toslink) and the coax signal are exactly the same. We custom installers like the coax signal better because we custom build our cables for looks.

 

Noise not a factor then??

 

orphius,
Occasionally you will encounter noise issues in the poorist of situations, like the power supply being shared by other equipment in the house containing an electrical motor. My point is from 8 years of installing equipment in homes. 99% of systems will not see any difference between a $20 digital audio cable and a $100 digital audio cable. Granted a large protion of our business is new construction and we have control over the electrical wiring.

By the way, digital equipment actually causes more noise problems for other equipment. If you are using X10 control in your house and are having problems, try puting a filter at your processor or receiver.

I see in your post that you went from a $90 cable to a higher end cable and saw results. I completely agree with you on analog cables, if your equipment is high end enough to give you top quality results in the first place.

 

Here's something else to ponder. Denon's Digi-link is a $7 or $8 Cat-5 patch cable.

 

Yeah, i wasnt sure if noise was a factor on digital cables, especially if running near non-magnetically shielded speakers. With Analogue, as you mentioned, it is a factor. My Q.E.D. cable is awesome for my component Video signal, which i feel is better than the DVI link i had instead.

 

Orphius,
My opinion is that component performs better on a DVD player than DVI. Not sure why.

 

I've found that too. Even though, for a Digital projector with DVI input, you would think a straight digital signal is the best way to send a digital image from it from a DVD player.I, like yourself, have always found the component gives better colour reporduction and clarity...if its a good cable!

Chris

 

I too have tested between coaxial & toslink. There is a huge amount of personal opinion involved. To say that it's all digital and there is no difference, is not correct IMO. What about the connections? If fiberoptic cable isn't lining up correctly, like cheap cables are prone to do? A 10 dollar cable sounds the same as a 100 dollar? I know not. I tested a $110 IXOS toslink cable against a $90 Monster coaxial, and prefer the coaxial. I tested this with my Yamaha RX-Z1 amp, Denon 2200 DVD, Harm. Kar. DVD 25, & Energy 2.4 & 2.0 Veritas speakers. Not a huge difference by any means, the biggest noticable difference was in cd music. The toslink sounded slightly tinnyer (slightly metallic), it's imaging ability was also poorer in surround sound. If you compare them on a $500 system, you'll notice little to no difference, but on a larger system, it's there. By the way, the best thing you can do is not to upgrade your cables. It's addictive, soon you'll be spending $500 on a power lead for your amp, $2200 line filters, don't go down this road, it's expensive and while the sound quality will make your friends mouths drop, it won't put food on the table.

 

Yeah, those very expensive cables are around for a purpose....tv stations, radio stations etc....For home use, there are limits as to what you can do. Why spend too much money on the cables, when your system is worth thousands...

Try and spend about 10-15% of your budget on cables, including speaker cable...

 

Oriphus is right in ragards to digital cable quality.

Look at the internet. You take a picture from you 8MP digital SLR camera, perfect picture around 3.5mb. You email it to your friend. That file gets transmitted 20,000kms around the world, not 20cm from the DVD player to the receiver, and viewed at the other end.

Through that entire 20,000km journey the 3.5mb picture either remains perfect over all that crappy copper wire from the adsl modem to isp, and on to the friend, or it doesn't get there at all.

The digital sound output is the same. It's digital, 0s and 1s, and it'll either get there, or not. A cheap cable and a $300 cable will make no difference in the digital world when they are in original condition.

Look at digital TV, indoor antenna, perfect quality. It may breakup occassionally, but no interference or ghosting.