Hi all,
My HTPC has both optical and coaxial S/PDIF outputs available for me to go to a 990 processor. I only need to go about 3' from one to the other. I seem to recall reading somewhere that coaxial was better, but now I can't find the article. The cost of one type of cable vs the other is fairly insignificant, so I don't consider cost a deciding factor. Can anyone tell me which connection I should use and why?

thank you,
Craig

There are arguments in favor of both coaxial and optical, but it's difficult to make a clear care for either one being superior - optical is immune to EM and RF interference, but it does require a data conversion from electrical to optical and back. In my experience, I've never been able to conclusively find either to be better than the other. Over long runs or in an electronically harsh environment (running bundled with power or speaker cables, for example, which should be done anyway), I'd lean toward optical. Over shorter runs, it becomes more of a toss-up. If you already had a cable of one type or the other or if you had a shortage of one input type or the other, I'd say let that be the deciding factor.

I always thought coaxial sounded "smoother" and less harsh. Not sure of all the theory behind it, there are tons of debates all over the net. I also remember reading that optical can induce more jitter into the digital bitstream and there are more conversions taking place.

My 2 cents, hope that helps

Thanks guys,
Good food for thought.

Craig