Personall, I think its six of one and a half dozen of the other. I'm actually using both in my setup but mostly optical. Some say that coax is less fragile than optical but I've never had a problem with optical. If your cable is over fifteen feet, your better off with optical.
I agree with gerry1, They are much of a muchness and it depends on your equipment and the environment of the location. If distance is an issue, go with Optical as it does not have attenuation issues. If the cable has to go through twists and turns and have kinks and bends to get to the amp, then use Coax as it is more hardy than glass fiber. behrad
Coax attenuates more than Optical, I would use optical through twist and turns, Fiber uses light to communicate. Coax uses signal that flows on the surface of the copper, If you bend or twist it too hard it will cause signal loss. If you can use optical in any situation, use it..
Coax attenuates more than Optical, I would use optical through twist and turns, Fiber uses light to communicate. Coax uses signal that flows on the surface of the copper, If you bend or twist it too hard it will cause signal loss. If you can use optical in any situation, use it..
I don't know If I agree with this statement Jlhfit. I thought signal loss through copper is a function of its length and therefore its resistance for the large part and its inductance for a tiny part, and not its bend or twist. Comparing 2 coax cables, one twisted and bent and the other straight, should give you the same signal loss IF they have the same overall length!
For the untrained ear it doesn’t matter... I am using both now because my receiver only has one optical and 2 d. coax. The optical to the sat receiver and the coax to the DVD player. Both sound really good and give you the 5.1 or 6.1 sound that you need. I hear that if it is for a long distance is better to use optical because d coax has the tendency to loose signal. But then again how many people have their receiver 20 feet from the DVD player or whatever...what I have noticed from personal use and other people can correct me if I am wrong... is that the d. coax seams to sound louder. For example using optical I put the volume in 30 and d. coax I only have to put it like in 23 or 25...
