like subject says is there any difference? which is best? Coas Digital Audio Input or DVD Audio Input?
JIMJIM
Posted on
Coaxial is better when you use good cable to avoid any interfarence from outside.
[Coaxial - analog interface] good: no D/A, A/D conversion bad: interfarence from outside
[Optical - digital interface] good: no interfarence from outside bad: noise due to D/A, A/D conversion
Derek
Posted on
When correctly connected, Coax and Optical should be exactly the same. Bandwidth isn't and issue, error correction (when connected correctly) isn't and issue. Distance, say over 50 feet might lean toward optical but who does that? Optical cables can be miles long compared to copper's hundred of feet for the same amount of signal loss. Optical cable can be fragile and cannot be taken around corners too tightly or pinched. For all intents and purposes though, it doesn't make a difference which one you use.
Now, having said that, there are a couple of situation where one MIGHT be better than the other. They both fall under "defective equipment" though.
1. The CD data, though optical, is converted to a electrical signal. To create an optical signal, this electrical signal - essentially the coax signal, has to be convered to optical by a laser-diode. You could theorize that an optical signal could not be superior to a coax signal because it is derived from the coax signal. I would not worry about it though.
2. Optical connections do not carry grounds. In a pooly designed system an optical connection COULD produce less hum because there are fewer ground paths. The music to the decoder would not be any better but a crappy amp could add hum to an otherwise pristene music signal just before it got to the speakers. This hum would be faily obvious though.