Digital Coaxial Cable and the Advantages of Digital Audio

Digital Coaxial Cable and the Advantages of Digital Audio

When it comes to digital audio, you have two options when it comes to choosing cables: optical digital audio cables, or digital coaxial cables. Either of these cables will let you set up your home audio or theater system in digital high quality that will transmit audio signals in digital, rather than analog form. The quality that they provide will invariably be much better than RCA audio cables.

What Are Digital Coaxial Cables and How Do They Work?

Like other coaxial cables (for example, the cable TV cable that is connected to your TV), these cables employ the same basic principle. They have an inner conducting layer that is usually made of copper. This layer is surrounded by an external conductor along with rubber insulation that wraps around the outside of the cable. The digital audio signal travels through the inner conductor, while the outer conductor (usually an aluminium foil) prevents interference and loss.

Unlike RF coaxial cables which transmit both audio as well as video, digital coaxial cable has just one purpose only: to transmit digital audio between two components. Obviously, this single function delivers much higher quality over RF coaxial cables, while minimizing signal loss and interference.

What Are the Benefits of Digital Coaxial Cables?

Besides the much higher quality that digital coaxial cable delivers, it has several other benefits too. In the typical scenario, a digital signal from a component such as a DVD player is first sent to a Digital-To-Analog converter (DAC) that, as the name suggests, converts the digital signal to analog. This analog signal travels through the medium (i.e., the cable) to the other component (say, a TV or speakers) which has an Analog-to-Digital converter (ADC) which turns this signal back to analog. Needless to say, this double conversion of the signal from digital to analog and back results in significant quality loss.

With a digital audio cable (i.e., both digital coaxial cable as well as optical digital audio cable), the audio signal can travel through a digital medium, thereby saving the use of the DAC and the ADC. Thus, the signal can bypass the receiver and deliver a clear, high quality digital signal.

You can find such cables on virtually every modern entertainment appliance, from home theater systems to DVD players to HDTVs.

John has been writing online for several years. Currently, he maintains a blog about growing taller and grow taller exercises.


Article from articlesbase.com

Atlona's AT-AD-2 Toslink/Coaxial Audio converter is a great little gadget for those who need to convert optical to coaxial or coaxial to optical or even input a single optical or coaxial and get both outputs working simultaneously. With it's built-in amplification feature, AT-AD2 can also serve as a repeater of audio signal and extend (double) the standard transferring distance.
Video Rating: 4 / 5

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23 Responses to “Digital Coaxial Cable and the Advantages of Digital Audio”

  1. qan2q says:

    do you have any part that convert a pal tv to an ntsc sistem since i need it cause I would like to send an european tv to Cuba and it surely have a different system ? is it possible to find something they can use to watch regular channels not just ntsc video , I hope someone understand me

  2. Lrdvltr says:

    @zedrein18 Thank you very much.

  3. zedrein18 says:

    @Lrdvltr It’s for digital audio. If you have a stereo system or new AV receiver there should be an input for it. It sends an all digital audio signal over light to your sound system, making for a really nice sound.

  4. Lrdvltr says:

    What are TOSlink cables for? Theres an input slot on the Xbox360.

  5. doctorkiller0 says:

    Again: funny how this guy say so much disinformation on his vids! There are two kind of S/PDIF : Coaxial and Optical (Toslink) on the hole video, he messes everything up! (It’s even written on the product itself! LOL Bullshit videos man I’m not even sorry for you!
    B.T.W.: this is not the only video he messes up: see the Tritton Ax Pro review video he made: same king of disinformation!

  6. eyeh8nbc says:

    This might come in handy for laserdisc players as they need 2 digital inputs on a receiver- one for PCM and DTS, the other for Dolby AC3. My current receiver has 2 digital inputs on the Laserdisc input, but I’m getting a new one that may not have that feature and require me to use 2 separate inputs instead with 2 video connections. (Yes, I have a separate AC3 demodulator so that’s not a problem.)

    That logo at the top of the screen is very annoying, by the way.

  7. flippincalls says:

    @kulkarniojas lol true

  8. sharpey3000 says:

    how do you connect your 5.1 optical audio out of your ps3 to a conventional 5.1 pc speaker with 3.5 jacks in this converter device, I just dont get it and i dont want to buy a expensive reciever just for playing video games.

  9. pacovideos says:

    thanks for spanish subtitles !!

  10. flynnplox says:

    from my xbox to moniter i have VGA cables so the audio plug is optical, on my moniter the only jack is optical, what i am wanting to do is get audi through my head phones. If i get one of these can i put the optical from my my xbox coard into it, then the headphone plug into the other side? will this work? please help.

  11. kulkarniojas says:

    dude, atleast know what port is what before reviewing your device!!

  12. grumpybb says:

    If that’s the first format converter he’s ever seen he definitely has not been looking very hard. I’ve owned a Midiman (now M-Audio) CO2 for around 8 years and it’s always worked perfectly. I also have the discontinued M-Audio CO3 that converts between SPDIF, TOSLINK and AES/EBU simultaneously. It also manipulates SCMS copy codes.

  13. krazykid1234561 says:

    fuck you your not even close to being 2nd your like a minllion shut the fuck up

  14. SARUJAN5 says:

    kool

  15. chilapa90 says:

    first fail tho

  16. toshineon says:

    Twenty-first, no, just joking. Nice device, might definitely come in handy.

  17. JibblesTaint says:

    lol

  18. cjdirectblog123 says:

    ok ok jeez

  19. CKCurley64 says:

    why does albert do the stupid little reviews and bauer does laptops

  20. MincedFeet says:

    you guys are fuckin stupid

  21. zreiscool says:

    fuck im third!

  22. krazykid1234561 says:

    wah the hell i was firs

  23. krazykid1234561 says:

    firs view fist comment so fuck of im first


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