Optical cableand sound quality?

[tonky]

I have a weekend demo of a rega dac. I have very cheap optical cable running from the cd player to the dac.

Does the type of cable affect the sound quality? If so what is the best value for money cable?

Thanks Tonky

 

[fr0g]

I have a weekend demo of a rega dac. I have very cheap optical cable running from the cd player to the dac.

Does the type of cable affect the sound quality? If so what is the best value for money cable?

Thanks Tonky

Personally, I don't think it matters, so long as it isn't faulty. Others may disagree.

 

[CnoEvil]

When I compared my Ecosse "The Producer" (£20,) with the Atlas Mavros (£300), the difference was so subtle, that I don't think I could reliably tell the difference without knowing.

I think there are better areas to spend money.

 

[paradiziac]

I got a cheapo cable from Lidl for about £2, a Duronic cable from Amazon seemed a tiny bit better but it could have been the shiny faux gold plugs messin' with my mind.

If you're simply assessing the DAC, I think it's fair to assume that the sound would not be drastically different/better with a better optical cable.

If you really want to go to town, Weiss do the Chiron Glass 1 for 2000 EUROS... :?

 

[piper1st]

I agree, as long as the cable is not damaged, or excessively long, should be fine for comparison. There is this 'hot deal' though if you are after a 2m optical cable ...

http://www.whathifi.com/forum/hot-deals/qed-performance-digital-optical-cable-2m-massively-reduced-to-clear#comment-2700914

 

[CnoEvil]

When I compared my Ecosse "The Producer" (£20,) with the Atlas Mavros (£300), the difference was so subtle, that I don't think I could reliably tell the difference without knowing. I think there are better areas to spend money.

Apologies.....these are in fact digital coax cables, but I suspect the result would be the similar.

 

[the record spot]

A cheap as chips one will be fine, although you can probably snag a cheap deal on QED Profile; mine cost £8 down from £20-ish. Also John Lewis' own brand optical is very good for the money (£10).

 

[paradiziac]

Seems like they're all half-price...

An extra £5 or £10 for a nice purple jacket and the peace of mind of having a hifi branded cable seems OK, after all it's only beer money.

 

[SteveR750]

I think length will be more important than the brand (fnaar fnaar).