Optical Wiring

[ke_742]

Okay so i have this sound system http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/products/details/US/EN,CRID=2177,CONTENTID=9486
the Z-5500.

Yes, it is awesome. But here is the thing i find the quality of optical wiring much louder and sharper. So the only source for me to use this is from the back of the ps2... Is there something that can convert like say an ipod to use this.. .like as in a hub. Or just a regualr cd player out there that has an optical out?

Thanks-

 

[ke_742]

heh i was searching a bit and i found this... http://www.welovemacs.com/av2000106wht.html

but now i have more question... the 2.0 jack is supposed to be of less quality... than optical.. then with that product how do u get better audio.. out of something that is of less quality then it. So if the optical is able to bring out better quality from a standard jack... than that means that the jack is able to transmit high quality audio but the out put is bad due to the very nature of it?

 

[phide]

Well, we need to get a couple things out of the way first. With the optical cable connecting your PC to your speakers, you have a digital connection. DACs (digital audio converters) in the Z5500 hub convert this to analog signals (six independent streams carried by three analog cables) to the subwoofer, at which point these signals are amplified for output to your speakers. Conversely, the iPod's jack transmits analog signals, which are just voltage variances.

I'm not really sure what the Belkin adaptor does, but inside of it are probably very small, excessively cheap converters, like the ones inside your speaker control hub. Essentially, if you plug this Belkin thing into your iPod, you're performing a total of three stages of conversion: once in the iPod itself, once in the Belkin adaptor and once more in your speaker control thing (or whatever) or your receiver. Simply put, more conversion equals lower quality.

The difference you're hearing between the digital optical cable and regular analog cables with your speakers is probably due to noise, harmonic distortion and other coloration. If you like it, great, but there's absolutely no need to invest in something that will degrade the output quality of the iPod, which is what the Belkin device will end up doing. If you want to listen to the iPod through your speakers/stereo/home theater, dock it.