How does spdif work

SPDIF can be used with optical cables and coaxial cables while the optical port can only be used with optical cables alone. You can also use both. To wit:. SPDIF is a format that interconnects components in home entertainment systems or home theaters with digital high-fidelity systems for sound and music. With the optical format, the output signal that travels through the cable must be changed or converted from an electrical one to an optical or light-based one.

After the signal has reached the optical receiver or input, it undergoes conversion again from optical to electric. Optical carries 8 channels at You can link up your optical and SPDIF ports on your preamp box with either two optical cables or one optical cable and one coaxial cable respectively. Fiber-optics tends to be more sensitive to damage versus copper wires even though the latter is, in turn, susceptible to attenuation and interferences from RFI or EMI.

The short answer is neither is better than the other. It depends on your application. For example, optical cables support the ADAT Lightpipe optical interface which can carry 8 channels of digital audio at 24 bit resolution at 48kHz or 4 channels at 98kHz, whereas SPDIF is limited to two channels of audio.

In terms of construction, optical cables are usually thinner and are likely to have a slightly more fragile construction than coaxial cables so if you need a portable connection or use equipment in a harsh environment such as on stage, coax might be the way to go. Conversely, in an environment where there is likely to be a source of EMI interference or longer cables runs are required, optical cables may be the preferred choice.

Many modern TVs are equipped with an optical port, this allows users to break out the audio to a dedicated sound system such a sound bar or surround sound amplifier.

Optical, because it uses light to send the signal, will introduce very little delay in the audio meaning it does not affect the viewing and listening experience.

A question we are often asked is how to use existing audio equipment, such as an older analogue amplifier and speaker set, to devices with newer digital connections. Simply connect an optical cable from the digital audio, source such as a TV, and then connect that to the DAC which will then convert the digital signal to analogue, allowing the connection of your legacy equipment. You may also find that you have an audio source that only has an analogue output such as a turntable, or media player.

If you have a more modern amplifier or a sound bar that uses optical then you can still use these devices together by converting the older analogue signal to the newer digital optical or coaxial. Should you have more than one optical signal you wish to send to your amplifier or speaker system, but do not want to have to unplug and re-connect cables each time you change device, then you can use a switch. Various types of Lindy optical switches are available.