SPDIF vs TOS
orb...@my-deja.com
recording MDs?
Should I try TOS instead? is there any difference in quality?
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.
Edward
I'm pretty sure TOS(link) outputs are a type of spdif, as are coaxial
outputs. Many soundcards have a coaxial digital output, but only a few have
toslink digital outputs. There is no difference, both are digital, but
portable recorders can only take the optical route. Most recording decks can
record via coaxial. If you meant recording by analog connections, there is a
difference, but it's really small if you set your recording levels right.
Edward
<orb...@my-deja.com> wrote in message news:8r56c0$39k$1...@nnrp1.deja.com...
impr...@my-deja.com
orb...@my-deja.com wrote:
> How is the quality of SPDIF Out connections from a PC Soundcard for
> recording MDs?
>
> Should I try TOS instead? is there any difference in quality?
The quality of the SPDIF signal will depend entirely on the sound
card. Arny can tell you more about that, but in general a SPDIF signal
should be excellent. I'm not sure what you mean by TOS, but if you are
referring to TOSLink, this is just the name for the shape of a plug.
TOSLink is a squarish plug with a small cylinder in the middle used for
optical signal. An optical cable with a TOSLink connection is just one
way you could transfer audio digitally.
I suspect you were trying to ask about the difference between an
electrical signal transferred via a coaxial 75ohm cable and an optical
signal transferred via a fiber-optic cable. Honestly, there should be
very little difference - certainly nothing audible. The only possible
difference that I can think of is that there may be problems with EMF
when using the coaxial cable, although theoretically the SPDIF error
checking should be able to handle it.
Confused yet?
--
-Imp
Theatre is life,
Film is art,
Television is furniture.
Walter Knapp
>
> How is the quality of SPDIF Out connections from a PC Soundcard for
> recording MDs?
>
> Should I try TOS instead? is there any difference in quality?
>
> Before you buy.
You have one choice in digital, as the MD's only take optical digital
cables, Toslink is it.
Walter Knapp
>
> In article <8r56c0$39k$1...@nnrp1.deja.com>,
> orb...@my-deja.com wrote:
> > How is the quality of SPDIF Out connections from a PC Soundcard for
> > recording MDs?
> >
> > Should I try TOS instead? is there any difference in quality?
>
> The quality of the SPDIF signal will depend entirely on the sound
> card. Arny can tell you more about that, but in general a SPDIF signal
> should be excellent. I'm not sure what you mean by TOS, but if you are
> referring to TOSLink, this is just the name for the shape of a plug.
> TOSLink is a squarish plug with a small cylinder in the middle used for
> optical signal. An optical cable with a TOSLink connection is just one
> way you could transfer audio digitally.
>
> I suspect you were trying to ask about the difference between an
> electrical signal transferred via a coaxial 75ohm cable and an optical
> signal transferred via a fiber-optic cable. Honestly, there should be
> very little difference - certainly nothing audible. The only possible
> difference that I can think of is that there may be problems with EMF
> when using the coaxial cable, although theoretically the SPDIF error
> checking should be able to handle it.
The sound quality of the coax cable will be really really poor, as
there's no coax connection on the MD's ;-)
Calum Tsang
Walter Knapp <wwk...@mindspring.com> wrote:
>> I suspect you were trying to ask about the difference between an
>> electrical signal transferred via a coaxial 75ohm cable and an optical
>> signal transferred via a fiber-optic cable. Honestly, there should be
>> very little difference - certainly nothing audible. The only possible
>> difference that I can think of is that there may be problems with EMF
>> when using the coaxial cable, although theoretically the SPDIF error
>> checking should be able to handle it.
>
>The sound quality of the coax cable will be really really poor, as
>there's no coax connection on the MD's ;-)
Then what's this coax connector doing on my Sony MDS-JB920 MD
deck? :)
Calum
--
Calum Tsang Research Systems Manager, Interactive Media Lab
tsa...@mie.utoronto.ca -- Mechanical and Industrial Engineering
http://peach.mie.utoronto.ca/people/tsangc University of Toronto
"I need a copy of Quake 3 Arena, please. Oh, and a shotgun."--Penny Arcade
Paul
Well, unless he has something like the Kenwood MD-203 or the Pioneer
MJ-D508 or the Denon DMD-S10 or the Sony models MDS-JB930, JE530, JA33ES,
etc.
All right, maybe I went too far :) Anyhow to the original poster, the
debate of using coax or optical is hard to decide. See which one your CD
player and/or Minidisc player supports. If they both do, just pick one.
Unless you were referring to something else when you said SPDIF?
Arny Krueger
> How is the quality of SPDIF Out connections from a PC Soundcard for
recording MDs?
Wonderful, if it works with your MD recorder. Toslink and spdif
transmit the same digital signal.
> Should I try TOS instead? is there any difference in quality?
(1) Check and see what your recorder takes. If it takes both:
(2) For short (5 meters or less) connections, toslink and coax sound
the same.
Toslink has far shorter distance limitations than coax. OTOH, toslink
is more resistant to noise pickup and generation. Toslink connectors
have a reputation for being a little fragile so be careful! Also,
toslink "cable" can't take sharp bends as well as coax.
j...@mich.com
On 2000-09-30 orb...@my-deja.com said:
>How is the quality of SPDIF Out connections from a PC Soundcard for
>recording MDs?
>Should I try TOS instead? is there any difference in quality?
This is theory. There should be NO difference in quality, The signal format
and content are IDENTICAL with both SP/Dif and TOSlink
The difference is SP/DIF is electrical and TOSlink is optical.
But the content of the data stream is IDENTICAL... In theory
In practice... Most of the converters I know simply convert the presence or
absence of electrical current into the presence or absence of light and that's
it folks. The converter I have is nothing but a driver and a LED in a
special holder. If a digital "1" comes "in" to the thing it sends a "1" out,
if it receives a "0" it sends a "0".
there might be a difference in the quality of the cable you use, Or in the
quality of a connection (In some environments electrical connections tend to
fare poorly but in these conditions you are likely going to have far more
serious problems with your sound card anyway)
There are also conditions under which electronic noise can "Sneak" into a
SP/DIF cable... espically a "low-cost" cable, that would not affect a TOSlink
cable. I strongly suspect there are other conditions where the reverse may be
true too (only it's light that gets in the way)
One thing to consider... If you have a LONG run where you need to use
"repeaters" then SPdif is already electrical.. With TOSlink you would have to
convert from optical to electrical and back to optical at every repeater. This
may "Soften" the wave form and introduce distortion.
Of course I do something like this.. My lash up at home is a optical link
(TOSlink) from a MD deck to an Audio Alchemy stabilizer (Which takes care of
any "Softening" of the wave form but only outputs SP/dif) SP/dif to a small
converter (See above description, Driver and LED in special holder called a
TosLink transmitter) to another MD deck. The Stabilizer needs to be used as
the next to the last item before the target deck. For very long runs
additional stabilizers would be needed. The run is not that long at my house
however. (Close enough I have to be careful with the remotes in fact)
John F Davis, WA8YXM, In Delightful Detroit, aa...@detroit.freenet.org
"Nothing adds excitement like something that is none of your business"
Themostdifficultproblemwathtaglinesisfindingenoughspace!!
Net-Tamer V 1.12.0 - Registered
Joe Anstett
> How is the quality of SPDIF Out connections from a PC Soundcard for
> recording MDs?
>
> Should I try TOS instead? is there any difference in quality?
TOSlink is just a specific type of SPDIF.
Type 1 = coaxial digital.
Type 2 = optical digital = TOSlink
Joe
David W. Tamkin
<39D9348D...@SPAMSUCKSemail.com>:
| TOSlink is just a specific type of SPDIF.
|
| Type 1 = coaxial digital.
| Type 2 = optical digital = TOSlink
In fact, let's give the full story:
type 1 = electrical S/PDIF transport, invariably with coaxial connectors
type 2 = optical S/PDIF transport, where
type 2a = optical digital with TOSlink connectors (the almost rectangular
but actually slightly U-shaped plug and jack, usually found on
decks)
type 2b = optical digital with 3.5mm miniplug/minijack connectors
(usually found on portables)
There are optical cable that have a TOSlink plug at one end and a miniplug at
the other. There are adaptors with a TOSlink jack and a miniplug to make it
possible to link a cable with a TOSlink plug to a portable device's optical
minijack. The signal is optical, and it is S/PDIF.
TOSlink is a subtype of one type of S/PDIF connection. Trying to draw a
contrast between TOSlink and S/PDIF indicates a misunderstanding of one or
both terms. As others have, I would guess that orbulus wants to compare
electrical S/PDIF to optical S/PDIF.
If so, the answer is simple: over short distances both work equally well.
Freeserve Time Unlimited
to convert coaxial spdif to optical, it is, this site shows you how to build
your own convertor, anyone with basic electronics knowledge (or at least
commom sense) will be able to construct it,take a look
http://nikhil.simplenet.com/projects/opticalconverter/
"Joe Anstett" <joe_a...@SPAMSUCKSemail.com> wrote in message
news:39D9348D...@SPAMSUCKSemail.com...
> orb...@my-deja.com wrote:
>
> > How is the quality of SPDIF Out connections from a PC Soundcard for
> > recording MDs?
> >
> > Should I try TOS instead? is there any difference in quality?
>
> TOSlink is just a specific type of SPDIF.
>
> Type 1 = coaxial digital.
> Type 2 = optical digital = TOSlink
>
> Joe
>
Kevin
> while were on this subject, a lot of people believe that it is not opssible
> to convert coaxial spdif to optical, it is, this site shows you how to build
> your own convertor, anyone with basic electronics knowledge (or at least
> commom sense) will be able to construct it,take a look
> http://nikhil.simplenet.com/projects/opticalconverter/
Yeah, it looks to be very simple.. the premise is to use the voltage
coming out of the coax signal to power the LED. It's almost exactly what
you do, too -- just a few components are needed to buffer the signal and
also bias the output so it swings between 0-1 v rather than -.5 to +.5 v.
Optical to coax, that's more difficult. But I bet that's not really hard
either. After all you can buy converter boxes...
--
Kevin