What Is a Fiber Optic Digital Interconnect Cable?

Fiber optic cables are made up of very fine glass fibers bound together

A fiber optic digital interconnect cable is a means of transmitting audio data using the S/PDIF audio format, a common format used by virtually all digital audio equipment from DAT recorders to home theater setups.

Construction

Fiber optic digital interconnect cables are made up of thin fibers of completely transparent high quality glass. Lower quality cables will use fewer thicker fibers while higher quality cables will have multiple thin fibers weaved together.

Advantage

Fiber optic digital interconnect cables use light instead of electricity to transmit their data from one end to the other. This means that the cables do not suffer from potential ground loops, which can occur when two pieces of audio equipment are connected together while powered by two separate sources. Optical cables also do not suffer from electromagnetic or radio frequency interference.

Limitation

Converting any signal to a different medium can result in a degradation of quality. Transforming from an electrical signal to an optical medium may cause a pronounced fidelity loss on complex systems. Fiber optic cables also have a very restrictive maximum bend radius. Bends in the optical cable can cause signal loss or damage the cable. The maximum bend radius depends on the cable quality.

References

• Audioholics: Understanding Digital Interconnects