optical vs stereo vs HDMI out

[PENG]

Hi...
i have an older Arcam 137 dvd player that i was going to use only for CD playback but i noticed i have several audio output options (going to a marantz AV7704). I have optical, stereo out (which i assume is analog?) and HDMI so which one to use?

Given that the unit has the old HDMI 1.1, I would use optical. Also, the Arcam has a better DAC than the 7704, so if you use digital, select PCM output or just use the analog outputs for music, select pure direct and hope Marantz won't convert it back to digital and back to analog again, as it may do just that... The Marantz has a decent mid range DAC chip on board, so the difference on paper may not translate into something audible.

 

[KEW]

The ground loop thing can be an advantage for optical....but I haven't had ground loop issues from hdmi OTOH.

I guess it is kind of random where they come from, but I have experienced Ground Loops 3 times, 2 of them were caused by the HDMI Connection. Fortunately, both were a second connection from a different pre-pro/AVR to two inputs of the TV, so I could live with just eliminating the second input.

 

[Bookmark]

I had the exact same issue with the Yamaha and Marantz plugged into the TV. They were also connected by RCA to each other (Marantz does the Height for Atmos). I solved it by connecting the Marantz to input of the Yamaha. It was so bad it did not matter if the Marantz was On or even plugged in. Without the RCA connection making up the triangle the problem did not exist.

I have had a few issues with Optical connections too, they can be a bit fragile sometimes.

 

[mtrycrafts]

But it's still hdmi....does make me wonder if optical is at its limit or just not being developed?

Sony/Philips decided to limit the interface bandwidth for whatever reason, certainly not because optical could not carry a very wide bandwidth. Fiber internet cable handles a boatload of data quantity.