Bypassing L and R channels with optical?

Its usually a bad connection try plugging and unplugging the phone jack several times
with a drop of contact cleaner on the plug and yes the optical bypasses the analog out.

I like the sound better running the optical to the Integra rec and let the dac's
in it do their job also remember the optical out of the Mac is bit-perfect.

it is as long as you remember to turn off all processing and sound enhancements within iTunes preferences...


you could go USB or firewire out as well, but I'm with oztech, if you can go optical, start there.

To get the quality sound out of the mini you need a good optical cable, a glass toslink.

Sonicwave is a model that is an excellent one and you just get an adaptor tip for a couple of bucks. This makes a big difference in the quality of the sound.

A cheap fiber optical cable will not do the same. There's optical connections and then there's a quality optical connection.

Does the mac mini have optical outs? I can't see them. I'm looking at using the mini as a possible HT set up, but one draw back was no optical out like appletv.

Thanks

If I'm not mistaken the mini has one of those hybrid connectors ... plug in analog get analog plug in digital get digital. Pretty sure the mini has had that for a while just like most of the laptops.

Link: http://www.apple.com/macmini/specs.html

That is awesome! THank you, Dave!

No offense intended (ok, some, but not much) but: You're high, and wrong. It's a digital connection... either the 1's and 0's make it there, or they don't.

If you're talking about a very long run, a cheap cable may have enough imperfections to cause enough errors to actually result in sound degradation, but outside of that very specific circumstance, for normal 3'-6'-10' runs, cheap plastic fiber optic cable carries the signal just fine.

For a short run, there is zero difference between the 1's and 0's coming out of a plastic fiber and the 1's and 0's coming out of a glass fiber.

+1

Oh come ON.... You don't believe the facts?!?!

From what I've been told by uber-anonymous industry insiders the Monsterific(tm) Limited Special Edition Deluxe Zoom-Maxi Sistine Chapel Inspired Stained Glass Fiber Optic Cables with invisiclear(sm) ends attached by The Lords very own Angles (for a minor up charge) will produce the most heavenly sounds ever heard by mortal ears. Oh and you say you want proof? I have every bit of confidence that their chart designers.. err I mean engineers will have lots of impressive charts and graphs with pretty symbols on them to prove their statements.

Go ahead, tell me a plastic cable that could ever compete with THAT!