RE: [OT] Looking to borrow a spdif coax cable

["Phil Harris" <phil@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: ukha_d@xxxxxxx [mailto:ukha_d@xxxxxxx]
> On Behalf Of Tim Hawes
> Sent: 20 February 2007 22:30
> To: ukha_d@xxxxxxx
> Subject: Re: [ukha_d] [OT] Looking to borrow a spdif coax cable
>
> I may be talking out of my hat but...
>
> Wasn't there someone advertising these cables made out of
> wire coat hangers? i.e. proving that alledged "high end"
> cables weren't worth it? IIRC his USP was that only he could
> offer a full report on the performance of his "cable" where
> his commercial competitors could not/did not? (I may have
> been dreaming all this...)
>
> Can't you use your "phono" cable in the SPDIF socket?
>
> Tim.
> (now donning flameproof suit...)

Nope - you remember correctly.

He borrowed a commercial Dolby Digital decoder from a local cinema which
had
the facility for producing a report including bit errors (recoverable and
unrecoverable) and basically started out with a cheap "Radio
Shack" phono
patch lead and then went down from there. Eventually cutting it in half and
soldering inline an unbent wire coathanger and still not getting any errors
being flagged by the decoder.

He never actually "sold" the cable - he was just making a point
that digital
audio data itself is pretty rugged and from that ended with something like
"Well I guess at least I can certify that this cable is good as I can
give
you a report from the decoder to prove it so if you want one of these
cables
I'll run you one up for $1,000" or something like that.

Used to be one of my favourite p*ss take web pages before it disappeared.
:-(

Phil