This concludes my request yesterday for Optical Cable info. I think I mentioned my acquired desire to at times bitch-slap certain Nerds that design computers and electronic gizmo's and this one adds another bit of fuel to that fire. I'd spent a large part of X-mas day trying to get a new Home Theater operating in shear frustration because the fiber optic cord would plug in but not much more then gravity would pull the cords out. The alternative connections I tried with electricals were worthless. Today I learned why the Fiber Optic cords would not work:
#@%@% Fiber Optic Cords came with transparent caps over the male plugs! I'd never inspected a fiber optic plug close up and figured (incorrectly) if it was transparent on the ends of the connections and fit completely in the sockets to the right depth that was it. Today buying another $25 3' optical cord I found this one also had transparent ends like the other but this one by the way had mini cords, sort of like like those on ear plugs that went to the ends-meaning they were intended to be removed. Hmmmmmmm Looking at the original cords I tried grabing and pulling off the neatly shaped transparent ends.....w/o any luck....... next step I bit the thing with my teeth and pulled OMG it came off!................NOW the plugs worked w/o falling out!
I dug through our DVD collection and found a still factory sealed Elton John @ Madison Square Garden DVD and tried it out.... First you have to realize, most likely like you I'm from the generation that skrimped and saved to buy my first sterio 50W per channel reciever alone was $350.. The new home theater system was not much more dough and is 1,000 Watt. Our poor cats were majorly tramatized, as I cranked it up and for the first time in my life I enjoyed what it must feel like to have free reign and walk anywhere you want at a major concert. When Elton pounded the piano keys close up it was like I was right there with crystal clear sight and sounds, ditto every thing else on the screen.
Who would think of using tiny crystal clear caps on the ends of fiber optic cables or not including the statement REMOVE PROTECTIVE COVERS FROM TERMINALS even the typical covers over car batteries are Red and Black..
Hopefully someone else will not have the goosechase I had........

LOL, it wasn't me though. I would likely have done the same thing you did. Enjoy it. RonW PS,Oh, I would lose the EJ stuff.

 Getting old I mean. When you are young you don't need directions (at least you don't think you do) When you get older, you can't see to read the directions or see those darn little "transparent caps" LOL!!!! Enjoy your new system. Can't wait till I get mine. John

1970 Land Cruiser, 351w, NP435
(locked up front and rear)
1965 Galaxie, 428, C6, 3.89 gear,
Detroit locker
1979 Spectra Day Cruiser
stock 350ci Brand X, Mercruiser..53mph on GPS

Well BB, from someone who made a good living making, splicing, and installing fiber optic cables you are not the first to have that happen to you. All cables and connectors will come with protective caps as the fiber core is glass and is subject to scratches and abrasion. You also need to handle it carefully and not allow it to be crushed or pinched. You are ok looking at the light source in your equipment as it should be a led but I can't tell you how many times I got a service call from someone checking data equipment and was looking into the dangerous lasers that are used in single mode. I would get the call because they couldn't see any light so it had to be broken.
I'm glad you got it figured out though.

it's likely not a great idea to look into the source.

I remember in the early days of "Fiber Optic" deployment within BellSouth Corp. part of a technician's training for the technology was a base line eye exam. Initially making Optical connections & splices was a tedious exacting process in a very controled environment. I look back and reflect just how far we have come. ww

1965 Galaxie 500XL 445ci Stroker (soon) C-6
1965 Galaxie 500XL 390ci P-Code, 4-Speed
1965 Galaxie 500XL 289ci Cruse-O-Matic
2001 Ford F-150 SuperCrew 5.4L
2006 John Deer X320 Garden Tractor

With home theater, there's always more than one way to skin a cat.

I was kinda skeptical when you mentioned that your "electrical connections" didn't work. I presume you tried to hook up at least a few of the RCA phono jacks in the back, but they may not have been enabled in the menus. A digital coaxial connection would've worked just fine, but again, perhaps it wasn't "turned on" in the settings.

Glad you got your amp working. I think very few people would be able to tell the difference between analog, coaxial and fiber optic connections on most home entertainment systems, at least without specialized equipment. And as much as you like him, Elton John isn't specialized equipment. :-D

-Dave

... glad you figured out "what" kind of cable it was and removed the protective cap. Like I told a new EA once, "They don't install "Cup Holders" on PC's...show me what you are talking about.

Splicing, polishing and orienting Optical cable used to be an "art" now its a consumer item; ain't sciene grand?

My image of you has now hit an all time low.
Like a candle in the wind, it has been extinguished.



Doug
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69 Mach 1 R-code - 427MR 4-spd
68 F-250 4wd - 390HP 4-spd
58 2dr Del Rio Wagon - 390 4-spd
63 Mercury Comet 4dr 170ci 3-spd. (24mpg)
65 Galaxie 500 2dr hrdtp - 390 (automatic )