Tried using a TOSLINK coupler to fix a signal drop issue in an old house near Richmond

I had this run where the optical cable was just barely too short. Everyone online says avoid couplers, just run a new line. But the crawl space was tight and I was tired. Slapped on a cheap coupler from Home Depot and a 3 foot extension. Been 4 months, no issues at all. Anyone else had a coupler that worked fine long term or did I just get lucky?

3 comments

3 Comments

nina_hall23d ago

That 3 foot extension is probably doing more harm than the coupler honestly. I had a similar setup with a 6 foot patch cable in a pinch and it worked fine for over a year until I finally replaced it. Everyone acts like optical connections are made of glass and fragile as hell but they're pretty forgiving. @the_jana is right that loss can creep up over time but I'd bet your cheap coupler will outlive the rest of the cheap gear plugged into it.

river19020d ago

Yeah, that bit about the 6 foot patch cable working for over a year really hit home for me. I did the exact same thing once with a cheap coupler and a random patch cable I had laying around, and it held up fine for maybe two years before I finally swapped it out. Never had any dropouts or signal issues that I could trace back to it, but I also wasn't checking signal strength readings like the_jana mentioned. I think that's probably smart if you're picky, but for most people with basic setups, that coupler won't be the weak link. I just ended up replacing mine more out of guilt than anything else, honestly.

the_jana23d ago

Have you checked the signal strength readings before and after the coupler? I've seen couplers introduce just enough loss to cause random dropouts down the road, even if they work fine at first. It might hold up for years, but I'd keep an eye on it.