Is optical mostly a waste of time versus Ethernet?

Uptone is of questionable value. All about positive reinforcement. I bought one and really haven't seen any value in it at all.

no one understands what's going on inside this thing. It's all gibberish. Someone has created a lot of circuitry within this Metal box they created and they're selling it.

And then you hear that crappy Power cord they sell with it. Horrifying. They want you to buy a power supply upgrade after spending $600 on a switch. 
 

And then they say well you can't use more than one item on it because it contaminates the signal.  So don't dare to share it with anything else on your net work.

At least they could've furnished a longer power cord a better quality.  Right now it's just a pain in the neck to deal with

I've experienced enough streaming components, and observed so many variations in streaming solutions others report having good experiences with to write off any particular component or collection of components. I do believe we'll get to a point where simpler is better becomes a de facto standard, optimizing components by utilizing best technology available within each is key to getting there. Streaming still relatively immature technology, expect great number of innovations in coming years.

@sns no, not at all. It is a mature technology far beyond your comprehension. It is used in pro audio and pro video daily. You don’t understand, along with others on this forum, but calling it immature is just a spectacular show of your ignorance. 
 

you don’t understand it, but it is used daily at level far beyond your reach. 

I would advise you to open your eyes, read up on the topic, I have given you numerous sources to educate yourself, yet you chose to be ignorant. 

Fredrik222,

Hey I just read your last post —— was this supposed to be humorous?  It comes across especially harsh.  Sometimes attempts at humor don't go very well.  Keep practicing you'll get there soon.

@jumia no humor, just harsh reality. @sns keeps mentioning that “we” don’t know anything streaming yet and that it is a immature technology. That is a lie.

why call it a lie instead of no true? Because I have given him links to educate himself, especially on the pro audio applications and protocols, but he insists. So his statements are then simply a deliberate lie. Why did I say it is beyond him? Well, obviously, he either can’t understand protocols used, either in consumer audio or pro audio like Ravenna, or he desperately want to hold on to his limited world view, which then, clearly, the truth is far beyond him.