Toslink Question ?

I've used Monster's best TOSLink cable years ago and did find their connectors were spring-loaded and connected to the source or destination unit very well. Of course, I also found that 1 pre/proc I utilized back then had variations in the size of the receptacle on some of the 4 TOSlink inputs. The connectors on Monster were spring-loaded and very good as stated however I did find that Audioquest OptiLink5 (possibly due to superior construction and materials on the cable itself) yielded a better fit and a better sound profile.

07-08-10: Zephyr24069
I've used Monster's best TOSLink cable years ago... I did find that Audioquest OptiLink5 (possibly due to superior construction and materials on the cable itself) yielded a better fit and a better sound profile.

How much more expensive was the AQ, and in your opinion, was the performance improvement worth it?

The Interlink Reference and M-Series were/are in the $100 price range. The Optilink-5 from AQ retails at $495 today though you can get one for less on Audiogon/other sources. The difference to my ears in 5.1, 6.1 and 7.1 was very noticeable.