I2S Recommendation

Thanks, @lak.

I find the claim the two different length cables sound identical to be dubious. I2S clock designed to be placed directly in front of I2S pathway in dac. Using external clock with I2S cable actually adds jitter due to reflections in cable, the longer the cable the more jitter added. Perhaps this wouldn't be heard in a lower resolution setup?

@sns  I agree. I bought the 0.5m DH Labs HDMI 2.1, and if I decide on the Veritas, I’d also consider the 0.5m version. The only drawback is that the DH Labs 0.5m HDMI often needs to be twisted with some force to align properly with the I²S port.  But sound quality outweighs convenience factor.
 

Yep, the short I2S cables can be problematic if they need a twist. My Ximius is thick, stiff and requires a twist, somewhat scary in that one could easily damage one of the very fine gauge conductors in these cables. Nice thing is haven't touched the cable since initial installation.

I can't say for sure that both Optimus cable versions sound identical. Seems like Veritas went out of their way to control for that, and they are open about the situation at least. Most other models I've tried don't say a word about it either way . Which feels weird if their shorter cables really do sound better than their more expensive long cables.