Optical Cables - hassle

[AMO1980]

I am finding that out of all my cables, the optical cables give me the most hassle.

If I use optical extension cables using female-to-female TOSLink optical adapters or use an optical splitter a lot of the time it does not work (i.e. no signal comes though).

Sometimes I find that the TOSLink cable that links my Xbox to my speakers are fine, but using the same cable to link my PC does not work.

What are the best ways to overcome these problems?

Thanx

AMO