Whats a good all around digital cable for under $250. I only need half a meter.

Definitely agree to stick with a digital cable at least 1m long. Plenty of articles out there on why you should use 1m or longer especially on coax and glass. Stick with coax over glass or aes/ebu if those are your options. I personally never cared for AQ digital cables; maybe their newer cables have improved from years back. 

What type of digital cable? If you're looking for new look into WyWires Blue. If you can find a used Silver series that will be better. Alex of WyWires sometimes has trade ins or demos on hand at nice prices, so it's worth a call to see if he has a Silver. 

Kimber Kable makes very nice digital cables too.

Other option is build your own. Check out VH Audio

The WyWires Silver does not have any silver - all copper. WyWires doesn't use any silver wire in any of their cables and if you visit their site you will find out they deslike silver wire as a conductor. They only use the word Silver as a model name.

I've listened to plenty of digital cables of various styles and types over the years and there is a difference in sound between them.  I started with the Canare which is a good cable but it's not close to cables even twice the price. Trust your own ears. Yes if you have a system that's not all that revealing and maybe using an Emerson DVD player then pick up a Canare. If your looking to tame your digital front end the Canare will do it; it's really not a bad cable but a little on the warm side. I use Canare cables on stage for mic's and have tried my balanced Canare's on my system at home and same thing; good cable for the money but not the most revealing cable, but a great tone control.

I don’t think WyWires Gold or Platinum cables contain those metals as well. I own many silver Clear Day Cables; their speaker wire, single and balanced cables and they are not bright... revealing but not bright. My dad owns Kimber KCAG, AQ Lapis, Diamonds and whatever speaker cable that was under the Dragon back then and none of them are bright either. I can’t speak for all silver cables but the ones I know well are not bright.

I think most people just assume silver cables are bright and probably have never heard them personally or maybe they have and their system or room is just bright anyway. Many of the silver clad cables can be bright and I’ve always felt those cables have "Smeared" the subject. I do agree that WyWires probably should have given more thought to their cable names, but nonetheless they make great cables.