XLR balanced vs. RCA connections

[boe]

I noticed on one of the preamps I am considering it has XLR connectors - fortunately my amps have both RCA and XLR connectors. What are the advantages of one to the other?

Thanks

 

[markw]

I find XLR connections invaluable and the only way to go...

...when I'm running looooong runs of a very low signal, such as 50' of microphone cable at the church. It keeps electrical noise out of the signal path.

As far as home use, I din't see the need for 'em.

 

[boe]

Thanks

I wonder why they come one way or another. I doubt many people have their preamps 50 feet from there amps - I wonder if it depends on the country the manufacturer is from.

 

[KenLand]

If you notice, the properties of transmission cables are always given per foot or per meter - like 23pF/ft or .8uH/ft or .008ohms/m etc.

So if a transmission line works better than another at 50 ft then its going to work better at 3-10 ft.

So I'm going to use the balanced outs on my D1 to drive pro actvie studio monitors.

Ken

 

[Mudcat]

So if a transmission line works better than another at 50 ft then its going to work better at 3-10 ft.

But, at 3 - 10 feet, the differences may so negligible that you'll need all of Gene and Steve's hyper expensive magnetic analyzers to determine the differences. I'm running into that problem with a speaker cable analysis I'm preparing. My LCR meter is great for capacitance and inductance in the pico/nano farad/henry range but may not be accurate enough in the milli to micro ohm range that is necessary to measure such short cables.

Anyway, and back to the point of the thread, if your amp/equipment has the balanced connection (XLR/TRS) and the unbalanced RCA, you'll almost always (99.99999%) be better off using the balanced connections. That being said, microphones, due to the low signal level almost require the use of balanced connections - no matter the length of the run. I'm not convinced that speakers in the home require a balanced need a balanced connection - unless you use pro equipment.

My wife and I went to a concert (free tickets - my wife knew some of the performers). Afterwards, we went back stage, and while my wife was talking to the guys, I was checking out the electronics. The bulk of the cables were general extension cords (color coded for length - orange is 25 ft, yellow is 50 ft etc.) finished with XLR or speakon [sic] connectors.

More on the extension cords later.

 

[KenLand]

But, at 3 - 10 feet, the differences may so negligible that you'll need all of Gene and Steve's hyper expensive magnetic analyzers to determine the differences.

Hi mudcat,

Isn't this site called audio*HOLICS*?

I agree with you, but if you know that technically its better, even if your ears aren't sensitive enough to hear the diff, and you've got the connections on your equipment, why not use them?

In addition to being technically superior, the balanced cables are typically cheaper. I got 164' roll of Mogami's best mic cable and 20 of Neutrik's best XLR connectors for less than $150.

I admit a lot of this is for fun and learning, but still it seems like sound science to me.


Ken

 

[Audioholics]

If you have the cables, there's no reason not to use the balanced connections - but make sure the shielding and solders are good, etc... really poor balanced cables would be worse than adequate unbalanced in terms of RF interference.