I think you better touch base with Aesthetix. The Io has a single ended input stage and then balanced output stage. So, only a guess, is rca input cable is fine...balanced output
Advantage of Balanced over RCA for phono cables
Anticipating the arrival of an Aesthetix Io phono pre and wonder if there's solid advantage to cabling the front end with balanced cables.
The run from TTable to phono pre, and phono pre to preamp will not be longer than 1 meter. The associated gear is Aurum Acoustics solid state CD/preamp and Aurum hybrid amp (proprietary SS amp for woofer, 300B and 6SN7 tubes for mid and high frequencies).
I don't really understand the need for balanced cables for other than signal coherence and fidelity over long runs. Just my ignorance.
Hope you can help me understand the potential virtues and pitfalls.
Best, and Thanks Ahead,
David