"03-06-15: Stringreen
All of the above is true, but the bottom line is if you do have true blanced circuits (seperate + and - and not XLR inputs for cosmetic reasons), then it will sound better. My Ayre equipment sounds better with XLR connections utilized."
Here's something interesting. I have a CJ preamp that I sometimes put into my system. I connect it to one of my Ayre V-5's via an unbalanced IC. You're supposed to flip the switches in the back of the Ayre from balanced to SE operation, of course, for this type of connection. The odd thing is, if I leave the switches on the Ayre set to balanced, it sounds better. The only catch is that I get a hum with all of my cables, except for my Audioquest. Using the AQ IC's, I get away with it, no hum. Not sure why this is. My best guess is that AQ uses better shielding.
All of the above is true, but the bottom line is if you do have true blanced circuits (seperate + and - and not XLR inputs for cosmetic reasons), then it will sound better. My Ayre equipment sounds better with XLR connections utilized."
Here's something interesting. I have a CJ preamp that I sometimes put into my system. I connect it to one of my Ayre V-5's via an unbalanced IC. You're supposed to flip the switches in the back of the Ayre from balanced to SE operation, of course, for this type of connection. The odd thing is, if I leave the switches on the Ayre set to balanced, it sounds better. The only catch is that I get a hum with all of my cables, except for my Audioquest. Using the AQ IC's, I get away with it, no hum. Not sure why this is. My best guess is that AQ uses better shielding.