Hi Jim- You have at least two different choices I could suggest. Plug-in adapters are made that convert Balanced outputs to RCA. There are many grades available. BAT markets some really well-made adapters like these. I can't recall the name of the actual manufacturer, wait I think it's Neutrik (Swiss made), but you may do a search here or on AudioAsylum under either "Cables" or "Tweaks/DIY". Just type in "RCA to XLR" and you should get some hints at these solutions and the products. The other method is to purchase an adaptive interconnect. Some cable companies manufacture custom IC's that have RCA on one end and XLR (balanced) on the other end. This is usually a custom application and are more challenging to find. I actually use this solution in my work system to feed the signal from my Rega Planet 2000 (RCA outputs) into the 'Direct' / balanced input of my ARC LS-2B preamp. I bought a Stealth CWS (cross-wrapped silver) cable that is Male RCA on one end, and Female XLR on the other. Stealth makes some excellent cables, but you can also get some other cable manufacturers to do the same. Make sure you order the proper RCA and XLR configuration that you need (the RCA end is probably always going to be male RCA, but the XLR end can be either male or female depending on your needs...sounds like you probably need a cable like I have). The adapter plugs are around $100 on the used market for a full set of four. You can also buy cheapo adapters at your local electronic supply. The IC solution will depend upon which IC's you get. As far as which solution is actually better, I don't have the knowledge to tell you, and would be curious myself. Needless to say, I have not A/B'd both solutions, though have used both at different times. Hope that helps.
Changing from RCA to balanced- possible?
I've got a Sonic Frontiers Line1 preamp that I really, really like (probably because it's a HUGE step over the Adcom it replaced). It's feeding a Bryston 4BST amp through the balanced outputs, which was another HUGE step for me (I'm relatively new to seperates, and Audiogon). My question is with the preamp inputs- I'm running out of them since the Line1 has only four RCA inputs. It also has two balanced inputs, which I would like to use, but none of my sources have balanced outputs (phono preamp, CD, CD burner, tuner, DVD/TV (sorry!), and reel to reel). Does anyone know if I can change an RCA output to a balanced output, such as through an adapter of some kind, or with a change of cabling? I'm specifically thinking of the phono preamp and tuner, and have considered contacting the respective manufacturers, but I thought I'd throw this out there first. Lastly, this may be a stupid, obvious question to some of you, but it's not to me. Please keep the snide comments to a minimum (or at the least, keep them over my head!) Thanks for any help you can give me. Jim.
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