2. amps-preamps
  3. 1323666595

Differential from source to pre but not amp?

I am researching preamps and wondering if should go with differential connections. I know there are sonic benefits from going fully differential from source to pre to amp, but my amp, an Odyssey Khartago, only has RCA inputs. I have a cd transport and dac that have differential xlr outs, so would there be any benefit to spending the extra money for a preamp with xlr connections even though my amp doesn't have them? One benefit is that it allows me the flexibility to upgrade to an amp with xlr inputs in the future, but this is null since my next upgrade will be to a tube pre and amp, which will definitely be fully differential. The tube system is part of a long term plan, so this SS system will be with me for a while and I'd like to squeeze the best sound out of it I can.

Thanks in advance for your advice.
rischa

Showing 3 responses by rischa

rischa OP
64 posts
 
Sure, I understand the general benefits of balanced connections, but I've heard that these benefits are canceled out if you don't go fully balanced from source to amp. Can anyone tell me if this is true, or is my understanding flawed?

Thanks again.
rischa OP
64 posts
 
"...some components that provide balanced interfaces but have unbalanced internal signal paths implement the conversion between balanced and unbalanced by means of an active stage which may be less than the best sonically, and may in some cases provide inferior results compared to bypassing that stage by using unbalanced connections."

I know for sure that the transport, dac and the preamp I'm considering all have internal differential circuitry making them truly balanced, so I'm safe in this regard.

Balanced from pre-amp to amp gives you much of the "benefit" of balanced circuitry. The source component is not as critical"

Ah, thank you, this is exactly what I'm wondering. So, with this in mind, I might as well save some scratch and go with the less expensive preamp.

Thanks for your thoughts, everyone, and please feel free to lay some more interconnect knowledge on me.

Best,
Alex
rischa OP
64 posts
 
By the way, in my last post, "Balanced from pre-amp to amp gives you much of the "benefit" of balanced circuitry. The source component is not as critical" was supposed to be in quotes to set it off from the rest of the post. Just thought I'd mention that in case anyone was confused by the strange non sequitur. (too bad we can't edit our posts on this forum)
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