Your best resource is the Ayre owners manual. You can also search for "pints with Ayre" to listen why Ayre does balanced electronics. +1 on advice from mike-in-nc. (I cannot find Cambridge Audio NX.)
Should I explore balanced cables to connect my amp to dac?
Hi there
I just bought demos of Ayre AX5 Twenty and Cambridge Audio NX; I'll be using the CA unit as the DAC.
Both components support balanced connections.
As I understand, balanced cables provide their benefit when I have long runs; in my case the two components will literally be next to each other (so the cable will be 1m or less.
In this case does a balanced cable help and if it does, can someone suggest a good starting point under $200? Some guidance on what kind of situations I'm likely to notice an improvement would also be appreciated.
I just bought demos of Ayre AX5 Twenty and Cambridge Audio NX; I'll be using the CA unit as the DAC.
Both components support balanced connections.
As I understand, balanced cables provide their benefit when I have long runs; in my case the two components will literally be next to each other (so the cable will be 1m or less.
In this case does a balanced cable help and if it does, can someone suggest a good starting point under $200? Some guidance on what kind of situations I'm likely to notice an improvement would also be appreciated.
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I prefer single ended cables for my audio, mainly because my Bryston B135 integrated does not support XLR. For the distance you indicate I would stick with Single ended But you could try this one from Amazon - just to compare. NEAT Beeline XLR Quad Conductor Microphone Cable: Amazon.ca: Musical Instruments, Stage & Studio See which one works best Single ended designs get up there in price, so sometimes DIY solutions can ease that pain i.e. if you are handy with a soldering iron Regards - Steve |
There's a HUGE difference between 'support' XLR and being true balanced components. I have pulled my hair out over the decades when magazine reviewers would put a true balanced component into their non true balanced system, then use XLR cables and proclaim they couldn't hear any difference IMHO, true high-end doesn't begin until all components are true balanced hth |
I can highly recommend no-snake-oil cables made from Mogami W2549 cable and Neutrik gold XLR connectors. They can be made for you by ProAudioLA or other pro audio shop, and I believe there’s an outfit on Amazon also selling them. A 1-meter pair will be about $50. Balanced cables offer more noise and hum immunity and, because of the higher voltage, often better S/N ratio. Many users say that balanced connections are less sensitive to the cable used, but I have been using balanced cables for so long that I have no basis for comparison. Another advantage is that the XLR connector has a positive lock and is better engineered than the RCA connector. |