From the phono amp designers I have spoken to over the years it's not a simple case of one design being better than the other, but a question of implementation.
I recall one designer saying that he gave a balanced option to satisfy the demands of the high end buyers i nthe states and far east. He said that introducing the extra circuitry for the grounding in a balanced set up caused of itself problems, and wrongly done can cause sound.
Two of the greatest stages of all time were un-balanced - Vendetta and Mares/Connoisseur.
I recall one designer saying that he gave a balanced option to satisfy the demands of the high end buyers i nthe states and far east. He said that introducing the extra circuitry for the grounding in a balanced set up caused of itself problems, and wrongly done can cause sound.
Two of the greatest stages of all time were un-balanced - Vendetta and Mares/Connoisseur.