When to choice XLR over RCA ICs.

I’e given a good deal of thought about this particular question and from my perspective a very well designed single ended interconnect cable is every bit as good, if not better than an XLR cable due to several factors pertaining to geometry, insulation and connectors.

• please note - I’m referring to the more conventional interconnect that is generally 1-2 meters in length and not the 35+ feet

However, for those that have both XLR connections and do not want to get into the design aspects of cables, but simply purchase an interconnect - then I would recommend going with an XLR cable for the following reasons...

• the noise cancelling design
• the cable(wire) used is generally a better quality than those used on an RCA cables
• the pins of the XLR connectors are low mass, which is now the trend on the newer styls RCA plugs, but you still see those large high mass RCA connectors glittering in Gold and Rhodium made from a large lump of metal on some very expensive interconnects.
• the insulation is often much better on an XLR cables.

Higher end cables like those from Audio Envy, Zavfino and Hijiri are a different matter altogether - either style of cable will perform well.

For more details on cable design plase read this link

• Good Cable Design

Regards - Steve.

@cleeds - RE:

If all else is equal and the cables are being used between truly balanced components, I can’t imagine a scenario where unbalanced RCA connections could be better than balanced connections.

Unfortunately all things are not equal because of the following...

• The best low mass RCA connector is significantly better at transferring an audio signal than the very best XLR connector is able to achieve - i.e. at present
• Then there are the insulations and cable geometries, which can only really be "equaled" with a very custom cable build
• even then the number of conductors in an XLR cables can cause noise issues within the cable itself. This noise is not canccelled out by the balanced processing of the +ve and -ve signals in the component because it resides on the neutral conductor, which impacts circuit performance

OK, so even with the very best cables we are talking miniscule differences here, but the signle ended RCA interconnect for a 1-2 meter cable will always be just a little superior to an XLR ables of a similar design/geometry/build.

Due to the complexities of cable design there are very few people that will step upto the task of designing/building cables having their own geometry.

So, for the most part the XLR cable will "generally" prove to be superior.

But if you are into custom built cables having their own noise supressing geometry you can spare some expense by building a single ended cable that will better the performance of a similalrly designed XLR cable.

Unfrotunately, since the internal design approaches between the XLR circuit and the single ended circuit within a component can vary, actually proving which is better is incredibly hard, especially if the component’s design is based on a balanced approach and the RCA is there just to accomodate a customer perceived preference.

Regards - Steve

@cleeds - re:

williewonka

The best low mass RCA connector is significantly better at transferring an audio signal than the very best XLR connector is able to achieve ...

Hmmm, that’s quite a claim.

The KLE Innovations RCA have always been outstanding RCA connectors and according to others that have compared them to some very good XLR connectors on cables of similar contruction methods and maerials, the KLEI RCA’s performed better.

• This goes back abut 7 years and the KLE Innovations RCA have continued to get better in that time

RE:

Not when used between differentially balanced components that yield 6 dB better gain (or s/n) when operated in balanced mode, such as ARC.

In my view, an extra 6db gain does not result in improved dynamics, clarity and details - it’s just louder

Since personal preferemces tend to play a large role in cable selection e.g...

• I’ve known people that prefered using Duelund tinned copper over pure OCC copper, just because it sounds better to their ears
  • technically, OCC is faster and less prone to the timing distortions that occur when you mix two types of metal

But debating the differences between XLR and RCA for a high performance cable really is a moot point, however...

• people should be aware that the differences really are miniscule in high quality cables today, so opting for RCA is not really settling for second best any more

If a person really wants to improve their sound by replacing cables then I would really recommend they follow the link included in my first post above which covers the improvements that can be achieved by ensuring their cables use modern geometry, improved metals and insulations and state of the art and connectors.

Regards - Steve

@atmasphere - RE:

I see the really big advantage of balanced lines in that you don’t have to have an expensive cable with exotic materials for it to sound just as good as a cable that does have the exotic construction and materials.

if by exotic materials you are referring to OCC copper, OCC silver and low Dialectric contant insulation, then I have found that

• OCC copper and OCC silver are vastly superior to ofther variants (e.g. copper alloys like Copper/gold and copper/tungston) in terms of dynamic performance
• this allows them to recreate a signal that is more accurate i.e. compared to the original signal
• which in turn recreates the image of the venue in which the track was recorded more accurately.
• Insulations that have a low dialectric constant result in less noise being generated within the cable, hence improved clarity, which once again improved on the recreation of the recording venue in the resulting image
• This applies to single ended cables and ballanced cables alike

This has been verified by many members of the audiophile community across the globe that have tried many variations of both wire types and insulatons, with whom I have conversed while developing my own DIY cables. Many of them were building XLR versions of the Helix AIR DIY RCA Cables that used the same OCC metals, and insulations.

So basically the same geometry, wire types and insulations, the only real difference being the connectors, but even they both used silver plated copper pins.

FYI, the development of these cables has taken approximately 10 years so far, with constant assessment of sound quality improvements (or changes, sometimes not for the better), by many individuals from around the globe, so there were many ears listening to many systems of varying abilities and performance levels.

But as I said earlier, in the end it boils down to individual preferences.

• no two systems are the same
• no two sets of ears are the same

Regars - Steve

@atmasphere , a very good and affordable cable is Audio Envy

• OCC copper
• Very good insulation with low dielectric constant value
• Gold plated copper xlr connector
• You can purchase by the foot

You should hear a significant improvement in dynamics and imaging.

Venue acoustics should make a performance more lifelike

Percussive instruments should sound "crisper". E.G.

• Glockenspiel, the strike of the hammer can be heard
• String instruments, you should hear the nails on the string as it is plucked
• Drums are more crisp, like a gun shot

They have quite the following on audiogon.

They also make very good power and speaker cables

If you stream from a service then try listening to

• Nelly Furtado, great vocal recordings
• Roxette - very dynamic guitar and drums
• The Police, great bass and drums
• Pink, very good vocal recording on slower tracks
• Ed sheeran uses some unique Percussive instruments

On vinyl, I have recordings on the Tacet lable that excel in live classical performances, especially in the area of venue acoustics.

Hope that helps

Regards Steve

@atmasphere - just thought I would let you in on my own single ended journey...

• I’ve always been a DIYer with all things pertaining to cables and originally built my own using Van den Hul wire
• about 11-12 years ago a friend convinced me to start a web site where I could post my reviews of various things tried
  • and so My Audio Alchemy (image99.net) was aired
• I first submitted a review on the Eichman Silver Bullet RCA;s that I had installed on my turntable
• Keith Louie Eichman of KLE Innovations read the review and asked me to review his latest RCA connectors
• After those reviews, he then asked me to review his RCA cables, which are very good cables
• after learning some things about cables from him and the role they play in a system, I went on to design a build my first HELIX DIY cables using wire from old LAN Cables with the KLE Innovations RCA plugs. The results were so good I then started to think about better wire
• During this time, several people from europe tried the HELIX DIY cables and suggested changes to the wire used, which I tried for myself and if warranted, I published the changes on the web site
• One Audiogon member read about the Helix cables and decided to try them - his findings can be found here
  • Duelund conversion to DIY Helix Geometry Cabling
• fast torward to around 2020 - I was introduced to OCC Copper and adapted all f my cables to OCC Copper
• I then introduce the AIR concept to the cables, which takes the dielectric constant to very low values, because the teflon tube insulation is not molded to the actual wire, so there is an air gap between the most of the wire and a the teflon tube. This improved clarity and details significantly
• lastly, I decided to use two wires for the signal conductor, where each wire is in its own teflon tube AND I started using OCC silver
  • the results were very detailed, with oustanding clairty and dynamics.

The Helix DIY AIR cables are amazingly articulate and neutral, with clear and detailed performance across the entire frequency range, with an extremely dynamic performance. They propvide a truly immersive image in three dimensions

Happy reading - Steve