XLR IC with ACCUPHASE int.

The result of that, without taking any special measures, would be a polarity reversal (also known as a reversal of absolute phase), which may or may not be audibly significant depending on the recording. At most its effects would be subtle.

To correct for it, if the CD3 is your only source component, just interchange the red and black connections either on both of your speakers or on the corresponding amplifier outputs. That will result in the correct overall system polarity.

If you have another source component in the system that does not also have this reversal, you would have to have a special xlr cable made up that interchanged pins 2 and 3 at one end.

This all assumes that the components themselves do not invert absolute phase, aside from the inconsistency between pins 2 and 3. That is usually but not always the case. If you are unsure and want to experiment, compare the two speaker connection polarities using a well recorded, simply mic'd recording, preferably one that is on an audiophile-oriented label and that contains a lot of sharp transients.

Of course, be sure to have everything turned off while you are working with the speaker or amplifier connections.

Regards,
-- Al

Does listening to a source in polarity reversal can cause any damage to one of the components

No, absolutely not.

Although some issues can arise if you have a separate powered sub -- let us know if you do and I'll address that further if necessary.

I'm wondering if the fact that you heard such a major improvement might mean that your speakers were previously connected out of phase relative to each other. Having the two speakers connected with different polarities, relative to each other, will cause a dramatic reduction in bass, as well as vague, diffuse imaging.

If what you just did was to change the polarities on BOTH speakers, then you indeed simply corrected for the pin 2 and 3 inconsistency, which I would not expect to produce such a major difference.

If on the other hand what you just did was to change the polarity on only one speaker, then you corrected what would have previously been a difference in relative phase (between channels), which would have produced the symptoms that you seem to be describing.

Regards,
-- Al

The one comment I would have is that by reversing the connections of the main speakers, for HT mode you have changed the phase relationship between sub and main speakers, by 180 degrees. If bass performance in HT mode was satisfactory to begin with, you may now find that you are getting some bass reduction or cancellation in the crossover region between sub and mains.

Perhaps the sub has a 0/180 degree phase reversal switch, or a continuous phase adjustment provision, in which case you can use that adjustment to keep the sub and mains in phase.

Best regards,
-- Al

Jacksonkuo -- The only downsides that I can envision that would result from interchanging the + and - speaker connections would be:

1)Other source components, if you have any, would have their polarity/absolute phase reversed, if they do not have the same xlr pinouts as the cd player, or if they are connected via rca's.

2)If you have a separate subwoofer, you would be changing the phase relationship between mains and sub by 180 degrees. If the sub has a 0/180 switch, you can easily compensate for that.

The sonic effects of the phase invert function on the preamp would be dependent on the design of the particular preamp. I would expect those effects to be either very subtle or non-existent in most cases.

Regards,
-- Al