Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 3, 2013 20:24:37 GMT
as i am soon to buy a pair of ortho phones, i have noticed they come with balanced and single ended cables. what are the pro's and con's?
plus if you go the balanced route, does the source (dac in my case) have to be balanced too?
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Post by Deleted on Jun 3, 2013 20:41:37 GMT
as i am soon to buy a pair of ortho phones, i have noticed they come with balanced and single ended cables. what are the pro's and con's? Insitu, Balanced: Can take more power, lesser noise and some claimed to sound better. But you also need a balance HA like my modified Sonic Impact. Single Ended: Lesser distortion as only one amp operating whereas balance is 2 amps operating in a +/- manner to give the output. However, lesser power as only just one amp and some claimed to sound marginally lesser than the balance version. plus if you go the balanced route, does the source (dac in my case) have to be balanced too? That will be ideal as full balance mode but if the HA is with a splitter into balance, single ended also can be used. But this is not full balance mode.
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solderdude
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Post by solderdude on Jun 3, 2013 20:51:43 GMT
That's a load of questions in one. Balanced is normally used in the PA world where long audiolines with small signals run alongside power cables e.t.c. Balanced (truly balanced and isolated) has HUGE advantages there. It ONLY works when the source AND receiving end are balanced. Amps are balanced to create more voltage (power) from a low power supply voltage or just to have huge amounts of power. It works by a doubling of the output voltage. For headphone amplifiers in home situations there is NO reason to go balanced OTHER than the return wire NOT being 'combined' as in a lot of (3 wire) headphone cables. This is explained in the article: 'resistance impedance and other issues' here: diyaudioheaven.wordpress.com/tutorials/In principle all headphone drivers are balanced but it is the 3 pin connector (6.3 and 3.5) that makes it impossible. You need 4 separate wires for balanced and a 3 pin plug only has 3 and combines 2 of them, the common = return = ground wire. a 4 wire cable can always be connected to a 3 wire plug but a 3 wire cable can never be connected to a 4 wire plug. So with a 4 wire cable you can always connect it to other amps via a conversion plug (cable) When you have an amp that is balanced out but has normal RCA inputs the input (DAC) does not have to be balanced. A lot of DAC chips are balanced out but are 'converted' to single ended as most equipment simply is single ended out (RCA). Audiophiles will always say balanced sounds better and is popular there.
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Post by clausdk on Jun 3, 2013 22:45:56 GMT
Going balanced tidy thÃngs up. It makes the bass sharper and more defined, which is what you will hear first, but the rest of the spectrum also gains from it..
We are talking amps here..
It will maybe not sound better, but it will sound different, not all changes are for the better as we all know..
It has made quite a big improvement in my JVC DX1000, which is know for having a soft bass, balanced the bass is much much better..
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 3, 2013 23:24:16 GMT
Claus,
Out of curiousity, what balanced HA u use? Have balance input as well?
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dicky
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Post by dicky on Jun 4, 2013 6:50:48 GMT
Just to throw another question into the mix - what about using the output of a power amplifier to drive headphones? I assume the returns 'common' and it would not, therefore, be balanced? Anyhoo, project number 734 is to build a resistor network so I can run my 4-wire T50 and AKG340 from a little Naim I have doing nothing. I have the parts - but not the time at the moment.
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solderdude
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Post by solderdude on Jun 4, 2013 8:10:35 GMT
A balanced amplifier can be used to drive balanced headphones only (with resistors).
A normal headphone (3 pin) can be used on 'normal' power amps, with resistor(s) but also 4 wire (balanced) headphones can be connected when the return wires are connected to the _ of the amp out. In most amplifiers the - out lugs are hardwired to ground. Only in balanced amplifiers (class-T and very high power devices and car audio) the - lugs are active and should NEVER be connected.
If unsure measure Ohms (amp off !) between the - lugs, they should be close to 0 Ohm and differ from measurements taken between the + output terminals. With the amp turned off it is highly likely you will measure open circuit between the + terminals as the output relay has them disconnected. The - terminals (lugs) are usually not disconnected in this case unless the amp is balanced.
a 4 wire cord is technically superior to a 3 wire. Note that headphones like the old DT990 also has 4 wires in the cord which connected at the 6.3mm plug.
There is no real difference between a 4 wire cord connected at the plug only and a completely balanced circuit in a technical sense.
There is a technical, and depending on circumstances, audible difference between a 3 wire cord and a 4 wire cord connected to 3 wire at the plug.
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