xlr cables

xtro

hi are these cables special or with the right connector could you make your own up with good qty cable and good solder

Dan

Easily made in DIY form, get some Neutrik xlrs feom eBay or somewhere for a couple pound, a pair of male and female is required.
U can use a three core cable or two core with a shield, the shield would be connected at both end making the third conductor.

There are wiring diagrams on the net for u to be sure.

Alan

Xtro, do you have a problem with hum pickup in your system?

I have repeatedly read that balanced operation was developed to combat signal loss & hum over long cable runs in noisy environments (studios, PA etc). In domestic situations it is often said by audio designers that balanced is unnecessary, some even contend it is detrimental due to the high mass plugs and added circuitry.

Other designers say it is the best way forward, of course.

I have never had the chance to compare balanced vs single ended on appropriate equipment, but keeping in mind what it was designed for and the advice of experienced designers has helped me decide whether it's worth pursuing in my case.

As Dan says, it's easy enough to make some and try. Your equipment may function better with balanced connections (mine doesn't have the option). Whatever you do, have fun!

xtro

thanks guys im going over to musical fidelity m1 system and they have xlr but stupid prices on ebay so will now build my own have made phono speaker and mains now xlr:)

Yomanze

What I can say is that XLR cable differences are minuscule at best, so investing heavily in more than good pro stuff like Neutrik and Canare is pointless.  Frank, but true.  I wish the same were true for interconnects and speaker cable, I really would love for them to make a difference, but past proper engineering I just don't buy it.

Yomanze

PS I am most definitely a cable and components quality believer… :P

Dan

Also ensure the balanced inputs/outputs of the equipment in question is attached to fully balanced circuitry, if it's pseudo balanced then it's essentially a standard RCA connection with an xlr aocket.

I have found balanced circuitry to sound better on some equipment and then on others the only difference has been the around 6db gain in volume that it gives and the quality has stayed the same.

XLR cables can be bought very cheap or very expensive, just the same as RCA cables, they are not really more expensive in most cases, sometimes a little and sometimes the same as their respective RCA version.

PAC

The only real advantages in domestic audio of true balanced circuits are that they are less susceptible to ground loop hum issues and in many cases make better electrical contact...that's about it.

The circuit is necessarily more complex and less like the straight bit of wire "ideal" so there is something in the purity of single ended designs.

I (like most of us) have listened to all the arguments on either side of the camp regarding whether cables make a difference but in my experience (and I say this from the stand point of an engineer) they most certainly do.  Not as much as speakers or sources though.  The main issue I think isn't that there's upgrades to be had as such, but that there are alarmingly many poorly engineered cables which detract too much from the signal.

In an ideal world, we'd hard wire between components and do away with the connectors, and only use shielded low capacitance cable.

It is not an ideal world, so the next best thing currently (and not the most practicable in terms of what's achievable but what is most readily available primarily due to what component sockets are used on 99.99% of gear) are high quality RCAs.

I have gone through dozens upon dozens of designs and skipped most of them.  Most are pretty poor tbh in one respect or other. I choose to use the ones I do for decent design, electrical contact and quality.  Quality matters.

FWIW, my advice is if choosing single ended, do not skimp on connectors.  If going XLR, use at least gold plated connections.

xtro

thanks for advise and comments guys
will be making from nordost solar wind cable and neutrik connectors but ill make sure thre gold plated

xtro

as read other have posted audio and musical taste
just started to acquire the m1 component system from musical fidelity so far have dac and cd
taste in music is varied modtley sade yello jean micheal jarre ( equinoxe oxygene ) goldfrapp donald fagen stelly dan

xtro

last system
pioneer sa 9100/8100 teac ti and di dac and transport and an old tuner all from the 1970/80 apart from the amp just fell time to get new modern gear