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Posted by echosystm on Jul-23-2007 17:01:

Unbalanced to balanced?

Hi!

I'm wanting to connect my old computer (Audiophile 24/96 - unbalanced outs) through my new computer (AudioFire 4 - balanced ins). Will this cause any problems? Will the entire loop be effectively "unbalanced" if I do this?

Thanks.

Posted by DJ RANN on Jul-23-2007 19:33:

Not totally true. The driver settings allow you to switch between +4 and -10 so it's really about the external kit (whether it's consumer or pro). Just use balacened cables and bridge the earth to the cold, as this has the advantage of passive balancing (it will attenuate over distance but it wil be better at interference rejection than plain unbalanced cables.

Posted by antronx on Jul-24-2007 16:42:

Ecosystm, why are you asking such silly questions? First this and then about spdif. From your previous posts about acoustical treatment, and other stuff, you seem too knowlegeable to be asking questions like these.

Posted by DJ RANN on Jul-25-2007 11:21:

quote:
Originally posted by dj_palm
why dont i have any problems then? i just plug my unbalansed into the device, and the manual says its no problem. i get sound, i get sound i like.

If you plug a balanced cable in to an unbalanced peice of kit it will work because it will just use the 2 out of 3 conductors, naturally making the signal unbalanced.

Balanced does not necessarily mean +4 or -10, though. It depends on the output setting of the kit in question.

It is important though as you need to think about gain staging and signal flow levels.