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RCA to XLR trouble

you can never make that conversion "perfect", but with short runs it doesn't matter anyhow.
 
pablolie said:
you can never make that conversion "perfect", but with short runs it doesn't matter anyhow.
Click to expand...
Which is why I think for non-tech savvy person, XLR all the way and a good adapter are a pretty good solution. Everything is fine except possibly an inch, and maybe not even that.
 
staticV3 said:
The correct cable will keep XLR Pin 1 and Pin 3 separate all the way to the RCA plug. Only inside the plug will they then be connected.

That disqualifies the J&D, Cable Matters, and Cordial Cable:
View attachment 366721 View attachment 366722 View attachment 366723
Click to expand...
Actually these cordial cables are sold with genelec branding. Example: https://www.prolighting.de/tontechn...ore/genelec-1530-015-kabel-rca-xlr-1-5-m.html

If I get it right, both is possible (first option better, but second still possible):

I for myself love the cordial cables and us it for the whole system. Also including a RCA-XLR with no issues.
 
3-pin XLR in the home sphere begs the question, why?
There is no "perfect" single ended to "balanced" connection, it will be some kind of compromise. The impetus for XLR is hundreds of feet of signal wiring in a noisy environment, like 2mV microphone signals among 50/60Hz, HF, VHF, UHF, electrostatic and magnetic environments.
In the home its virtues are minimal, no magic bullet. I thought this fad passed in the 90's.
A twisted shielded pair is a good idea, even for a RCA single ended connection, where the shield may only need to be connected to "ground" at one end only, some call this "telescoping ground". The usual scheme is to have the "grounded" shield-end connector plugged at the signal source.
Keeping line frequency electrostatic fields at bay does not hurt, shielded IEC power cords are cheap on Amazon. Use a non-contact voltmeter to detect fields and replace bad cables and wall-warts.
my 3 cents
 
tmtomh said:
One more dumb question: if the signal starts out unbalanced, and therefore pins 1 and 3 are tied together at the origin (the RCA jack), then am I correct in assuming that any noise carried by the RCA ground will make its way down the pin 1 wire/shield, to the XLR connection?

In other words this kind of RCA-->XLR cable will cancel most noise picked up along the cable run, but will still be susceptible to ground-transmitted noise from the originating component, because that noise could travel down the pin 3 wire and not be present on the pin 2 wire and therefore not be canceled out. Is that correct?
Click to expand...
It depends on the details of the sending and receiving component. If they're both ideal then separating the conductor for pins 1 and 3 removes from the signal path the voltage due to the stray ground current in the finite resistance of the shield. If they're not ideal, say because the source has poorly routed ground, or receiver has a 'pin 1 problem' (not following AES-48) then it may not be better and might even be worse. That's why there are sometimes recommendations to do something different with the shield, like not connect it at one end. You'll find more technical details in The G Word and Jensen Transformers' AN007.
 
withoutsuit said:
Actually these cordial cables are sold with genelec branding. Example: https://www.prolighting.de/tontechn...ore/genelec-1530-015-kabel-rca-xlr-1-5-m.html

If I get it right, both is possible (first option better, but second still possible):

I for myself love the cordial cables and us it for the whole system. Also including a RCA-XLR with no issues.
Click to expand...
withoutsuit said:
Actually these cordial cables are sold with genelec branding. Example: https://www.prolighting.de/tontechn...ore/genelec-1530-015-kabel-rca-xlr-1-5-m.html

If I get it right, both is possible (first option better, but second still possible):

I for myself love the cordial cables and us it for the whole system. Also including a RCA-XLR with no issues.
Click to expand...

Nice find, but I can't see the price on that site and there's no wiring diagram either. I've already ordered the adapters, it is what it is.
 
A good place that I've found for quality, inexpensive XLR cables (XLR -- XLR and XLR - RCA) is Markertek.com
 
Unrelated to the cables, would I be better served with the Wiim Amp and analog volume control than a Wiim Pro Plus, since I only have the 8030c monitors currently? Or add something like Schiit Sys to control the volume while leaving the Pro Plus at 100%?
 
Last edited:
nab1828 said:
Unrelated to the cables, would I be better served with the Wiim Amp and analog volume control than a Wiim Pro Plus, since I only have the 8030c monitors currently? Or add something like Schiit Sys to control the volume while leaving the Pro Plus at 100%?
Click to expand...
The WiiM Amp uses digital volume control, just like the WiiM Pro Plus.

Can't use the WiiM Amp with your 8030c though, since the Amp lacks Line out.

Digital volume control is in itself not an issue and adding an analog attenuator is unlikely to make an audible difference.
 
staticV3 said:
The WiiM Amp uses digital volume control, just like the WiiM Pro Plus.

Can't use the WiiM Amp with your 8030c though, since the Amp lacks Line out.

Digital volume control is in itself not an issue and adding an analog attenuator is unlikely to make an audible difference.
Click to expand...

"But with DSP controlled monitors, you still want a DAC and preamp just for analog volume control, because no matter what, digital volume control reduces the digital signal and thus reduces the dynamic range. I’ve blind tested this to see how audible it is: my ADAM Audio S3V monitors sound like far lower end speakers when using any form of digital volume control, because of how severe the adjustment is (usually around -48 dB), which takes so much fidelity out of the original music signal, thus the DAC inside the S3V has less to work with. Lowering volume in your OS or playback software is the easiest way to ruin fidelity."
 
nab1828 said:
"But with DSP controlled monitors, you still want a DAC and preamp just for analog volume control, because no matter what, digital volume control reduces the digital signal and thus reduces the dynamic range. I’ve blind tested this to see how audible it is: my ADAM Audio S3V monitors sound like far lower end speakers when using any form of digital volume control, because of how severe the adjustment is (usually around -48 dB), which takes so much fidelity out of the original music signal, thus the DAC inside the S3V has less to work with. Lowering volume in your OS or playback software is the easiest way to ruin fidelity."
Click to expand...

:facepalm:
 
tmtomh said:
Well-implemented digital volume controls don’t ruin the sound.
Click to expand...

What's "well implemented"?
The more I read about audio the more I see one needs to be an electrical engineer to separate the wheat from the chuff here.
Also, I feel like the above article is one of the best no nonsense guides I've read so far.
 
nab1828 said:
Does the Wiim Pro Plus do that?
Click to expand...
I don't know, that information is hard to find. However it has inbuilt EQ and the chip to do that (and volume control) is probably operating at high bit depth or else it would be sounding pants rather than getting good reviews.
 
vicenzo_del_paris said:
Enoaudio makes correct wired ones:

More expensive indeed but seems doing things right.

I am in a similar position as you as I need a new pair and don't want to go to DIY route.

I already have these ones in 0.5m but I need to replace them to a longer version (1m).
Click to expand...
Just extend your short cable by a standard XLR cable of suitable length.
 
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