"'As you have an XLR connector, is the CD-77 balanced?'
The CD-77 uses a completely signal-ended signal path as we have found this to give a more realistic reproduction of music. However, in terms of sound quality, we found the XLR connector preferable to the RCA connector, even when used with un-balanced signals.
Consequently, we have offered the XLR output in a manner that is fully compatible with balanced equipment: takes full advantage of balanced connections yet retains the desirable single ended signal circuit." From AMR's website. There's more interesting stuff on their about why they have made certain choices - the amp's 4-output-stage-design springs to mind.
BTW Dazzdax, what's the rest of your system?