May I respectfully ask for the names of some pre-amps that meet AES48?
Well ours do of course. Also Backert Labs, if you get the version with an output transformer to do the balanced output. Most preamps that use an output transformer in that manner should be able to support the standard- and it won't matter if the internal circuit is balanced or not.
I have to disagree with Atmasphere on two points:
1. I have a fully balanced Pass Labs XA60.5. The cable does make a difference.
2.
I have two high quality Cary preamps. Cary SLP-98P Formula 1 mod, which
is single ended. Cary SLP-05, which is fully balanced, but not
upgraded. The single ended preamp sounds better with the Pass than the
balanced in my case. That is why I am upgrading the SLP-05, for better
SQ.
This is actually a really good example of what I was talking about. The Cary does not support AES48- any preamp that has RCA and XLR outputs, and does not need a switch to use one or the other, very likely does not support the standard, and so you will hear differences between cables that can be pretty profound.
One caveat to my points.
My preamps are very close to the Pass amps;
so the interconnects are short. With a longer interconnect run, the
balanced connections may possibly be superior.
The benefit of balanced operation really does not have much to do with the length of the cable. The benefit can be there even if the cable is only 6 inches.
