Newbie balanced cable help

Just thought you'd be interested. I compared Audience AU24 XLR and RCA interconnects on my CD3 MkII. XLR sounds definitely better. Way better as a matter of fact. However, when I took out the single-ended AU24 and replaced it with my single-ended AZ Silver Ref MkII, it bridged the gap. Now I am wondering what the XLR version of Silver Ref MkII will bring. Will it be an improvement over the RCA Silver Ref as the AU24 XLR was over AU24 RCA? Unfortunately I don't have Silver Ref MkII in XLR, so I can't compare.

The ICs used for the above comparsion were not new so break-in did not play any role. It was a first time I used AU24 interconnects and preferred the Silver Ref MkII over both the XLR and RCA AU24. Livelier sound, bigger stage, more resolution without brightness. Just my taste I guess, although the AU24 is a very good IC.

I'll be comparing some power cords on the CD3. While my pre-amp has Shunyata Diamondback on it and amp has Audience powerChord, I will be comparing following power cords on the CD3:
ARC stock cord
Audience
Shunyata Dimondback
AZ Tsunami Plus
Cardas Golden Power
Nirvana PC Plus
Purist Audio Musaeus

Two Shunyata Hydra2 units(1 for digital another for amp and pre) provide AC line conditioning.
We'll see what happens.

Aud--I'd say BJ cables get you at least 90% of the way there. Surprisingly good top to bottom, no real minuses to my ears. In my experience, balanced cables are much less susceptible to the vagaries of RCAs. The RCA connector should've died w/ Beta, but they took hold in the consumer marketplace and here we are. At least some improvements have been made with the Eichmanns and others. But the superiority of the XlR connector is unsurpassed short of hard wiring.
Lrdmax, you don't mention your amp, but I hope you're balanced all the way. Long cables do not sonically suffer as RCAs do. In one rig, I have 25' to the amp, and the rack at my fingertips. In my big rig, 11' of BJC mate the amp and preamp quite nicely. Both cables are skinny and unremarkable in appearance but play tunes with aplomb. If you want to try some balanced cables, I have a few to loan for audition without obligation. We can chat off-thread if you like. Welcome to Balanced World. Everyone else is...unbalanced!

Tripper, I just got Silver Ref MkII in XLR and these are a huge improvement over AU24 XLRs. I was shocked.

Thanks for the offer to let me try the BJCs in my system, but right now my amp is single ended. I will most likely be getting it upgraded so it'll have balanced inputs. Then I may take advantage of your offer. I appreciate it though. Thanks.

Aud--Can't argue with your pick. Nice rig! You think going balanced on McC is worth it? Don't know what they're charging, but the amp is pretty sweet as is. Of course, a balanced input is an ideal tweak, esp with your upstream componentry.
I, too, wonder how the BJCs would stack up against the AZs. That Robert Lee is indeed a "legendary cable design artist"!
Enjoy the music.