XLR to RCA Adapters

There is NO inherent superiority of balanced vs. single ended designs. Balanced cables are superior for very long cable runs typical of sound reinforcement applications. For consumer gear, either can deliver the same results.

When one considers the noise cancellation properties of balanced, then you can easily see the reason for superior audio. Less noise equals better sound.

There are so many considerations relative to the specific gear being used that IMO "one size fits all" answers do not apply. My single-ended Tom Evans Vibe/Pulse II is far and away the quietest preamp I have owned (out of many) and running it through 2.5M rca cables into Jensen PI-2RX (rca to XLR) transformers then through very short XLR cables into balanced amps results in the best sound I have achieved in many years of doing this.

I couldn't agree more Mitch. http://www.jensen-transformers.com/pi2xx.html

Mitch2, Rwwear, and the rest of the community: Supposing the amp in question is a nice... a VERY nice (!), little vintage EL-84 job, single-ended, of course... and you want the cream de la cream minimalist input/driver circuit for it (DIY) -- you'll need phase-splitting somewhere (at the input, or maybe even as a parafeed phase-splitting "driver" transformer, given the low voltage swing those EL-84's are looking for) -- how would the step-down versions of the Jensen transformers sound vs. the normal 1:1's? I note that 1) These are rated to handle some pretty high voltages, if need be, 2) They would present a MUCH more source [output stage] friendly load used at the input, and 3) the specs on paper far exceed those for the 1:1's. Has anyone auditioned the difference in some context?

Off hand, I don't know the input sensitivity of Podolaw's BAT, but with the tube preamp, he should have some voltage swing "to burn" with a typical Red Book spec output on the source. Then, too, advancing that volume control usually improves both channel balance tracking and the quality of sound. Does this make some sense to anyone else?