Lavry DA10 unbalanced: Should I set pin 2 or pin 3 hot?

[smartins]

I just opened my Lavry DA10 to set it to unbalanced mode but there are two options available, pin 2 hot or pin 3 hot.

Which option should I use? Outputting to a headphone amp (CanAmp).

Thanks!

Edit: I'm using the following XLR to RCA adapter (got them from here) but I can't seem to open them up so I'm not sure if the current configuration is working correctly as unbalanced-unbalanced or if the adapter is still outputting a balanced signal.

[Iron_Dreamer]

If you have access to a multimeter, test if pin 3 of the adapter is connected to the sleeve (outside) connection of the RCA. If it is, then you should set pin3 to be cold. If not, then you can just leave the jumpers as they are.

Alternatively, if you can't test the adapter, then just set pin3 to be cold. This will keep you safe either way. The only complication is if you want to use the DA10 for balanced output, you'd have to open it up and change the jumper back to hot.

Pin2 should be left hot, as it is the correct, non-inverted output that should go to the inside connection of the RCA.

[Garbz]

Don't switch the balanced connection off on the player. The best thing about balanced is, to convert to single ended you just ignore one of the signals. Using that adapter probably means pin3 will simply remain unconnected and the RCA connects to Pin2 for hot, and Pin1 for ground. I'm surprised the player even gives you the option to turn it off.

[smartins]

Originally Posted by Iron_Dreamer

If you have access to a multimeter, test if pin 3 of the adapter is connected to the sleeve (outside) connection of the RCA. If it is, then you should set pin3 to be cold. If not, then you can just leave the jumpers as they are.

Alternatively, if you can't test the adapter, then just set pin3 to be cold. This will keep you safe either way. The only complication is if you want to use the DA10 for balanced output, you'd have to open it up and change the jumper back to hot.

Pin2 should be left hot, as it is the correct, non-inverted output that should go to the inside connection of the RCA.

Thanks! Don't have a multimeter yet but I'll probably buy one soon as it might come in hand for other stuff. Until then I'll change the jumpers to make sure the signal is running unbalanced.

[subnotes]

I recieved my Lavry DA10 last week and have XLR cables on order. I reviewed the manual and opened the box in order to switch to unbalanced thinking that I would be able to figure it out but . . . i am more confused now. I know that pin 2 needs to be "hot" but I am clueless about how to make the changes. Needless to say, I don't have a electrical / circuit background and I'm not afraid to say that it is a little intimidating looking at the guts of the Lavry without any knowledge of whether I am going to mess up my goal of improving the sound of my SB3 or ruin such an investment.

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated. I'm a green field

[smartins]

Originally Posted by subnotes

I recieved my Lavry DA10 last week and have XLR cables on order. I reviewed the manual and opened the box in order to switch to unbalanced thinking that I would be able to figure it out but . . . i am more confused now. I know that pin 2 needs to be "hot" but I am clueless about how to make the changes. Needless to say, I don't have a electrical / circuit background and I'm not afraid to say that it is a little intimidating looking at the guts of the Lavry without any knowledge of whether I am going to mess up my goal of improving the sound of my SB3 or ruin such an investment.

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated. I'm a green field

The jumpers are located near the XLR plugs and you would have to change both pins 3 from hot to "cold". There's an note on the manual and a pdf on Lavry's web site that shows all the possible configurations.

If you still can't find them I can post a picture with the location highlighted.

Btw, if you ordered XLR to RCA cables then it's probable that they already come configured to run from a balanced signal to a unbalanced one.

[subnotes]

Thank you very much for your prompt reply. I will open up the Lavry again this evening and try moving the jumpers. I did see the pdf on Lavry's web site which if we are talking about the same one, contains a circuit like diagram of various balanced vs. unbalanced configurations.

I did order the XLR to RCA cables. If I make the jumper changes to unbalanced and use the unbalanced XLR to RCA cables, will that be a problem?

Thanks again.

[Elephas]

Changing the outputs to unbalanced and using XLR to RCA cables is fine.

Just remember to change it back to balanced when connecting a balanced amp or an HD650 directly to the XLR outputs.

[Garbz]

WHY!! Why change the outputs. Leave them balanced and use a converter. I see no good reason for doing otherwise.

[Bones13]

I use Cardas cable - XLR to RCA - works great. I have never looked inside my box, there are plenty of pictures to look at here to not need to go in and mess up anything.

I second the thought - just use your adaptors - they probably do what they are supposed to do.

[brospin]

Originally Posted by Bones13

I use Cardas cable - XLR to RCA - works great. I have never looked inside my box, there are plenty of pictures to look at here to not need to go in and mess up anything.

I second the thought - just use your adaptors - they probably do what they are supposed to do.

Are XLR balanced outputs normalized for all devices? I mean, do the same pins always carry the same signal in whatever device that uses balanced XLR outputs? In that case a standard balanced XLR to RCA adapter cable should work fine with any balanced out.

[Garbz]

Yes: 1 ground, 2 hot, 3 cold.

[Comfy]

Browsing the Lavry Engineering forums I understood that a basic XLR to RCA adapter is not enough for unbalanced use without changing the jumpers.

If I understood correctly, most adapters have the following configuration:
Pin 2 Hot, Pins 1 and 3 ground

And what Lavry proposes at his forum is this:
Pin 2 hot, pin 1 ground, pin 3 unconnected
or this:
Pin 3 hot, pin 1 ground, pin 2 unconnected

Seemingly it is not such a good idea to use a basic adapter without changing the jumpers accordingly to unbalanced, as running one signal to ground would degrade sound quality.

I'm posting this because I want some opinions from the more technically minded people here, as I'm pretty far from technical myself.
Would someone please comment on the above and the use of standard XLR-RCA adapters when running the Lavry on balanced mode?

Thanks.

[brospin]

Here is what Lavry answered me when asking the same in his forum:

--- Either:

A.) Front panel switch set to “Normal” for normal polarity.
Connect Pin 3 to the center pin of the RCA (or tip of a mono ¼” plug).
Connect Pin 2 to nothing.
Connect Pin 1 to the shield and the outer conductor or the RCA (or “sleeve” of a mono ¼” plug)

Or

B.) Front panel switch set to “Invert” for normal polarity.
Connect Pin 3 to nothing.
Connect Pin 2 to the center pin of the RCA (or tip of a mono ¼” plug).
Connect Pin 1 to the shield and the outer conductor or the RCA (or “sleeve” of a mono ¼” plug)

The DA10 XLR’s are wired for Pin 3 “+” ---

This is for using the DA-10 in unbalanced mode without moving the internal jumpers. From what I know, most XLR to RCA cables/adapters use pin 2 for signal and pin 1 + pin 3 are BOTH connected to ground/return. Therefore if you use such a standard cable/adapter, you must move the jumpers to unbalanced keepin pin 2 hot and pin 3 grounded. Whenever you use pin 2 as hot, you must set the polarity switch on the DA-10 to "invert", since the DA-10 (unlike most other devices) uses pin 3 as hot in "normal" mode.

[Comfy]

Thanks Brospin. (I visca el Barça )

So even though some of the posts in this thread simply recommend the use of standard adapters (without touching the jumpers), Lavry himself doesn't recommend this.

So I guess that for people like me who intend to use their Lavry Blacks with both their balanced headphones and their unbalanced speaker setup, the easiest way out(*) is to order a custom made cable with the following specs:

XLR female (Pin 3 hot, pin 2 unconnected, pin 1 ground) -> RCA male.

I wonder if Blue Jeans Cable would be willing to do this for me... Any DIYers interested?

(* The not-so-easy way out would be to use standard XLR-RCA adapters and to change the jumpers [Pin 2 hot, and inverting the polarity from the front switch] every time you switch from balanced headphones to unbalanced speaker setup.)