[chicken beer]

  Wanted to chip in my two cents.
 
Currently have the Woo Audio WDS-1 Reference DAC ->  HD800S -> with a Woo Audio WA22 with a couple hundred dollars in upgrades ($2200 amp)
 
Tested both balanced and single ended and here is what I have found.
 
Balanced sounds better, it sounds more spacious more wide more fat. 
The level of clarity is about the same but the difference I hear is the soundstage, it sounds like the musician is in the room with me! (listen to Pink Floyd - Wish you were Here)
 
I am one of those people that vote for balanced, after listening to single ended for most of my life.

I see. How did you do the comparison? Did you use the same cable but an adapter? I think the proper way to do the comparison is to use the same balanced output on your WA22, but use an dual XLR adapter and connect to your HD800s TRS cable, comparing which to use the same quality Sennheiser balanced cable plugging directly into the balanced.. 
 
I never tried balanced except using the balanced output in a Hifiman DAP. But my guessing is that balanced transmission circuit design is simple in physics for amp designers to improve the circuit design, therefore facilitating the signal improvement.

 

[verycoolalan]

I see. How did you do the comparison? Did you use the same cable but an adapter? I think the proper way to do the comparison is to use the same balanced output on your WA22, but use an dual XLR adapter and connect to your HD800s TRS cable, comparing which to use the same quality Sennheiser balanced cable plugging directly into the balanced.. 

I never tried balanced except using the balanced output in a Hifiman DAP. But my guessing is that balanced transmission circuit design is simple in physics for amp designers to improve the circuit design, therefore facilitating the signal improvement.

I used two ALO Audio SXC Cables. One 1/4" and one Balanced. A/B test. My sister helped by being blindfolded. She didn't notice the difference. I barely did.

 

[paradoxper]

   
 
I never tried balanced except using the balanced output in a Hifiman DAP. But my guessing is that balanced transmission circuit design is simple in physics for amp designers to improve the circuit design, therefore facilitating the signal improvement.

 
Facilitating what signal improvement? 
 
Single ended is every bit as good as balanced. The focus should be on the topology.

 

[chicken beer]

   
Facilitating what signal improvement? 
 
Single ended is every bit as good as balanced. The focus should be on the topology.

 
Wow, guess I made a good decision whether to go for TRS or balanced in the beginning when I started buying so many high end headphones~

 

[paradoxper]

   
Wow, guess I made a good decision whether to go for TRS or balanced in the beginning when I started buying so many high end headphones~

The whole balanced terminology has become so convoluted, it's essentially meaningless.

 

[Condocondor]

Found this article on balanced vs. single ended.  The article is:   "The Last Word On Class A"  http://www.aikenamps.com/index.php/the-last-word-on-class-a

Hope this adds to the discussion at hand.   

 

[GRUMPYOLDGUY]

What sounds best is a very subjective question... When you ask it that way, there is no right or wrong answer.
 
Personally, I can't hear a difference. But I've never done a blind test either.
 
A better question is what measures better... My suspicion is that balanced outputs will measure better because of common mode noise rejection.
 
If I had to guess, I'd say there would be no audible improvement... That common mode noise is probably so far down from the signal that it would probably be inaudible anyway.

 

[Jmop]

I wanted to throw down my impressions of Balanced vs SE and see if it lines up with anyone else's opinion, so here goes. My reference is only regarding a handful of IEMs, perhaps full size headphones have an advantage with Balanced that I'm unaware of. Anyway, I think SE sounds more correct and to me, better. Soundstage dimensions are obscured in Balanced so that vocals are no longer in the center, which to me takes away from the intimacy/emotion. Yes, the stage is noticeably wider, but I have a harder time discerning layers of the stage (depth). You'll see a lot of people stating that the bass becomes more dynamic, and to my ears this is true, along with faster decay in the treble (less sibilance). This faster decaying treble can make the sound less "digital" as well. I find, however, that these elements as a whole don't mesh well. The bass punches more, the treble splashes less, and the midrange is thrown around as to make the experience more "involving" but the pacing feels off, and the image is no longer picturesque.

 

[Gilles De Rais]

This must be a record - a thread being necro’ed not once but twice five years after the last post! 2011, 2016 and now 2021. I look forward to the next set of posts in 2026…