[TrumpOrMonkey]

I would have no idea what cable you're talking about that comes with the Lavry but this is what a TRS jack looks like,
 
Basically two of them on one end, and two left and right RCA's on the other end, coming from two different cables.
 
So perhaps single TRS -> single RCA
 
or TRS x2 -> RCA x2 on a cable.
 
Thanks though, but I'll probably go with a Balanced setup, because I've always had the itch to.

 

[thuantran]

RCA should go with TS plug, FYI. TRS is the equivalence of XLR but in different plug form.

 

[K3cT]

Quote:

I would have no idea what cable you're talking about that comes with the Lavry but this is what a TRS jack looks like,
 
Basically two of them on one end, and two left and right RCA's on the other end, coming from two different cables.
 
So perhaps single TRS -> single RCA
 
or TRS x2 -> RCA x2 on a cable.
 
Thanks though, but I'll probably go with a Balanced setup, because I've always had the itch to.

But that's a jack for headphone cable... are you sure you're not mistaking it with XLR? 
 
The one that comes with the Lavry looks like this. XLR on one end, RCA on the other. 
 

 

[TrumpOrMonkey]

Quote:

RCA should go with TS plug, FYI. TRS is the equivalence of XLR but in different plug form.

 
I thought that as well, but currently I have two TRS plugs leading to one 3.5mm jack at the moment.
 
Doesn't matter right now though because I'm set onto buying a Balanced DAC anyway, it's interesting though, just wondering if it would degrade the sound quality is all.
 
Thanks guys, I'm still up for some opinions on Balanced DACs under $500 though.

 

[Omega17TheTrue]

You should take NFB-10 if you want good truly balanced DAC and pre-amp at low price, also active pro speakers are usually meant to be used with balanced gear.

Kingwa said NFB-10 is better than NFB-2 and C-2 when using balanced output.

 

[TrumpOrMonkey]

One last question, my preferences that I'd like in a DAC would be analytical, but not so clinical. So I'd say 25% musical and 75% detailed/analytical
 
Out of the Yulong D100 and the Matrix Mini-I which would better suit my taste? Both will be run balanced and the headphone amp doesn't matter if that makes a difference. I'll get a NanoPatch to attenuate the volume from the line out.
 
So which one in your opinion would suit my needs better?

 

[audiofil]

I don't have much experience with them, but from what it's been written on both I'm inclined to say the Yulong D100 is a better DAC by quite a margin.
Also the Matrix Mini-i has been often described as a warm sounding unit, a sound signature you may or may not care for.
 
Another strong option worth checking out is Cambridge DAC Magic.

 

[Omega17TheTrue]

The DAC magic is not balanced at all it just use unbalanced XLR connectors like most non high-end hifi gear, really balanced gear is usualy quite expensive.

The Yulong and matrix mini look very cheap and i think it would be a downgrade

 

[thuantran]

After reading your first post, I see you already have a good DAC, anything under 500USD will likely a sidegrade at best. Get the Nano Patch and save money for your next major upgrade or other purposes.

 

[Yoga Flame]

 
Quote:

The DAC magic is not balanced at all it just use unbalanced XLR connectors like most non high-end hifi gear, really balanced gear is usualy quite expensive.

Interesting. That is news to me. Do you know where I can read more on that?
 
 
Quote:

The Yulong and matrix mini look very cheap and i think it would be a downgrade

 

I think the reason for all the attention that Yulong is getting now is because it sounds very good, and yet does not cost a lot (relatively speaking).

 

[audiofil]

Quote:

The DAC magic is not balanced at all it just use unbalanced XLR connectors like most non high-end hifi gear, really balanced gear is usualy quite expensive.
 

That's an interesting statement, but not entirely accurate.
What you're probably suggesting is that hi-end gear is a dual mono, fully balanced, power supply to output affair. That is true.
 
However the issue in hand here is not how balanced or high end a unit DacMagic is.
 
As far as I know DacMagic operates in dual differential mode, using 2 WM8740 chips. The entire Wolfson WM874x family of chips works in differential mode by nature.
Single ended DACs using them (WM8740,41 and 42) usually have a dual opamp (or a discrete equivalent) for conversion from balanced to unbalanced.
 
 
More to the point here is a picture with it's innards: http://pds11.egloos.com/pds/200901/15/89/c0037289_496e0ada1412e.jpg
 
If you look closely you can see that each channel has it's own dac chip followed by 2 dual-opamps (carrying differential signal) , after which a 3rd opamp on each channel is doing the conversion to single ended output.
The traces on the PCB indicate the same thing. And if you google a bit more you can see 3 distinct traces going to the XLR connectors.
 
 
And one last thing - XLR connectors are balanced by nature.
What you're probably talking about is when a single ended connection is applied to on XLR by putting the positive on pin 2 and the ground by shorting  pin 1 and 3. But this is not the case here.
 

 

[TrumpOrMonkey]

 
Quote:

After reading your first post, I see you already have a good DAC, anything under 500USD will likely a sidegrade at best. Get the Nano Patch and save money for your next major upgrade or other purposes.

It's just my DAC2 only has one output, which is RCA. Which would mean I'd have to get an RCA (unbalanced) to a balanced cable to hook up to the nanopatch, and that I'd have to switch everytime I decide to listen to speakers.
 
My Bel Canto far exceeds my standard in audio, I don't think I would be dissapointed in a Balanced DAC under $500 even if it was a little bit worse in soundquality, I'm listening to the speakers with a 3.5mm jack to two 3.5 balanced trs jacks. Connected directly to my computers onboard DAC, so any of these DAC's will be a huge upgrade from that. If it was a sidegrade that would be ideal, I've heard the Standard Bel Canto DAC2 competes with the Benchmark DAC1, and that the Yulong D100 is a fair competitor in that midfi range. 
 
That being said, I think I will go with the Yulong D100.
 
Thanks for the input everyone.
 
I will set it up like this
Computer -> USB -> Yulong D100 -> NanoPatch -> Speakers
Onkyo ND-S1 (Coaxial Digital) -> Yulong D100 -> Nanopatch -> Speakers

 

[TrumpOrMonkey]

 
Quote:

I don't have much experience with them, but from what it's been written on both I'm inclined to say the Yulong D100 is a better DAC by quite a margin.
Also the Matrix Mini-i has been often described as a warm sounding unit, a sound signature you may or may not care for.
 

 
Yeah I think the same way about the Matrix Mini I, in a way that nobody has dared to compare the Benchmark DAC1 or similar units to it, yet they have with the Yulong.
 
However, on the other side, there was one guy who sold his Bel Canto DAC3 because he liked the Matrix better (I can't believe something like that!)

 

 

[thuantran]

Well according to your HS80M manual (I have the HS50M with the same manual, BTW) line level cable is fine for short interconnect, unless you're afraid of noise (this is only the case in a studio) and/or you need to run the cable over 3m.
About switching issue, you can make yourself a DIY switch box with some quality switch (e.g. Alps) and RCA sockets or simply use a Y cable, the sound quality can't degrade that much. So if I were in your shoes I would build a switch box and the Nano Patch and be done with it. Money saved for other purposes, unless you want to experience new gears.

 

[Omega17TheTrue]

That's an interesting statement, but not entirely accurate.
What you're probably suggesting ion is applied to on XLR by putting the positive on pin 2 and the ground by shorting  pin 1 and 3. But this is not the case here.
 

 


Thank for the clarification, i just lack the technical knowledge to fully understand the differences between single and balanced gear but i was reading several time that the dac magic and even the 840c are not truly balanced