***disclaimer*** this was the result of my readings and googlings with some basic electrical design from school....and I am no expert or designer by any means. Allow me to share it.
I think you are being confused.
1/ balanced cable means each channel uses it own grounds, while the regular unbalanced uses the same ground. So TRRS means Tip-Ring-Ring-Sleeve. It means that it has 4 poles connectors to be used with L- and L+ then R- and R+. Yes, this is balanced cable...there is no such thing as true balanced cable.
2/ the ZX2 is not True-balanced output because it only use one circuitry of S-Master to output to 3.5 jacks with the use of additional ground (2 grounds) so that it can act as a balanced output for you to use TRRS plug. Sony meant to say that it is not True balanced as each of the channel (L or R) doesn't have it own amplifications to truly seperate and be individual of each other.
The problem is with the use of seperate and individual amplification on each channel will only drain the battery. The decoding and translation of digital to analog is done at the DAC....so...the balanced output can only be as good as this DAC is translating and decoding the digital to analog signals.
An example would be that you have two hands, and it is up to your brain to task each hand individually, if you was to received a different brain from a random donor, then each of your hand will be tasked different than your own brain.....lol if it makes sense.
Now there are DAP with the uses of individual DAC for each channel.....but again, they both have to be wired and designed somehow to be able to interprete the differences and transitions of analog signals between left and right channel
Conclusion here, balanced, or unbalanced will only be as good as how your circuitry was designed to interprete the analog signals and the transitionals between channels. The only one thing that will obviously be affective regardless of the interpretation would be the additional ground.....as this ground will allow for more efficient electrical conductivity.
The above reasons were why Sony felt to be doing additional ground instead of having two S-Master circuitry, and one for each channel.....and what would be the interpreter ? Lol...if they use any DAC here, then it is no longer S-Master design, and this moves us toward PHA-3
If you want Sony true balanced output, PHA-3 is balanced with each amplifier per channel....be advised.....this is not S-Master design, but rather only chips from third party....Texas instrument amplifications and ESS DAC ?
