[neonextgenazn]

Can somebody explain to me what every connector on the Zhaolu does? I've been using my sound card's analog out up to now so I'm still new to external sources. Thanks guys!

This picture was taken from the Zhaolu 2.0 ARRIVED!!! IMPRESSION INSIDE! thread.

 

[crazyhatusc]

 

[Aldo_Lopez]

You take a cable from either the spdif coaxial or the toslink optical from your source (CD Player, sound card, etc.) and plug it into the jack on the back of the Zhaolu. Then you take the "RCA Analog Output" on the back of the Zhaolu and plug it into your amplifier. Then plug headphones into the amplifier and enjoy!!

 

[neonextgenazn]

Do I plug the cable from my source into the toslink digital input, coaxial digital inputl, or the rca analog input? Also, what does the XLR out do? Thanks again!

 

[Zenja]

Plug your source into the DAC either through the optical input or the digital coax input. The XLR outputs are for balanced output from the DAC.

If you are running the DAC into a separate headphone amp, plug the amp into the pair of RCA jacks closest to the middle.

 

[Aldo_Lopez]

You plug a cable from your source into EITHER the toslink optical or the spdif coaxial. They are both digital audio formats. Use whichever one your source has. If it has both you should use coxial because it will result in less jitter. XLR is another kind of analog output. Just use RCA if that's what your amplifier has.

 

[neonextgenazn]

My X-Fi supports spdif out compressed ac3 signal or pcm so I guess I'll use the coaxial. What is the rca analog input used for? Also, the two rca analog outputs differ in that one of them allows you to adjust the volume through the Zhaolu's console right? If that's the case, wouldn't the non-volume controlled rca analog output provide a cleaner signal? Lastly, is the rca analog outputs superior to the xlr out? For, I rarely see the xlr out mentioned on the forum. Thanks again guys!

 

[Aldo_Lopez]

Quote:

Originally Posted by neonextgenazn My X-Fi supports spdif out compressed ac3 signal or pcm so I guess I'll use the coaxial. What is the rca analog input used for? Also, the two rca analog outputs differ in that one of them allows you to adjust the volume through the Zhaolu's console right? If that's the case, wouldn't the non-volume controlled rca analog output provide a cleaner signal? Lastly, is the rca analog outputs superior to the xlr out? For, I rarely see the xlr out mentioned on the forum. Thanks again guys!

The Zhaolu has a built in headphone amplifier. I believe using the analog input would be like using only the Zhaolu's headphone amplifier.

Yes to the second question. And that's the one (Non-volume controlled) I think everybody uses here (I know I use it).

If you have a balanced system them XLR is the way to go. But if you have a single ended system then just use the rca. I dont know what kind of difference there is in rca vs. single-ended XLR but I think it would be VERY small.

 

[neonextgenazn]

How do I tell whether I have a balanced system?

 

[Aldo_Lopez]

Quote:

Originally Posted by neonextgenazn How do I tell whether I have a balanced system?

Odds are that you dont. Balanced systems are something people seem to do here to get that extra added bonus and jump. In a balanced system your headphones are balanced, your amplifier is balanced, and your source is balanced. To get these balanced you usually either do it yourself or you have pay someone to mod it for you. If you did none of these then your system probably isnt balanced. The way I learned it is that a balanced system is a dual mono system; each channel left and right is completely divided and each has its own ground, its own amplification, its own power supply etc (If you look in a balanced amp it basically looks like one amp times 2; one for each channel). People tend use XLR for balanced stuff here (Though I think there are other formats).

Basically if you have stock stuff you have a single ended system.

 

[neonextgenazn]

I definitely don't have a balanced system then. Thanks a lot Aldo_Lopez! I learned a lot from you!

 

[Johan in Brabant]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aldo_Lopez To get these balanced you usually either do it yourself or you have pay someone to mod it for you. If you did none of these then your system probably isnt balanced. The way I learned it is that a balanced system is a dual mono system

Hello Aldo a.o.,

Please have a quick look here for the difference between balanced and unbalanced (one of the first google results)

http://www.ians-net.co.uk/articles/balanced_lines.php

As you can see a balanced sytem is not by definition dual mono but a bit more complex. Diy-ing this from an existing system would require building an exact duplica and feed it with an inverted signal.

There's is bit more info in the XLR vs RCA thread: unfortunately also some misinformation.

Cheers,
Johan

 

[Garbz]

Look at the next component down the line. If your amp also has XLR plugs for inputs then use XLRs as balanced greatly improves system interconnection. If you see not XLR plugs on your amp, back to the standard method.

 

[Kirium]

Speaking of XLR's, is anyone using the XLR outputs from their Zhaolu to powered/active speakers??

I'm considering getting a little pair of Tannoy Reveal active nearfield monitors to replace a 2.1 system. This will let me stop unplugging the digital connection on my Mac and switching it constantly to toggle between 2.1 and headphones.

Anyone got a little setup like that, with powered speakers running off the Zhaolu??

 

[3lusiv3]

Can the Zhaolu be used with an Airport Express?