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-   -   Upgraded from Ayre K5xemp to Ayre KX-5 Twenty short review (https://www.audioaficionado.org/showthread.php?t=38327)

imprezap2 03-22-2017 06:36 AM

Ayre advise a balanced connection, I have tried with CX7E-mp and DX-5, both times balanced was the better option. (my integrated amp is also fully balanced)
One of my friends has my old CX7E-mp player now, he tried a balanced connection to his Primare Pre-Amp, and here the balanced connection sounds worse than single ended.
So it depends on your own system, but if you have full balanced amp, I am sure the balanced connection is the preferred way to go.

Ayre gear is notorious for breaking in, and even after breaking in, if you take the power supply off (in my case 8 weeks, due to my work rotation) it takes 2 days to get back to the "magic"

Masterlu 03-22-2017 09:36 AM

dbphd... Welcome to AA! :wave:

ctsooner 03-22-2017 11:11 AM

Welcome. I can only talk about the gear since the AX7e (I owned that and upgraded to AX5 and then AX5/20. I also own the QX5/20) and since. I am very familiar with the ref series, but don't own it.

If you want the Ayre magic as you call it, then yes balanced is needed. It's just designed to be used that way. Honestly, I've felt for years that using the balanced inputs and outputs is most important as it lowers the noise floor allowing you to get the micro and macro dynamics of the music. That's where that magic happens.

I used non balanced phono stage for a year or so and once I upgraded to a balanced phono I noticed a huge difference in sound. Totally different amp to be honest. I ran the phono both ways and anyone could tell the difference. Even reviewers who often don't mention things like that will mention it.

JMHO

dbphd 03-23-2017 01:40 AM

The problem with that is I want to shunt frequencies below 100 Hz away from the LS50s where distortion is said to rise. I bought a used Bryston 10B today to do just that while maintaining the balanced link.

db

will 03-23-2017 10:00 AM

Recently I changed out the interconnects and speaker cable between my C-5xeMP, K-5xeMP and VX-5 Twenty from single-ended to entirely balanced Cardas Golden Reference, and the difference was immediate. I estimate having about 300 hours in, and still keep noticing improvements, but basically it has really smoothed out (just talking about from the time of initial balanced installation). Compared to single ended, the performance I'm getting now is apples to oranges, a different league.

ctsooner 03-24-2017 08:58 AM

The reason you notice improvements may be due to you breaking in a new connection. On the QX5/20 you only need to break in the DAC, but on the preamps and amps you need to break in each connection. It will get better all the way up to at least 500 hours. Its' the amount of silver used in the leads etc... Crazy isn't it?

BillK 03-25-2017 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ctsooner (Post 838392)
The reason you notice improvements may be due to you breaking in a new connection. On the QX5/20 you only need to break in the DAC, but on the preamps and amps you need to break in each connection. It will get better all the way up to at least 500 hours. Its' the amount of silver used in the leads etc... Crazy isn't it?

Not quite true; on the QX-5 Twenty you actually need to break in each digital input as well.

My dealer had only used the streaming interface on theirs and when I borrowed it and used the coaxial and Toslink inputs it sounded quite harsh and brittle.

A few months later after my dealer had broken in those inputs I borrowed it again and it sounded quite a bit more musical.

will 03-26-2017 10:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ctsooner (Post 838392)
The reason you notice improvements may be due to you breaking in a new connection. On the QX5/20 you only need to break in the DAC, but on the preamps and amps you need to break in each connection. It will get better all the way up to at least 500 hours. Its' the amount of silver used in the leads etc... Crazy isn't it?

In my case I think, it was the breaking in of a whole chain, from source to preamp to amp to speakers. Hard to say if the improvement is the sum equivalent to the breaking in of three connections, but I'm happy with the results.

ctsooner 03-26-2017 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BillK (Post 838673)
Not quite true; on the QX-5 Twenty you actually need to break in each digital input as well.

My dealer had only used the streaming interface on theirs and when I borrowed it and used the coaxial and Toslink inputs it sounded quite harsh and brittle.

A few months later after my dealer had broken in those inputs I borrowed it again and it sounded quite a bit more musical.

I was just going by what the folks at Ayre told me about break in. I only use the optical for my TV so I don't even notice much differences.

BillK 03-28-2017 06:54 AM

It's difficult, because analog break-in makes sense, needing to break-in a path that just transmits either 0 or 1 doesn't, but there are still components in the path that may or may not need a signal applied to break in properly.

Regardless, I think that break-in of the analog side is much more important.


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