Mic Leads - Balanced or Unbalanced

[welby]

Hi All,

which is the best or prefered method for connecting a mic to a mixer.

I have 2 mic inputs and both inputs support either XLR Balanced, 1/4" Jack balanced or unbalanced.

Thanks in advance.

[spin mobile disco]

With a mic it is not really that important unless using very long runs. I use balanced myslef just incase but when I have used unbalanced I have not noticed any real difference in volume or quility.

P.S I use 10 meter and 3 meter runs or 20 meter at the longest.

[welby]

With a mic it is not really that important unless using very long runs. I use balanced myslef just incase but when I have used unbalanced I have not noticed any real difference in volume or quility.

P.S I use 10 meter and 3 meter runs or 20 meter at the longest.

Thanks Martin,

I was about to order some replacement leads, so was just wondering what was best.

BTW the DB subs are doing a magic job!

[OllieJames]

Thanks Martin,

I was about to order some replacement leads, so was just wondering what was best.

BTW the DB subs are doing a magic job!

Matthew ;):D

[NKR]

Balanced for me every time as it reduces background hum. When you are running a vocal artist every little helps. :)

[DJ Jules]

Balanced for me every time as it reduces background hum. When you are running a vocal artist every little helps. :)

It also eliminates noise due to mobile phones.... Try making a phone call next to an unbalanced mic cable vs a balanced cable and see what happens!

Julian

[nisfo]

If I recall correctly when using XLR on most mixers, you have control of bass and treble for the microphone.

I hated spending too much on XLR to XLR cables when using them for karaoke. Too many got broken, so I would only use the quality ones for myself. Now I try not to do karaoke anymore for my own reasons.

[DazzyD]

For mics always XLR with the very best OFC (Oxygen-Free Copper) cabling. It's quite delicate and more expensive than other cabling but the improved signal quality is worth it.

[DJ Jules]

If I recall correctly when using XLR on most mixers, you have control of bass and treble for the microphone.

Errrr... that totally depends on the mixer. In most cases though that statement is false. I've got a fairly budget Gemini mixer which has a combined XLR and 1/4" Jack socket for Mic input and the Treble/Bass controls work on it regardless of the type of connection.

Jack or XLR are simply different ways of getting the signal into the mixer, any processing applied to the signal is usually the same regardless.

Julian

[Happy Jack]

For mics always XLR with the very best OFC (Oxygen-Free Copper) cabling. It's quite delicate and more expensive than other cabling but the improved signal quality is worth it.

I'm sorry, but OFC? Improved signal quality? Some misinformed salesman has clearly sold you that idea. I'd love to see some evidence to counter this.

OFC wire only benefit is the resistance to internal corrosion which is of no consequence in mic or instrument cable.

The claim is that OFC wire has less resistance and therefore less signal loss. While that sounds pretty impressive, consider the relatively short cable runs and the high resistance these cables are feeding. In practical terms, there's no difference between a few ohms of resistance and zero resistance when you are feeding a mic-pre or amplifier with an input impedance that is many thousands of ohms, even with the cheapest of copper wire.

The 'apparent' benefit is inaudible, so it really isn't worth paying for the pleasure.

Going with actual scientific fact for a moment, as already mentioned, I'd get into the habit of looking for a balanced XLR input before anything. If nothing else, it encourages good practice as it has a much higher immunity to induced signals, RF and EMI, and chassis ground-hum loops.

And just picking up on what nisfo has said -



I hated spending too much on XLR to XLR cables when using them for karaoke. Too many got broken...

Says it all, really. If your cables are likely to be out on stage or amongst the punters, don't worry about gold-plated interconnects, ultra-fine stranded wire or OFC. Spend money on shielded pre-fab cables with a tough PVC jacket and decent connectors. I swear by VDC if the money is there. They also supply by the drum.

http://www.vdctrading.com/products_gridview.asp?SubSectionID=8&secName=Audio+single+leads+-+mono+and+balanced&ProductID=112#p112

[DazzyD]

I'm sorry, but OFC? Improved signal quality? Some misinformed salesman has clearly sold you that idea. I'd love to see some evidence to counter this.

Not a salesman but the electrician who is tried and trusted by me and does all my electrical and electronic work and builds my cables. I first tried these about 9 years ago and compared with the bog-standard cabling I was using there is an audible increase in quality with less "noise" being amplified through the sound system. Maybe I was using inferior cabling in the first place, and I don't pretend to know anything about the technical and scientific aspects of cable but I have now found a product which I am happy with using, is an improvement on what I was using previously and it now has it's place in my sound system set-up.