What's The Difference Between Balanced XLR And TRS?

[Gavvo]

Connections aside of course.

Obviously most monitors take both balanced at their end but at the interface it always, or most likely is a quarter jack.

Is there any impairment in sound quality? Or any noticable quality difference?

[ghettosynth]

Connections aside of course.

Obviously most monitors take both balanced at their end but at the interface it always, or most likely is a quarter jack.

Is there any impairment in sound quality? Or any noticable quality difference?

High quality interfaces will have TRS outputs, all of mine do. For many signals you won't notice any difference but balanced connections do offer better common mode noise rejection. When either end is just TS, either foced by cable or the connector, then TRS just shorts the ring to sleeve and your connection, end to end, is unbalanced.

Bottom line is that balanced connections, especially over long runs, will typically be quieter than unbalanced connections.

YMMV.

[whyterabbyt]

Connections aside of course.

Nothing, except the physical format. Both have three signal connectors, and if both are balanced (XLR cables dont 'have' to be any more than TRS do) then there's a ground, the 'hot' signal, and the out-of-phase 'cold' signal.
XLRs 'lock' and TRS dont.

Useage varies; you might expect a desk or soundcard might have XLRs on its mic inputs and TRS on its line inputs and its outputs. But some will have XLR on almost everything.

Oh, and noone puts out phantom power over TRS, I believe. But that's not a facet of the connector itself.

[MadAnthony81]

Trs is a stereo "worthy" connection. It is capable of stereo connection but is in large format. Just like your headphones.

Unlike headphones, trs cables are primarily only for studio monitors.

Being that they are capable of a full stereo signal, they do transmit a full unnaltered signal in mono. Ex. They are like having a great mono connection. Stereo cables are better than any mono cable.

Balanced xlr cables have 3, and it is apparent. One serves as a ground, and where there is a ground there is an unbalance. Xlr was modified from unbalanced and changed over to balanced by inhibiting-to-correct the alterations in its own stereo signal.

Summary. Trs is a simple yet effective stereo capable cable made for mono applications.

Xlr attempts to correct signal change due to its grounding hinderances. Its sorta of like more wires, but with old crappy parts.

Tip. Trs look just like your headphones.

When mono is negotiated through a stereo jack it is driven more precisely and ironically through the utmost smallest tip of the jack. The stereo signal is transmitted through the tip and occurs hence in a mono state of fasion.

Trs is actually simple but high tech. But hey thats the way stereo has always been.

[ghettosynth]

Trs is a stereo "worthy" connection. It is capable of stereo connection but is in large format. Just like your headphones.

Unlike headphones, trs cables are primarily only for studio monitors.

Being that they are capable of a full stereo signal, they do transmit a full unnaltered signal in mono. Ex. They are like having a great mono connection. Stereo cables are better than any mono cable.

Balanced xlr cables have 3, and it is apparent. One serves as a ground, and where there is a ground there is an unbalance. Xlr was modified from unbalanced and changed over to balanced by inhibiting-to-correct the alterations in its own stereo signal.

Summary. Trs is a simple yet effective stereo capable cable made for mono applications.

Xlr attempts to correct signal change due to its grounding hinderances. Its sorta of like more wires, but with old crappy parts.

Tip. Trs look just like your headphones.

When mono is negotiated through a stereo jack it is driven more precisely and ironically through the utmost smallest tip of the jack. The stereo signal is transmitted through the tip and occurs hence in a mono state of fasion.

Trs is actually simple but high tech. But hey thats the way stereo has always been.

Yeah, um, the fact that a TRS cable can be used as a "stereo" cable does not mean that most applications of TRS have anything to do with stereo. Mono is not "negotiated through a stereo jack."

[BertKoor]

trs cables are primarily only for studio monitors.

Ehrm, no not quite... It's just three conductors to be used at will by whatever the designer seems fit for it

My mixing console has TRS connections for balanced connections, but also uses a single TRS jacks for channel inserts: unbalanced, to be used with a Y (splitter) cable with one TS for Send and another for Receive.

Stereo cables are better than any mono cable.

And that's just the start of you talking bollox

[ghettosynth]

trs cables are primarily only for studio monitors.

Ehrm, no not quite... It's just three conductors to be used at will by whatever the designer seems fit for it

My mixing console has TRS connections for balanced connections, but also uses a single TRS jacks for channel inserts: unbalanced, to be used with a Y (splitter) cable with one TS for Send and another for Receive.

Yes, exactly. In fact, it's important to grok the difference here in the sense of application because the advantages of using "balanced" connections only apply where the signal itself is balanced and coupled via a TRS (tip ring sleeve) jack.

A TRS cable is just a three wire cable, probably shielded, but not necessarily so. When used as an insert cable, or a stereo headphone cable, it is not a "balanced" connection so you do not get the common mode noise rejection properties of a balanced signal. An insert cable is two unbalanced connections, one in, and one out, a headphone connection is also two unbalanced connections, typically a stereo signal.

XLR cables are also just a three wire cable, probably shielded, but not necessarily so. Again, the cable itself carries no magical properties. You can use it for any application where three wires are needed. That said, unlike TRS cables, XLR cables are seldom used for applications other than carrying balanced signals. You could use an XLR jack as an insert point or a stereo headphone jack, but for reasons more based on tradition and to avoid accidentally plugging microphones into places that might damage them, this is seldom done. XLR connectors have been used as unbalanced connectors. Some radio gear has used XLR connectors for mic inputs with the third wire being used for push to talk. I've also seen XLR connectors used for power supply connections, again, a bad idea.

So, XLR and TRS cables/pugs/jacks are three wire jacks and can be used anywhere that three wires are needed. TRS jacks are common for expression pedals on keyboards as yet another example. In this case, it is neither a balance connection or a stereo connection.

XLR cables, like many coaxial cables, provide other physical advantages that you don't get from TRS (or just TR 1/4" phone cables). In particular, the hot connectors are never shorted to ground. This is why 1/4" cables are viewed as inferior cables for speakers.

So, with respect to the OP's question, that is the one physical difference when talking about purely balanced connections, the tip and ring are not shorted to ground when you plug the cable in. This is why it's not a good idea to carry phantom power over a TRS Cable. Additionally, XLR cables lock, most 1/4 cables do not, although, there are some locking 1/4" jacks. Beyond the connector difference, and assuming that the cables are of equal quality, there is no other real difference that matters in most applications of balance cables.

[bobhva]

Is the any difference with mixing connectors? For example, My UMC204HD Interface only has TRS outputs and I am looking at JBL LSR305 Monitors that have both XLR and TRS. I can get either TRS to TRS Cables or TRS to XLR cables. As I understand from what is being said here... there is no difference?

[llze]

for that application you wouldn't notice a difference. Balanced signals are handy if you need to carry the signal over 10 - 20 meters on a stage for example, where a lot of noise can scatter on the signal. So by using balanced in/out the signal gets splitted, and one part gets phase inverted..then the noise can join the signal. At the end the phase gets inverted back and canceles out--> noise gone.

On shorter signal paths you wouldn't really need to, but it also cannot hurt.

So yes, you can mix those connectors.

[softska]

Is the any difference with mixing connectors? For example, My UMC204HD Interface only has TRS outputs and I am looking at JBL LSR305 Monitors that have both XLR and TRS. I can get either TRS to TRS Cables or TRS to XLR cables. As I understand from what is being said here... there is no difference?

If it's semi permanent get whatever makes you happy, but it's a lot easier to find an XLR to TRS adapter than the other way around.

[BertKoor]

Just get some TRS-TRS cables then. The audio doesnt care at all, that makes no difference indeed.

My point: this will always work. With XLR you can goof up with ordering male instead of female or vice versa. These TRS connectors also don't mind mixing balanced & unbalanced topology regardless the cables used.

So TRS is just plug&play...

[whyterabbyt]

Just get some TRS-TRS cables then. The audio doesnt care at all, that makes no difference indeed.

My point: this will always work. With XLR you can goof up with ordering male instead of female or vice versa. These TRS connectors also don't mind mixing balanced & unbalanced topology regardless the cables used.

They're also a bit cheaper.

[Googly Smythe]

I went to see a band, Curved Air, actually, at the Festival Hall. I don't know what the bass player was on, but he was squirming all over the stage, so much so, that he managed to pull his guitar cable from the amp. Luckily, it was trs - if it had been xlr, he would have pulled the whole stack down. (Because of the xlr locking mechanism, see.)
Just sayin'.