Balanced or Unbalanced? (Part 2)

For an introduction on unbalanced cable check out Part 1 of this blog, otherwise for balanced cable continue on with Part 2.

Balanced Analog Cable

Balanced cables use three lines to transmit the electronic audio signal of a microphone or instrument: a positive (hot or live) line, a negative (cold) line, and a dead (grounded) line. The grounded line, like in an unbalanced cable, protects your equipment by bonding any extra volts that come across the line. However, unlike the unbalanced cable, the balanced cable has two lines carrying the audio signal- the positive and negative lines.

The most common balanced audio cable connection is the XLR.

XLR (Male and Female ends)

To protect the audio signal from any noise interference, the signal going down both lines is inverted to opposite polarities. The original signal goes down the hot line while the flipped signal goes down the cold line. This is why balanced cable is used for longer runs.

At the input stage of the mixer, the trick of noise reduction occurs. For when the original and inverted signal meet at the mixer the signal is re-inverted to make both desirable audio signals the same, and any unwanted noise is canceled out. Not only does this clean up the signal, but it boost it for a more professional tracking.   

For more information on balanced audio signal check out this video: Advantages of Balanced Audio Signals