[colhogan]

James:
 I have a Bryston BP 5 with XLR outputs only. I know that there is a gain boosting of 3db when using the XLR's,but what if my 4B amplifier has RCA inputs only?
 Do both Pre/power units need to have the same style of connection in order to hear the difference in gain?
 I have the adapters to make the conversion from XLR to RCA.but I was just wondering..
Thanks in advance,
Patrick

[brucek]

If your amplifier only has RCA inputs, then it's best to use the RCA outputs from the preamp.

No advantage will be gained by using the XLR outputs through an adapter to RCA.

brucek

[Elizabeth]

having tried RCA instead of balanced. I can say the volume level difference is not important enough to bother with.
I went back to the balanced  (because those cables are better quality)

[95Dyna]

I agree with Elizabeth.  I'm using balanced IC's and use the gain switch on my 7's according to which helps the recording sound better as opposed to 2db for balanced and 1 db for RCA as the manual suggests.