X1 B Now Includes Pick it PRO Balanced Now the X1 B brings you one step closer to the balanced experience with the inclusion of Pro-Ject’s Pick it PRO Balanced MM phono cartridge. This is the first balanced-capable moving magnet cartridge on the market, also making it the most affordable option for balanced application. The cartridge represents collaboration between Pro-Ject & Ortofon. It was meticulously voiced to achieve a non-fatiguing sonic character while conveying impressive detail & spacial information. The simple explanation for how & why it works: the right channel ground is not associated with the generator shield. Most all MM cartridges tie the right channel ground to the generator shield to reduce noise brought about by higher output & impedance values (compared to MC cartridges). We have reconfigured the grounding & outputs so that a symmetrical (balanced) signal can be sent on from the cartridge. Please note that a balanced cable and a balanced phono stage are required to achieve balanced operation. The turntable, of course, can be used as-is with the supplied Connect it E Phono RCA cable. We All Need Balance With the X1 B, balanced transmission of the phono signal is now available in an unprecedented manner. You no longer need to spend thousands to achieve the measurable quietude afforded by balanced phono. The phono signal coming from your cartridge is not unlike that of the microphone signal: extremely low-level thus requiring unusually-high amplification, making it more susceptible to interference (even more-so in the modern era with electronics abound and with wireless signals running rampant). Since the recording industry uses balanced XLR connections to protect the microphone signal, so too should we with the similarly delicate phono signal. You will have options… Mini XLR > Mini XLR cables can be used between the X1 B and Pro-Ject's phono preamps with a mini XLR input (Phono Box S3 B, Phono Box DS3 B, Tube Box DS3 B) Mini XLR > XLR cables can be used between the X1 B and Pro-Ject's phono preamps with an XLR input (Phono Box DS3 B, Tube Box DS3 B, Phono Box RS2) RCA > Mini XLR cables can be used between the X1 B and Pro-Ject's phono preamps with a mini XLR input (Phono Box S3 B, Phono Box DS3 B, Tube Box DS3 B) A Brief History In the early days of music recording & reproduction, balanced operation was necessary for staving off noise; balanced is how it began. As demand increased for easier, more affordable at-home listening, unbalanced (RCA) connections were developed & implemented for cost-cutting & ease-of-manufacture. For the same reasons, this is the sort of connection that was popularized. Few looked back and balanced connection in music reproduction became a thing reserved only for the ‘high-end.’ For Pro-Ject, the question became this: why NOT position their customers to hear the difference. This is why Pro-Ject's balanced turntables, phono preamps & cables were developed. Balanced Basics A balanced circuit at the input-end is a key player. A balanced signal accrues noise just like an unbalanced one, however, how it’s handled by the circuit is where the magic happens. A balanced signal includes positive (+) and negative (-) conductors as well as a grounding conductor (per channel). In terms of electrical polarity, the positive (+) and negative (-) signals are inverted copies of one another, that inversion rendering them electrically different as it pertains the balanced circuit. Interference hits the positive (+) and negative (-) conductors identically so noise artifacts are the same in the eyes of said circuit. “Common-Mode Rejection” is implemented by the balanced circuit’s differential amplifier, cancelling (rejecting) what’s identical (the noise!) and leaving the gate open for what’s different (the inverted positive & negative signals). Then only the negative (-) component is inverted to perfectly match the positive (+) one, increasing signal amplitude sans the noise! The topic of course is highly technical and runs much more deeply than the discussion here permits, but what it amounts to for the listener is more music, less noise. With noise eradicated, expect a new degree of depth to the sound stage (allowing more detail to emerge) and wildly heightened dynamics. Truly your favorite records offer more than meets the ear, and X1 B & X2 B are equipped to deliver the full extent of what you’ve been missing.
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