HS8/HS7/HS5/HS8S Owner’s Manual
14
Connection and Cable Types
To allow direct connection to equipment in a wide variety of working environments, the HS speakers are
equipped with one XLR and one phone connector that both support balanced as well as unbalanced
connections.
Balanced or Unbalanced
Balanced connections provide greater resistance to
noise that can be picked up from external sources,
effectively canceling induced noise while leaving the
desired audio signal intact. Since the chance that noise
will be picked up increases with the length of the cable,
balanced connections are preferred for long cable
runs. Unbalanced cables are commonly used to
connect electronic musical instruments and guitars,
etc., to amplification equipment. If your cable runs won’t
be any longer than around one or two meters, which
should suffice in most small rooms, then unbalanced
cables can probably be used without any problems. If
the source device has balanced outputs, the use of
balanced cables is recommended to ensure optimum
signal quality.
Cables
The following types of cable connectors can be used
with HS series speakers.
XLR type connectors are widely used in professional
audio equipment and installations. The three-pin XLR
type connectors provided on the HS series speakers
are primarily intended for use with balanced
connections. XLR type plugs are rugged and reliable,
and are therefore a good choice for outdoor
applications.
Phone type connectors can be used for both
unbalanced and balanced connections. Cables fitted
with TRS (Tip, Ring, Sleeve) phone plugs must be used
to make balanced connections to the HS series
speakers. The construction of TRS phone plugs is
basically the same as stereo phone plugs.
Connect standard mono phone plug cables to the HS
speaker phone connectors for unbalanced
connections.
Source devices that only have RCA pin type output
connectors can be connected via RCA pin plug to
phone plug conversion cables (cables with an RCA pin
plug on one end and a phone plug on the other).
Connections using RCA pin plug to phone plug
conversion cables are unbalanced.
XLR Connectors
Pin 2: hot (+)
Pin 3: cold (-)
Pin 1: ground
Pin 1: ground
Pin 3: cold (-)
Pin 2: hot (+)
Phone Connectors
RCA Pin Connectors
Tip: hot (+)
Ring: cold (-)
Sleeve: ground
Tip: hot (+)
Sleeve: ground