Balanced Stereo Sound

joelp · January 21

(I am a total beginner in the audio world, so please explain like I'm five.)

I am thinking about putting multiple stereo speakers all around the house (I want them to be connected via cable.).

I started informing myself about different audio cables and speakers and so on but I still can't fully get my head around this.

So apparently for longer distance cables it is recommended to use a balanced cable, so I started reading about TRS cables because they are simple and easy to use. But reading about them, I noticed that a TRS cable is either capable of carrying a balanced mono signal or an unbalanced stereo signal. So for the setup I have in mind, where I want multiple stereo speakers but the distance between the "playing device" and the speakers is way more than 10 feet what would be an appropriate cable/connector to use and what else would I have to look for before getting the equipment?

Thank you so much for anyone who is willing to help me.

avgvstvs · January 21

Normally for a home audio setup you wouldn't use either, just a standard copper pair, because most ambient speakers don't even accept TRS connectors, but instead they use screw in connectors or banana plugs.

Needfuldoer · January 21

Balanced audio basically means you have two wires carrying the same signal, but 180 degrees out of phase with each other. When wire A is at +1v, wire B is at -1v. That helps reduce interference over long runs.

How many sets of speakers do you want to install? You might be better off with network connected audio players instead of running everything back to one amp.

avgvstvs · January 21

I honestly wouldn't bother, brother. It's a home audio setup, not a pair of audio monitors perfectly positioned in a treated room. Just go with standard copper pair and a decent AMP/Receiver. It really doesn't even matter if it's stereo or not, you're not going to get any stereo imaging with house speakers.