Sorry, I haven't read thru this thread, but (unless there's something in there I don't know), I'd go single ended into the SMS-1 and single ended out into your amp. The SMS is a PITA to optimize, but it's really, really good. The improvement in overall SQ is tremendous - it's amazing what happens when you get the bottom two or three octaves right. I'd imagine it's even more dramatic with little guys like your Kefs serving as the mains.
As to signal integrity purists, the SMS involves ADC, signal processing in the digital domain, and DAC. Why sweat the balanced "philosophical" issue?
caveat:. If you have noise issues and/or long cable runs, you might have a decision to make. Otherwise, I'd just go with RCAs.
As to signal integrity purists, the SMS involves ADC, signal processing in the digital domain, and DAC. Why sweat the balanced "philosophical" issue?
caveat:. If you have noise issues and/or long cable runs, you might have a decision to make. Otherwise, I'd just go with RCAs.