Upgrade wall wart with L.P.S,is it worth doing?

[wonky1969]

Hi all,

I have just been sent a new EE router,and I'm happy with its speed,but I wonder wether replacing the wall wort p.s with an upgraded l.p.s would improve the sound quality on music?
Has anyone done this,what power supply did you use,and what improvements,if any did you get?

 

[bencat]

I have my TP-Link router powered with a 12v LPSU and it made a difference when added to all the other LPSU used in my system you can hear the difference when the wall watt is put back in .

 

[Warszawa]

I have FTTP. Should I power the ONT with a LPSU as well?

Silliness.

 

[bencat]

I can say that using LPSU in any part of your system is often told to me to be overkill or silly . I am sure there are good sound technical reasons for this and for the person saying it that is the end of the matter.

I have used LPSU on every stage I can in both my network and systems for DAC / DSP and any other item that have used SMPS wall warts . As each one is taken out and replaced there has been a gain in lack of noise which once you hear the it is very hard to reverse . I am sure that all of this may well be a creation of my own brain and most probably does not exist , but like my tinnitus for me it does exist . If all it takes is me using these LPSU to get a more relaxing sound that lets me enjoy music more then I will carry on using them and carry on being as honest as i can in telling other people that for me they work . I (if I remember to) try to say listen for yourself and if you hear no change then just ignore it and leave things as they are . But if it helps then use it .

 

[StingRay]

I can say that using LPSU in any part of your system is often told to me to be overkill or silly . I am sure there are good sound technical reasons for this and for the person saying it that is the end of the matter.

I have used LPSU on every stage I can in both my network and systems for DAC / DSP and any other item that have used SMPS wall warts . As each one is taken out and replaced there has been a gain in lack of noise which once you hear the it is very hard to reverse . I am sure that all of this may well be a creation of my own brain and most probably does not exist , but like my tinnitus for me it does exist . If all it takes is me using these LPSU to get a more relaxing sound that lets me enjoy music more then I will carry on using them and carry on being as honest as i can in telling other people that for me they work . I (if I remember to) try to say listen for yourself and if you hear no change then just ignore it and leave things as they are . But if it helps then use it .

What is the cost of the LPSU?

Would not adding a switch for £20 not be better value?

 

[bencat]

Sorry but it is not about value but enjoyment . What I have done costs much more but for me is worth it . As I have said this is only my view others will and do have different views . I am not saying what I have done is either the best or needed for anyone else just answering the question of adding an LPSU to a router that was asked. It is my view only but gives a little information on what I found . If I am honest value for money is very personal and in some cases not really a consideration if I find something that sounds really superb . My dCS pair is a good example , there is no way I could justify to anyone let alone myself that they are good value for money as they were expensive even used . But having put them in my system and heard the music produced they were never going to be sent back . That was a personal judgement which mattered to me and and for which I decided this just had to be done , not everyone would feel the same and many would just say not for me at that price .

 

[StingRay]

Sorry but it is not about value but enjoyment . What I have done costs much more but for me is worth it . As I have said this is only my view others will and do have different views . I am not saying what I have done is either the best or needed for anyone else just answering the question of adding an LPSU to a router that was asked. It is my view only but gives a little information on what I found . If I am honest value for money is very personal and in some cases not really a consideration if I find something that sounds really superb . My dCS pair is a good example , there is no way I could justify to anyone let alone myself that they are good value for money as they were expensive even used . But having put them in my system and heard the music produced they were never going to be sent back . That was a personal judgement which mattered to me and and for which I decided this just had to be done , not everyone would feel the same and many would just say not for me at that price .

I understand your point of view but I'm just trying to find out, how much its costs to have LPSUs for a router, are you talking about a cheap chinese one for around £30 or something like an Allo Shanti for £150?

Before I got my Allo Shanti for my Node2, I did try a Chinese one but it made it worse, the Allo is much better.

 

[bencat]

Sorry @StingRay the LPSU I use for my router is an LHY Audio which is a Chinese one but as with all things there are good and bad this one was bought used from @Lawrence001 and is much larger than most you see on e-bay and is to my ears very good . Having found it used this was not that expensive but some of the other ones in my system are more expensive but not in my view stupid money. As many were gained in used buys or trades the Allo Shanti is the most expensive I have which powers my Allo Digione Signature player . So when looked at in isolation each one was not that much but when added all together it is the cost of decent used component in the chain .

 

[wonky1969]

Bencat,what L.P.S.U have your tried,as there seems to be loads to choose from.
I need a 12vdc 2amp supply

 

[bencat]

@wonky1969 for my Router which is a 12V unit as noted above I use an LHY Audio . There are other units around but if they are not the Chinese ones then they do tend to get a bit spendy . According to the tests by a few on here the Sbooster is the best choice for sound quality but that is around £300 and not sure if that is what is needed to spend on a power supply for your router. My best advice would be put a wanted on here , PFM and any other forums you are on and see what that drags up . Set up a search on E-Bay as well .

This looks quite nice and offers an option to power another unit as well . No idea what it would go for .

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/14468565...A1PHTpDRI4pnc5AbULB6A05gQ=|tkp:Bk9SR_S73PTZYA
And if you fancy getting a bit spendy here is another one that is well liked . I use one of these to power my Raspberry Pi with Amphat for the kitchen system and it sounds very nice . In my case a very large improvement on the SMPS 12V I used before it .

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/26583177...8b3hyv+WSCAfL51BHajX7s++ND|tkp:Bk9SR_a73PTZYA

 

[StingRay]

Sorry @StingRay the LPSU I use for my router is an LHY Audio which is a Chinese one but as with all things there are good and bad this one was bought used from @Lawrence001 and is much larger than most you see on e-bay and is to my ears very good . Having found it used this was not that expensive but some of the other ones in my system are more expensive but not in my view stupid money. As many were gained in used buys or trades the Allo Shanti is the most expensive I have which powers my Allo Digione Signature player . So when looked at in isolation each one was not that much but when added all together it is the cost of decent used component in the chain .

Thanks Bencat. That does look a pretty decent one, about £100 new. The cheaper chinese ones are a mixed bag and so many similar ones.

I may try a used one if I see one.

 

[ziggy]

Sboosters have significantly improved the performance of my streamer, DAC and Mscaler, not cheap but worth the extra over the MCRU. I have the Sky router and am uncertain if a L.P.S. would improve SQ taking into account that I have two Cisco switches in the chain as well as the Eno Ethernet filter. Would be interested in the views of anyone with a Sky router.

 

[Strider]

Hi all,

I have just been sent a new EE router,and I'm happy with its speed,but I wonder wether replacing the wall wort p.s with an upgraded l.p.s would improve the sound quality on music?
Has anyone done this,what power supply did you use,and what improvements,if any did you get?

No, seriously, spend your money elsewhere.

 

[Cable Monkey]

No, seriously, spend your money elsewhere.

Seeing as it will be a relatively modest amount, where do you suggest?

To be clear, I’ve never seen the point in putting a LPS on something like a service providers router/modem unless the place is small. Even then I would take one feed into a switch (it doesn’t need to be expensive but you can pick quality that fits your pocket) and maybe put an LPS there. Feed everything from that switch. I just wouldn’t mess with a bit of kit that effectively doesn’t belong to me.
Tomorrow I’m having FTTP installed and I look forward to seeing what impact that has. It will be a business install and I wonder if they get better quality kit.

 

[wonky1969]

Yes,cablemonkey my bungalow is tiny,with the longest cable run being 8 metres away from the router.
So no need for switches and the like,just want to improve the wall wort for my EE router

 

[tuga]

Yes,cablemonkey my bungalow is tiny,with the longest cable run being 8 metres away from the router.
So no need for switches and the like,just want to improve the wall wort for my EE router

as Cable Monkey said you will improve the performance of your digital playback by adding a switch between router and your network devices. (Just to be clear, not by adding a LPSU to your router)

 

[wonky1969]

Any recommendations for a switch/lpsu combo?

 

[StingRay]

Yes,cablemonkey my bungalow is tiny,with the longest cable run being 8 metres away from the router.
So no need for switches and the like,just want to improve the wall wort for my EE router

Switch you dont lead on a long run, it can improve the sound for little outlay. I have the Zyxel 108B, about £20 new, if you buy on Amazon you can try it out and return it if no good. LPSU is likely to be more expensive.

 

[wonky1969]

I thought that improving the routers p.s.u would have a positive effect,as it's a switch as well,with two streamers a NAS running through it,surely lowering the noise floor would be a good thing for music.
I don't really want to complicate things further by adding a switch and L.P.S.U,unless I have to,of course

 

[lazycat]

I thought that improving the routers p.s.u would have a positive effect,as it's a switch as well,with two streamers a NAS running through it,surely lowering the noise floor would be a good thing for music.
I don't really want to complicate things further by adding a switch and L.P.S.U,unless I have to,of course

Try the Zyxel, it's worth it.