Soekris 2541 External LPSU build

Interesting choice, Wurth. I'd not read of anyone's experience with their caps which I heard were fairly recently introduced? ...well I guess 8 years is not that recent! It does seem there is a variety of performance offered, WCAP-ATLI and WCAP-ATUL series having the better ripple, ESR, and leakage figures.

Super low esr and great ripple in a small package. I use them everywhere except main psu banks.

Being a Wurth product beta tester we know them well along with some others. Have been using Wurth products for over 30 years the Alfa's and Ferrari's used Wurth as O.E. fitment on many of their parts.

A great many foo caps are BS anyway, black gates over priced warm wobbly poo producers, the Mundorf power caps, humm, I'll pass thank you.

For our areospace and communications designs, we have a range of caps produced for the company, however the MOQ is 50K+ per item especially with organic polymor based varients. These have the benefit of ultra low esr, leakage and high temparature rating of 150C with amazing derating properties but when you are in a vacuum its slighly different to being in your front room!

Again some good clean work going on there Oli

Temp lash up just for a listen whilst I await connections to arrive.

No inside pictures at the moment as it is only thrown together. Absolutely no finesse has been applied yet, but as soon as i get the connections for the umbilical, i will then buid it properly.

Listening,

Well, it's fairly well proven to me by now that removing the SMPS for any device is always beneficial to the music.

The soundstage and image are particularly effected. Cavernous depth. Sounds eminating from outside of the speakers, but this time i notice that on tracks like Nublano from Sera Una Noche, that the little bits of information like the well timed gentle ringing of a bell, are appearing from a black hole like void in the mix. Unlike previously, where they seemed to be positioned closer to me from the off.

Now they are appearing to start earlier, so possibly detecting the information sooner than before, but they are definitly in a lot more space.

Listening to Duke Ellington, i have found the brass instruments to be a little thin and sharp at times in recent weeks, but the change in PSU has taken the brass section, improved the body and tone, and given a real "throaty" rasp and bite. A very welcome result.

I am still using the Silver cable, so this could be contributing a little to the lean sound i am getting at times, but i genuinly feel quite at ease with it in the system after yesterdays session.

I am very pleased so far and will continue to emply my "no SMPS" mantra to HiFi. The Mutec will be getting it's SMPS removed in the next few weeks too.

Then there will not be any!

Alan has hit the nail on the head, small footprint, bettter power density and cost plus the big one space, again relating back to cost.
Currently working on areospace PSU. Fundentally so far away from anything that commerically available due to some of the factors above and larger outside factors due too the environments they will be working in.

However recentlyu we finished a project that in steady state was idling at 8fA and was using 30mA

"why did you sell the 1421"

Because optical wanted it, and i wanted AES. Other than that, there was no reason.

"is it on a par"

Been a long time since i heard the 1421, but he only real difference between the two is the AES connection and the slightly different LPSU. Maybe a bit or two, too. It's certainly no worse.

"end game DAC"

Well, i heard the Holo Spring 3 in my system, the Musician Pegasus, the 1421 with LPSU, and various other DACS. The only DAC i would consider swapping for is a Denafrips T2, or a Rockna wavelight. But, i would have to hear one first, and i seriously doubt there will be a great deal of difference in it. The Soekris PCB is used in £10-15k DACS....they just build them with far better PSU's than it comes with as standard.

Buy a Soekris, built a good LPSU and relax.

+5V and +/-12V

You should have asked Oli I have boxes full of lemo, 3, 4, 5, 6 pin. All mini though, fiddly to solder up, but primo quality.

I See, 

Does the regulator board come with information on what transformers to use? 

What transformers did Oli use?

Still thinking about buying a 2541 and doing this mod but I don't have the knowledge for things like choosing transformers.

/Karl

Splendid, thanks!!

For practicality in the audio world, don't you tend to use the GX16 aviation plugs?

Finished for now.

A couple of things are going to be upgraded in a few weeks. Not keen on the little busbar as the links rattle, so that will be removed.

However, it's now earthed and has a lid on ... We can all breath easily.