Upgraded power cord for those that care.

[harkpabst]

Yeah you are smarter than me, what can I say

I'm not after an argument with you. I'm just asking if we both have the same understanding of what my comment was about. Let me explain it just so there's no misunderstanding: People have complained about built-in switching mode power supplies because they are oh so unreliable. An outboard PS would be much better because this could be replaced more easily. When asked about what the problems with dying PSUs were, we heard nothing but examples of external PSUs failing. I found it to be funny how that could be turned into an argument against a built-in SMPS when not even the collection of anecdotal evidence contained any example of an internal SMPS failing.

Like everything else, a power supply fails if it is cheaply made or permanently driven at its max. load capacity. It doesn't necessarily fail because it is built-in (and even less because it is switching mode).

 

[Kblade97]

I'm not after an argument with you. I'm just asking if we both have the same understanding of what my comment was about. Let me explain it just so there's no misunderstanding: People have complained about built-in switching mode power supplies because they are oh so unreliable. An outbound PS would be much better because this could be replaced more easily. When asked about what the problems with dying PSUs were, we heard nothing but examples of external PSUs failing. I found it to be funny how that could be turned into an argument against a built-in SMPS when not even the collection of anecdotal evidence contained any example of an internal SMPS failing.

Like everything else, a power supply fails if it is cheaply made or permanently driven at its max. load capacity. It doesn't necessarily fail because it is built-in (and even less because it is switching mode).

I’m not upset at all. Obviously I got confused with the internal switch mode power supply versus outboard. I thought we were talking outboard only, so yeah I didn’t get your joke. But no worries whatsoever thanks for the explanation. I had an emotiva processor for a decade that had an internal switch mode power supply never had a problem with it. Again no worries i was not paying attention to the comments obviously, have a great evening enjoy the fight and the music. It’s a great time to be a music lover. If you would’ve
told me 15-20 years ago, that I could by transport/dac for hundreds of dollars and get this kind of sound I would’ve said you were crazy. Coming from a guy that has spent way too much money on Audio.
All the best,
Greg

 

[Valerio]

If you really want to improve the sound, I would consider replacing the speakers. Streamer, DAC and amplifier can give a flat response and a state-of-the-art signal-to-noise ratio, but all that would mean nothing if the speaker was a bottleneck. In return they give a minimalist touch. Whatever your favourite brand, to the next level or if you can pass their flagship. I've combined a lot of different equipment, but whenever I choose a higher quality speaker, this one only gives you superior quality sound.

I'll use the standard power cord that came with the device. Those 160 can be spent on a lap dance.

 

[Kblade97]

 

[guy48065]

I DO see internal switching supplies fail on my job. Even in expensive industrial US-made equipment so it's not always cheap parts. The problem is they're normally not economical to repair. We have dozens of controllers that have experienced a very high percentage of PS failures. Badly engineered IMO because they never see an overload. Mfr "fix" was to replace with an identical supply and then they quickly stopped supporting this. Fortunately the PS was a removable module so our sharpest electronics guy found a way to fix them. He stripped out the entire circuit and designed a replacement that fit the existing space. Even his have had failures--but at a normal rate.

 

[Kblade97]

Squeezebox Classic burned thru 4 of stock & higher ampacities before I replaced with a Chinese linear off eBay (ZeroZone). No issues since, plus it sounded a bit cleaner...more natural.
Topping D30 started reflecting high frequency noise into my phono stage. Tracked it down to the wall wart. Replaced with a "better" one.

Plus in 25 years in equipment calibration & support at my current employer I've replaced at least a dozen various wall warts. They never seem to overheat...they just die a silent death. Newer equipment has shockingly short lifespans (and shockingly short mfr support) and it's typically the PS that dies.
Meanwhile all the older gear with linear supplies just keep *working.

 

[Kblade97]

Sounds like this is a very common problem with SB-C, Poorly designed? I mean the post literally says common problems. So I would agree with what you say about work. But I don’t think the squeezeboxe is an excellent example of switch mode power supplies since this is a very common problem with it. Like I said, my project dac has a switch mode power supply. Bought in 2017 zero issues, so to me it’s just how well it’s implemented. I don’t think it has anything to do with being SMPS.

 

[slartibartfast]

View attachment 14121
Sounds like this is a very common problem with SB-C, Poorly designed? I mean the post literally says common problems.

I believe a couple of the electrolytic capacitors on the output of the Classic are actually reversed so that doesn't help

 

[cc_rider]

Yeah, SMPS' are SO unreliable they're hardly ever used in medical devices... Oh, wait...

 

[canard]

Yeah, SMPS' are SO unreliable they're hardly ever used in medical devices... Oh, wait...

It's not a problem this technology...it's achievements made for the general public, at low cost, etc....
(It is demanding in its realization.... does not support cheap components etc.)