[fredeb]

Has anybody here tried these on their PC's ? If so - does it help with noise ? They also have RAM filters , Drive power & SATA filters and USB filters .
 
Cheers
Ari
 

 

[ecapsretliab]

I tried their Fan filters, SATA filters and USB card with an external low noise power supply + the lowest ripple ATX PSU I could find (Corsair RM750x)  All together the change was surprising, everything became relaxed and silky smooth. 
 
I can't say what worked and what didn't because I installed it all at once.  All I can say is tackling power related noise is something worth doing from my experience...and I was sceptical before trying.

 

[fredeb]

Thanks for the reply , I think I'll give them a try then . Anything to kill power noise I keep picking up .

 

[Xyrium]

I'm a little late to the party on this one, but I picked up their PCIe USB card and it seems to have made a positive change in overall presentation. Low level dynamics definitely improved as well as imaging. However, my DAC was no longer recognized until I used the external power supply connection for it.

 

[fredeb]

  I'm a little late to the party on this one, but I picked up their PCIe USB card and it seems to have made a positive change in overall presentation. Low level dynamics definitely improved as well as imaging. However, my DAC was no longer recognized until I used the external power supply connection for it.

I was hoping to pick up my elfidelity usb filter today , but unfortunately what had arrived was 10x caps i had ordered for valve amp circuits , should arrive this week though . may mine be as good to me as yours appears to have been for you .

 

[Xyrium]

Nice. I'll be curious to hear your listening impressions. I bought mine because I was trying to eliminate some noise that was transferring from my PC to the DAC, and it definitely succeeded there. I'm using this in a desktop system, so I actually enjoy the slightly reduced soundstage that it seems to have presented as the instruments are better defined within the space now. 

 

[fredeb]

  Nice. I'll be curious to hear your listening impressions. I bought mine because I was trying to eliminate some noise that was transferring from my PC to the DAC, and it definitely succeeded there. I'm using this in a desktop system, so I actually enjoy the slightly reduced soundstage that it seems to have presented as the instruments are better defined within the space now. 

I'm getting mine for the exact same reason that you got yours , also in a desktop system . I'll be sure to update the thread with my impressions .
 
Till then , enjoy the music !
 
Here's a pic of what I ordered -
 

 

[Logistics]

It's a concept which does in fact work. In reality, if this makes a huge difference, then I would get a quality PSU, such as FSP/Fortron, Seasonic, PC Power & Cooling, Sparkle, etc.

Years ago, I was modding my SbLive! And changing the original electrolytics which filtered all power traces from the PCI bus to new, Panasonic, low-esr versions made silence very black in that silence was actually silent, which made the soundstage larger and clearer.

You don't want to tax a weak PSU with a load of more caps. If you're using a cheap, factory Dell PSU then it could mean trouble over time. Use discretion.

 

[rafabro]

I was using internal USB card filter for months and value for the money is the best on the market. It has long brake in time 1-2 weeks but after that is quite impressive.
Now I own SOtM pcie card so it's easy to compare. And the fact, is much better but obviously much more expensive.
 
So don't hesitate and get it, it is wort money to have.
 
I also have SATA filter (SOtM as well) but didn't test it yet.

 

[Logistics]

I understand the concept of break-in when it comes to mechanical tolerances, such as that of a loudspeaker, but if your computer is suffering from filtering inadequacy then you would notice a difference from this device, immediately. You can't add ten's of thousands of microfarads of added capacitance, and not notice an effect, immediately. Although, the added draw might take a couple weeks to fry an underwhelming example of a power-supply.

But this is one of those things that either works, right away or not at all.

My 2¢

 

[rafabro]

Have you compare two same cards, side by side. One fresh from the box, one after few weeks brake-in? I did. 
So try first and then we can talk.
 
All electronic devices works right away. Most of them change sound signature a bit after brake-in.

 

[Logistics]

That is not the same context we are talking about, here. We are not comparing sound cards to each other. What you're talking about equates to the same principle as me opening up the power supply, and refreshing it with good caps, as well as the motherboard, which I have done, several times, and have plenty of pictures of to prove it, and it makes a difference, immediately. If it takes you two weeks to notice a difference, you're being led on by the power of suggestion.

 

[rafabro]

You missing point what brake-in time mean...

 

[fredeb]

It's a concept which does in fact work. In reality, if this makes a huge difference, then I would get a quality PSU, such as FSP/Fortron, Seasonic, PC Power & Cooling, Sparkle, etc.

Years ago, I was modding my SbLive! And changing the original electrolytics which filtered all power traces from the PCI bus to new, Panasonic, low-esr versions made silence very black in that silence was actually silent, which made the soundstage larger and clearer.

You don't want to tax a weak PSU with a load of more caps. If you're using a cheap, factory Dell PSU then it could mean trouble over time. Use discretion.

Hi Logistics

Interesting adventure it must be installing new caps in motherboards and soundcards . Does one require a soldering station with a hot air blower ? I've always been a bit scared to mess with multi-layer boards .

Anyway , regarding PSU's I own an Antec 850W High Current Pro and a Corsair HX850 . Either are getting on in age ( probably 7 years old ) , but both are considered of the best made at the time , I've always used Jonnyguru as a reference for PSU's . My Motherboard is a Gigabyte X58A-UD7 rev.2 running a Xeon X5675 . All high quality gear , perhaps a bit long in the tooth . I'm a bit embarrassed to mention that my gfx card is a GTX295 ( I suspect that this dinosaur and power-hungry beast may be the problem ) .

 

[Logistics]

You missing point what brake-in time mean...

The bottom line is that products like this are one of the last things you would do to "improve" sound quality as there are so many other things that affect it much more heavily, and much more directly. What this product is, is essentially a crutch. It will only mask the problem of inadequate filtering on the voltage supply traces. Unfortunately, if your power-supply is inadequate for the system it is in, while this will mask the problem, it will also exacerbate the problem, eventually because it puts extra draw on PSU. And it will contribute towards the PSU failing, early as well as the motherboard and all connected parts. It's the same principle reason we recap old motherboards with polymer capacitors--to eliminate noise, and reduce errors, but if you don't use a recapped or otherwise high quality PSU, you'll have more reason to worry.

Hi Logistics

Interesting adventure it must be installing new caps in motherboards and soundcards . Does one require a soldering station with a hot air blower ? I've always been a bit scared to mess with multi-layer boards .

Anyway , regarding PSU's I own an Antec 850W High Current Pro and a Corsair HX850 . Either are getting on in age ( probably 7 years old ) , but both are considered of the best made at the time , I've always used Jonnyguru as a reference for PSU's.

I have seen other techs mention they needed a hot air blower to keep their irons hot while working in the garage, in cold weather. But I've never needed one. I have a nice little Weller station with dual outputs that gets me up to a shade over 800-degrees.

Antec supplies are regarded as the upper range of mid-grade supplies. Their design is not bad, but they cheap out on component quality, which has a lot to do with all the failed Antec supplies. I have several Antecs which I recapped, and have been running since the 90's. However, I use a Supermicro server PSU, now in my main rig, out of necessity.