[LTd head]

Does anyone upgraded power supply? I'm thinking about Linear Power Supply?
Still wonder how much of improvement I will get...
Your thoughts and recommendations, please?

 

[VandyMan]

Does anyone upgraded power supply? I'm thinking about Linear Power Supply?
Still wonder how much of improvement I will get...
Your thoughts and recommendations, please?

I don't think you will get any improvements at all by "upgrading" the power supply and you could easily damage the A16. You can think of the A16 essentially as a computer with a lot of sensitive electronics inside. If you are worried about noise, then use an external DAC with an optical cable (although I don't think that is necessary either). I do think you can get an improvement using an external headphone amplifier, if you use hard to drive headphones.

 

[Eich1eeF]

Does anyone upgraded power supply? I'm thinking about Linear Power Supply?
Still wonder how much of improvement I will get...
Your thoughts and recommendations, please?

My power supply buzzes and beeps audibly, although not audible when wearing headphones, so If I ever get my hands on an A16 again, I'll consider upgrading. The Smyths have made recommendations regarding the voltage and current needed, but I can't remember where - I'd suspect in the Kickstarter comments, but it's also possible that someone quoted an email they had received.

Edit: I should have added that I don't really expect any audible improvements regarding the headphone outputs from upgrading the power supply.

 

[zdjh22]

My power supply buzzes and beeps audibly, although not audible when wearing headphones, so If I ever get my hands on an A16 again, I'll consider upgrading. The Smyths have made recommendations regarding the voltage and current needed, but I can't remember where - I'd suspect in the Kickstarter comments, but it's also possible that someone quoted an email they had received.

When I measure PRIRs it is convenient to move my A16 to my couch listening position (this helps to see the tiny screen and makes cable management a bit saner). Instead of using an extension cord for the brick, I use the 12V output from one of my lithium battery packs (I have EcoFlow units, but there are many with 12V outputs available). That's about as clean a DC input as possible - i.e., no ripple or high frequency noise related to the AC to DC conversion - although you could also avoid any coupling to the embedded digital controller in the battery pack by just using a deep discharge battery (which is what I use to run my telescope and all the associated gear). I haven't noticed any difference in sound or video when using a pure DC input as opposed to the power brick, but then again I haven't paid close attention. Luckily my power brick is silent.

IIRC power drain as measured by the lithium battery pack is about 10 to 12W, so that particular pack would last 10 hours before recharging is necessary.

On the original question upthread regarding linear power supplies, changing the A16 internal power conversion circuitry is probably not practical or possible. The three (?) digital boards are I believe independent Linux systems (the ARM controller and the DSP boards for sure, perhaps the HDMI board as well). They likely have embedded DC-DC conversion circuitry since the boards run at much lower than 12V (3.3 and/or 5). Plus there is a huge variety of both MHz and KHz range AC signals propagating within the box, so ripple or high frequency noise from the switching power supply is the least of shielding worries. It’s a bit of a different situation from, say, replacing the switching power supply on an Oppo to a linear supply, since Oppos have a separate AC-DC power board that has multiple DC voltage outputs (and I’m not making any claims that a linear supply is better in an Oppo).

 

[audiohobbit]

I think somewhere in this thread should be a recommendation or specs for a power supply, and I think this came from Stephen Smyth probbably? You have to search for it.

 

[hicham]

While awaiting the release of a firmware to address the PRIR and HPEQ imbalance that appeared in firmware 2.15, I would like to downgrade my A16 firmware from 2.15 back to 2.12 which was working fine on my A16.

I have a new headphone (Stax SR-009) I want to create an HPEQ for and it comes out imbalanced under firmware 2.15. I tried to compensate using the new microphone gain feature to no avail.

Does anybody know if it's possible and safe to downgrade the A16 firmware from 2.15 to 2.12 or are there any issues in doing that?

I did send this question to Smyth Research and have yet to receive an answer. I would appreciate an answer from anybody who knows or has actually done the firmware downgrade.

 

[Litlgi74]

I would like to downgrade my A16 firmware from 2.15 back to 2.12 which was working fine on my A16.

If you were once on fw 2.12 or earlier... You don't have a machine with the newer hardware. So, there is no reason why you shouldn't be able to roll back to 2.12 from 2.15.

It's the machines with newer hardware that are currently stuck with using 2.15.

 

[hicham]

If you were once on fw 2.12 or earlier... You don't have a machine with the newer hardware. So, there is no reason why you shouldn't be able to roll back to 2.12 from 2.15.

It's the machines with newer hardware that are currently stuck with using 2.15.

Thank you. I am aware of the limitations on the newer hardware, but that doesn't apply to my unit. I was asking because in some types of equipment, there is a warning that once firmware is updated there is no way to revert back.

 

[Litlgi74]

Thank you. I am aware of the limitations on the newer hardware, but that doesn't apply to my unit. I was asking because in some types of equipment, there is a warning that once firmware is updated there is no way to revert back.

I think you're on solid ground rolling back to 2.12... or even 2.14 (found on the A16 community Google drive)... I personally have rolled back both of my machines to 2.12. No issues.

 

[hicham]

I think you're on solid ground rolling back to 2.12... or even 2.14 (found on the A16 community Google drive)... I personally have rolled back both of my machines to 2.12. No issues.

Great! I will roll back to 2.12 then.

I am not aware of the existence of firmware 2.14 as it is not on their website.

Could you kindly post the link to the A16 Community Google Drive?

 

[Litlgi74]

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1MWWb8KELPBbAC5WSHf82UXeV73v1O84W

 

[hicham]

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1MWWb8KELPBbAC5WSHf82UXeV73v1O84W

Thanks! Much appreciated.

 

[DenverW]

Given the new advances in science and biotechnology, maybe in a few thousand years people of the future will be able to independently move and reshape each ear to better localize sound.

Interesting idea! I should be receiving my realiser around then...

LOL!

 

[dsperber]

Question about activating Auromatic when playing CD (from Oppo 203 feeding A16)...

I'm running firmware 2.15. I'm playing a 2.0 stereo CD on my Oppo, feeding "bitstream" audio to the A16. It is arriving as 2.0 PCM, as it should.

I'm trying to get Auromatic upmixing from one preset in which Auro-3D is enabled, and getting normal 2.0 PCM stereo from a second preset which does not have Auro-3D enabled. I'd like to compare the two, to see how they both sound. I'm using a Julian Bream CD of Spanish guitar, so it's very easy to close your eyes and "see/hear him" 7-10 feet away through the A16. I wanted to contrast the two different presentations..

(1) I know that Auromatic upmixing can be forced, through setting the Auromatic upmixer for HDMI source in "PCM audio management" of the preset. This works no matter whether the Auro-3D setting (on the second page of the preset) is enabled or disabled. And in fact when I do this sure enough the Auro 7.1.4 room (which is the right one for this preset) is activated, Auromatic upmixing is enabled and active as shown on the screen, and the active speakers appear to be L/R as well as C. I am NOT getting sound from any of the other speakers our of Auromatic, just L/R/C.

==> Should I be seeing sound from any other speakers in this 7.1.4 room when upmixing 2.0 PCM through Auromatic? Is it a function of the content, and because this is very delicate guitar music it's only adding C? Or is this all I should expect from Auromatic upmixing on 2.0 PCM stereo?

(2) Now, if I instead reset upmixing back to "direct" for HDMI in "PCM audio management", and instead go to page 2 of the preset and enable the Auro-3D toggle, isn't this supposed to do exactly the same thing as happened in (1) above??? Yes, this is not Dolby or DTS source, it's simply PCM 2.0. But doesn't turning on the Auro-3D toggle trigger exactly the same Auromatic upmixing for PCM 2.0 input (from HDMI in this case)?

Well, it doesn't happen. Instead it simply loads the PCM room and plays 2.0 PCM stereo through the L/R speakers. No Auromatic upmixing. No other speaker is active.

==> Is this right or wrong? I thought enabling Auro-3D in the preset was another way to kick Auromatic upmixing into action when PCM input arrived. Am I wrong?

(3) If I go into "Listening rooms" and set "Loading -> only Auro" (still with the Auro-3D toggle enabled in the preset), now the 7.1.4 Auro room loads instead of the PCM room, as would be expected. But once again I still only see sound playing through the L/R speakers of the 7.1.4 Auro room. Still no Auromatic upmixing.


So, my real question is concerning the behavior and function of the Auro-3D switch in the preset, when playing 2.0 PCM stereo arriving via HDMI. Isn't this switch supposed to automatically trigger Auromatic upmixing when it's enabled?

Yes, I can force Autormatic upmixing using the PCM setting in the preset. But I thought the Auro-3D switch should also trigger it. It doesn't.

What am I misunderstanding?

 

[GeorgeA]

@dsperber, as no one has commented your latest post yet, I dare to ask whether you remembered to reload the presets where you’ve made changes?