I am considering buying a Melco S1 switch, and would appreciate power supply recommendations from others that have experience in this arena to pair with it. I currently own a Bartok with HPA and a Rossini Clock (contemplating upgrading to a Rossini DAC, well aware of the dimensions that upgrade would provide). I am currently sourcing all of my files (AIFF) from a USB SSD connected to my music server, and want to add Tidal/Qobuz streaming and move the AIFF files to a NAS in order to switch to Ethernet rather than USB input.
What is this device? I couldn’t find a description.
There is Melco S100 and a Japanese Dela S10 with external LPSU.
If you decide go to switch, I would spend money on S100 + LPSU (e.g Farad S3)
But probably N1 series will be better and more functional
It is an Ethernet switch that requires an outboard power supply, includes buffering, my impression is it’s purpose-built for high quality audio streaming.
Don’t know of the alternative products you mention, but would certainly appreciate your input!
I have posted about this before but to save you and me searching the archives here I go again:
I probably bought the first S100 ( not S1) sold in the UK . After a couple of weeks I changed the supplied SMPS for an SBooster LPS. Why SBooster? Because I found out that the German distributor of Melco was bundling an SBooster with the S100s that he was sending out to magazine reviewers.
So here is a complete detailed description of the sonic difference I found between the two power supplies :
Yes, that’s everything that I can think of. The SBooster stays in circuit not because it is better than the SMPS but because it is no worse and I cannot be arsed to fiddle around at the back of my equipment rack to unplug it.
Pete, I know your position on the impact of Ethernet on DAC performance. But I have a different experience, I can clearly hear the difference from adding a good LPSU to the switch, using Melco through the Player port etc. If I were alone, I would seriously think that I might need medical help. But there are quite a lot of users reporting these or those improvements, I have no reason not to trust them, for me this is in some way statistics. And I don’t believe in the collective unconscious =)
In any case, this is a reason to check it yourself and decide what to do next.
I think time will pass and manufacturers will take into account some tweaks of enthusiasts.
Melco already have by introducing the Melco/Dela S10. You mention it and the significant price involved in this thread here:
Yes I agree, that is why I wrote YMMV in my response to the OP. But that is not my own experience. One day, when I am feeing bored and in need of something to do, I will try returning to the SMPS and will be prepared to change my opinion if required.