Hi Claude,
For reliability, I have an amplifier running on Cresnet older SMPS1200 for the last 4+ years and this amplifier is on almost all day, everyday. It is the TGM8 amplifier used in my upstairs living room.
I will not be comparing the SMPS with linear on the FSSA2 as it is a finished amplifier and I don’t really want to mess around with recabling the amp. With many class AB amplifiers I’ve tested using SMPS, many of them sounded really good with better bass response, unfortunately some amplifiers seem to not like SMPS and I don’t know why... The FirstOne amplifier had very lean bass and this was tested with different brand SMPS with much of the same results but adding caps to the output of the SMPS helped much. Fortunately, I’ve had way more positive results than negative ones, just like the Mirand A1 v1.2 seems to behave quite good with SMPS.
All the best!
Do
What do It see now ?
MICRO AUDIO SMPS1K-PFC Module d'Alimentation a Decoupage 2x64V 12V 3.3V +/-15V +/-25V 1500W - Audiophonics as as
MICRO AUDIO SMPS1K-PFC Module d'Alimentation a Decoupage 2x64V 12V 3.3V +/-15V +/-25V 1500W - Audiophonics as as
With the help from a Canadian friend, I received one of Sami’s (Cresnet) new SMPS600-CLA power supplies designed for Class A amplifiers. It’s rated for +/-25vdc and 3A current. I quickly dug out my Alpha20 amplifier to try it out. The Alpha20 requires +/-24vdc and 1.3A bias current per board, good match at 2.6A total current draw.
The SMPS comes with a fan already installed that is super quiet, almost inaudible. This psu has several nice features as far as Aux +12v, +3.3v and +/-15v power, standby/ON switching and DC error sensing.
One feature that I found especially helpful was multiple GND faston tabs on the psu, this enabled the speaker return to connect directly to the psu.
When the SMPS is plugged into AC mains a few LED’s light up to signify “standby”, flip a SPST switch connected to the Standby header pins and a relay clicks, another LED lights and power is flowing to your amp.
My Alpha20 powered up drama free and is dead silent at idle, just as quiet as the previous linear psu was. With a 2.6A load the psu output is 23.5vdc. The temperature of the SMPS is 40°C at it’s hottest spot, not bad at all after approximately 8Hrs of runtime.
Overall, I’m very pleased with these observations. This psu is also made with top quality parts throughout, no compromises. These would be a perfect match for many of the Class A amps that fall into this power level on the forum.
But, I’d request a bit more oomph for my Alpha Nirvana amplifier, say 29v@4A
Well done Sami!! I believe you have a winner here
The SMPS comes with a fan already installed that is super quiet, almost inaudible. This psu has several nice features as far as Aux +12v, +3.3v and +/-15v power, standby/ON switching and DC error sensing.
One feature that I found especially helpful was multiple GND faston tabs on the psu, this enabled the speaker return to connect directly to the psu.
When the SMPS is plugged into AC mains a few LED’s light up to signify “standby”, flip a SPST switch connected to the Standby header pins and a relay clicks, another LED lights and power is flowing to your amp.
My Alpha20 powered up drama free and is dead silent at idle, just as quiet as the previous linear psu was. With a 2.6A load the psu output is 23.5vdc. The temperature of the SMPS is 40°C at it’s hottest spot, not bad at all after approximately 8Hrs of runtime.
Overall, I’m very pleased with these observations. This psu is also made with top quality parts throughout, no compromises. These would be a perfect match for many of the Class A amps that fall into this power level on the forum.
But, I’d request a bit more oomph for my Alpha Nirvana amplifier, say 29v@4A
Well done Sami!! I believe you have a winner here
Attachments
That looks like a Noctua fan, which is one of my very favorites as far as quiet fans.
Just a tidbit. Did you know that Noctua has 6-year warranty on their fans?
My 5-year-old Noctua fan became noisy, and after some e-mails and sending them photos, they sent me a brand new replacement fan, which was mailed from Austria
I’m not sure what brand the fan is attached to the SMPS, the information is underneath the fan and not seen.
The 90mm Noctua fan in the picture cools the mosfets mounted to the cpu coolers.
To be honest, I never paid attention to the Noctua warranty information. Thanks for the tidbit of info, I use several of them in various amplifier projects, all still quiet
Hi ClaudeG,
Your right, I didn’t mention any comparison between psu types. Part of the reason is it is such a subjective topic that no one can get the same impression as yourself. Also, my Alpha20 has been semi-retired for a while so I don’t have a fresh feel of the sound with the linear supply. What I can say is this psu is very quiet with this amplifier. No background hiss or hum. That is very important in my overall impression of a project.
Cheers!
Your right, I didn’t mention any comparison between psu types. Part of the reason is it is such a subjective topic that no one can get the same impression as yourself. Also, my Alpha20 has been semi-retired for a while so I don’t have a fresh feel of the sound with the linear supply. What I can say is this psu is very quiet with this amplifier. No background hiss or hum. That is very important in my overall impression of a project.
Cheers!
