[woodsyi]

I did that and I heard differences.

[F-100]

I've done a comparison using a linear PS I purchased and didn't hear any difference

Which linear PS and components did you use for the test??

I can hear a big improvement to the sound between the stock PS and my DIY PS.

[Double Ugly]

I did that and I heard differences.

I heard differences w/o jumping through hoops, but I'm curious if the following qualifies -

My wife walked into the house after a week-long trip, stopped in the kitchen (which adjoins the room housing my system) and asked, "What's changed?  Is that the new power thingy from Wayne?"

Suprised she remembered my even mentioning it, I nodded in the affirmative.

She frowned.  "It's worth it, isn't it?"

I smiled and nodded again.

That blind enough, opaque, or do I need to make an investment at my local S&M shop? 

-Jim

[jrebman]

Jim,

I just love when that happens -- when people who are at best casual listeners and/or infrequent visitors come over, ostensibly for something other than to listen to music, and who have no idea I've made any changes, stop and remark about how much nicer it sounds.  This happens time after time, and is most rewarding when the change is something that is not obviously visible.  Yes, it's nice when they notice the nice, shiny new red speakers , but when it's something like a cable or capacitor change, that's the best.

One neighbor stopped by a while ago and I knew he was a big Eva Cassidy fan so I put on some of her music, and he said "You did it!  You brought her back to life., and she's sitting right here in your living room. How did you do that?"  I think I said it only takes an open mind and an open wallet.

-- Jim

[opaqueice]

Which linear PS and components did you use for the test??

It's a GlobeTek 5V 2.4A linear supply I bought online - I'm not at home so can't check the make/model, but I can look later.  My SB3 goes into an Odyssey Cyclops amp -> B&W CM4s.  My turn for a question - did you try listening for the difference blind?

That blind enough, opaque, or do I need to make an investment at my local S&M shop? 

Well....  for me, not really.  The problem is things like that do tend to happen by accident sometimes, especially since she knew you were buying it - and we only remember the times these things happen and not when they don't, so there's a pretty powerful selection bias.  But look - this is all just purely personal, just to satisfy my own skeptical nature (which I'll admit is pretty strong ), so feel free to ignore it! 

Anyway, I didn't mean to start a big discussion here, but if anyone has or knows of a positive result in a controlled test I'd love to hear it!

[Double Ugly]

Well....  for me, not really. 

That is powerfully telling IMHO. 

The problem is things like that do tend to happen by accident sometimes, especially since she knew you were buying it -

No, she didn't.  In fact, neither she nor I knew when it was coming (it was an unscheduled audition).

My wife is a classically-trained musician who probably knows more about how my system sounds than I do, whether she'd ever admit it or not.  She knows how things should sound IMO, but even so, I was astounded that she could walk in and immediately notice an improvement w/o even entering the room.  That it isn't good enough for you astounds me even more.

and we only remember the times these things happen and not when they don't, so there's a pretty powerful selection bias. 

Horse feathers. 

I have absolutely no desire to spend more money on my system than necessary, and consequently only do so when something makes a clearly positive change.  The implication here is that anything new and shiny - and especially expensive - has a greater chance of making a positive difference in the system, real or imagined.  That may or may not be true for some, but you're painting with a mighty broad brush that I can tell you for a fact does not apply to everyone who doesn't subscribe to your component selection process.

But look - this is all just purely personal, just to satisfy my own skeptical nature (which I'll admit is pretty strong ), so feel free to ignore it! 

I will.

I honestly mean no offense, but I'd hate to be you.  To require such stringent listening scenarios to validate a subjective analysis of a component or wire would literally drive me from the hobby... which it is, BTW.  I reserve such evaluation processes for auto and home purchases, or selecting a school for my children.  As long as this remains a hobby for me, I will continue to listen with ears and eyes wide open.  More than a few manufacturers and retailers can provide feedback about my willingness to return audio-related items that did not meet with my sonic approval.  In fact, I submit far more has been returned than kept.

But it's irrelevant since the evaluations weren't DBT, right? 

Anyway, I didn't mean to start a big discussion here, but if anyone has or knows of a positive result in a controlled test I'd love to hear it!

Good luck.

I don't agree with Larry.  I don't think you're trolling for an argument (despite espousing a position that practically screams for one).  I believe you either don't trust yourself enough to do the right thing when evaluating a new component you can see, or you've become so deeply entrenched in the DBT camp that you believe anyone who doesn't is a fool.  Either way, I have nothing further to offer except to say that I honestly wish you the best of luck in your DBT search for sonic truth.

-Jim

[opaqueice]

Wow.  I'm not going to respond to that - I'm really not interested in arguing.

I'm sorry it's so hard to accept a little skepticism.  I guess some views just aren't allowed here.

[yo2tup]

the sonic differences between the stock sb ps vs a good linear ps is pretty blatant in both analog/digital out. (assuming you have decent gear of course)  you don't need to do blind tests to hear the differences.  the differences between the two are so obvious that your question is almost insulting    

[F-100]

the sonic differences between the stock sb ps vs a good linear ps is pretty blatant in both analog/digital out. (assuming you have decent gear of course)  you don't need to do blind tests to hear the differences.

That is exactly what I was going to say.

[Dan Banquer]

I posted this in lab sometime last year: It may be still relevant to this discussion.
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=30207.0

d.b.

[jrebman]

For those who have built these, can you answer a couple of questions for me?  I have a PDF copy of the manual that I can read, but there are two things that I'm not sure of:

1) in the directions it says something about soldering the heat sink to the PC board.  Is there something I'm missing or do I need to go out and get a heliarc welder to deal with the aluminum heat sink?  Maybe the locator studs are plated with something? Or, maybe this is just confusing language in the manual?

2) I assume the hot lead of the AC input is going to the hole on the PCB nearest the fuse?

Ah, one more thing came to mind, on the Elna caps, which polarity is the short lead?  I have pretty much everything else marked and identified with regard to polarity, just forgot the orientation of the big caps.

Thanks for any help,

Jim

[Wayne1]

1) in the directions it says something about soldering the heat sink to the PC board.  Is there something I'm missing or do I need to go out and get a heliarc welder to deal with the aluminum heat sink?  Maybe the locator studs are plated with something? Or, maybe this is just confusing language in the manual?

2) I assume the hot lead of the AC input is going to the hole on the PCB nearest the fuse?

Ah, one more thing came to mind, on the Elna caps, which polarity is the short lead?  I have pretty much everything else marked and identified with regard to polarity, just forgot the orientation of the big caps.

Thanks for any help,

Jim

1)The heatsink studs are plated. You will need an iron with a little "oomf", but most 40 watt pencils should be able to handle this. Be patient and wait for the heatsink to heak up.

2) You are correct in the routing of the AC.

3) The short lead of a polarized cap is the negative.

[jrebman]

Thanks, Wayne.

I'm going to be building this in a larger enclosure, with the PCB on 1/2" standoffs to avoid the bottom clearance issue, and also changing things around a bit on the insides so that the DC and AC sections are kept completely separate from each other -- then there will be a few extra things on both the input and output sections, plus an umbilical of my own design.

If I get my backlog cleared this weekend, then I hope to be able to get this built next week.

Thanks again for the help,

Jim