SOtM smS-200 unveiled at Munich Hi-End

[romaz]

Well I tried that a number of times but when I try to ''add to cart'' I get a ''Sorry this item is unavailable...'' pop up.

Canadian distributor has just informed me that their shipment has been stuck in customs - for 2 weeks!!!

What a PITA

Hang in there, it's worth the wait. I received mine yesterday. I ordered it directly from SOtM in South Korea last week and I received it within 4 days. Not sure how I got so lucky.

 

I've tried powering it with my LPS-1 and my Paul Hynes SR7 and this thing is truly special. Straight out of the box, it is easily outperforming my mR.

[romaz]

So it's confirmed then. The LPS-1 works well with it.

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Yes, it works fine and sounds great with the LPS-1. Much much better than my 9V IFI or HDPlex.

[romaz]

Which PS do you prefer? The LPS-1 or the SR7?

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SR7...but as configured, it is 5x the price of the LPS-1. My SR7 also outputs 9V as opposed to the LPS-1's 7V and I believe the sMS-200 sounds better at the higher voltage. I would not hesitate to get the LPS-1, however.

 

[romaz]

Just purchased the SMS-200 today. I was wondering if the Sonore Signature Series Power Supply would work with the SMS-200?

The sMS-200 will accept 6.5 to 14V DC and so the 7V output from your Sonore PSU will power it fine. See if it is adjustable and if you can adjust it up, however. My Paul Hynes SR7 is adjustable and I have found that 9V definitely sounds better than 7V.

[romaz]

I just bought an LPS that can power any "low powered devices" up to 15v (can be switched to 5, 9, 12) and 1.2A max. Is the smS-200 considered a low power device?

 

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Yes, this will work but understand that just because it's an LPS, that doesn't mean it will sound great or better. Just like with the microRendu, the best PSUs are those with very low output impedance. If the company doesn't know the output impedance of their PSU, then it's a crapshoot. As I've asked around, most PSU makers can't provide output impedance values either because they don't own measuring equipment or else they never considered impedance to be an important spec. If the response is the latter, consider looking elsewhere. My HDPlex, for example, sounded no better than my iFi. Same with my Teradak. Most battery supplies don't have low impedance. The LPS-1 would be the exception based on what I am hearing with my LPS-1. Vinnie Rossi's supercapacitor-based supply should provide similar performance and his supplies can be ordered at 9v. 9v supplies seem to sound better than 7v supplies, everything else being equal. Paul Hynes provides impedance measurements for his supplies and I can vouch for the supremacy of his SR7. He makes a more affordable SR5 and SR3 also.

[romaz]

FYI: output impedance less than .008 Ω

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<8 milliohms is good but over what frequency range? According to John Swenson, good output impedance shouldn't just be limited to 20Hz to 20,000Hz but well beyond.

[romaz]

FYI: output impedance less than .008 Ω

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Paul Hynes' SR5 and SR7 supplies measure to <3 milliohms (0.003 Ω) from DC to 100KHz and this is what John Swenson had to say about it with regards to the mR. There's no reason this shouldn't apply equally to the sMS-200:

"Those specs are very good and should do very well with a microRendu. 3mohm from DC to 100KHz is superb and covers the range that I consider the most important for a supply for the microRendu."

 

http://www.computeraudiophile.com/f26-sonore-sponsored/sonore-microrendu-27389/index50.html#post534304

[romaz]

Good point

 

I've tried the Acoustic Revive LAN isolator (not the 1G version) with Jplay to good effect in the past but the FMC are less costly:-)

 

Sound per UKP or Euro also comes into the equation.

 

But

 

As you say FMC need extra PSU and are no free lunch.

 

Swings and roundabouts.

 

The SMS200 was a birthday present which I could justify on cost grounds (with plenty of pretty pleasing)but the UR was a non starter price wise for me.

 

So the idea of a competition (this Vs that style) maybe interesting and fun but is irrelevant for some like myself with less deep pockets.

 

Yes cost was a factor for me.

 

The Iso cat 6 does look interesting and if you or anyone else has experience of one I'd love to have your thoughts.

 

The SMS200 is really good out of the box and the add-ons maybe just squeezing a little more juice from it.

 

It's all good

Here are my experiences. I currently own an SOtM iSO-CAT6, dCBL-CAT6 as well as a pair of TP-Link FMCs with the receiving end powered by an LPS-1. I further own a Paul Pang Ethernet Switch with TCXO clock (ethernet Regen, if you will) powered by an LPS-1. Cumulatively, they all make an impact but in my system, that impact, while meaningful, is not large. My system may be different from most and so YMMV. My Chord DAVE DAC which also serves as my headphone and speaker amp has galvanic isolation at the USB input. Having tried an Intona Industrial USB (galvanic) isolator and not having detected any difference at all, I have deemed that the Chord DAVE's galvanic isolation is of very high quality and so all of these upstream network isolation devices might not have has much impact in my system as other systems.

 

Anyway, I have looked at the individual impact of the above components and have deemed that some have greater impact than others:

 

FMC with receiving end powered by LPS-1 > Paul Pang ethernet switch powered by LPS-1 > dCBL-CAT6 ethernet cable > iSO-CAT6.

 

With the iSO-CAT6 specifically, I barely hear any improvement. I could easily live without this device while the dCBL-CAT6 seems to make more difference (smoother sound). I have also compared the SOtM dCBL-CAT6 against a Blue Jeans Cables CAT6A, AQ Diamond CAT7, AQ Vodka CAT7 and Supra CAT8 and all of these cables sound great with the Blue Jeans CAT6A sounding a bit more closed in than the rest. I will be testing the new WireWorld Starlight CAT8 but thus far, there isn't much difference among ethernet cables with the sMS-200 when fronted by the FMCs and Paul Pang switch.

[romaz]

Thank you for your input. Did you review the performance of the Sotm iso cat6 filter as a stand alone improvement in ethernet signaling? Or did you review it in combination with the FMC's and pp switch. I can imagine the infuance of any ethernet filtering after fiber to ethernet conversion will become smaller.

The reason I ask is because at this moment I'm not very enthousiastic in ethernet signal improvement by introducing complex and expansive fmc's-switch-psu's configurations that may become unnesesarry when development continues at this pase (that is a guess).

 

At this moment I'm more interested in call it passive filtering if you will, Sotm provides them with the iso cat6, but there are also equal industrial filters. They are all plug and play and dont require psu's.

 

Above is just my opinion right know with the limited knowledge I have about this subject, feel free to shoot.

 

 

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I hear what you're saying. I don't want a complex setup either but because I own all of these things and because I have found that none of them cause harm, I have kept them in. I have assessed the impact of the iSO-CAT6 paired with the dBL-CAT6 cable and with no other network add ons. With or without the iSO-CAT6, I can barely detect a difference. Considering the cost of this item, I do not consider it a good value at all. SOtM's dBL-CAT6 ethernet cable makes much more of an impact compared against the Blue Jeans CAT6A and is a better deal than either of the AQ ethernet cables. The Supra CAT8 is probably the best deal. Once I add the FMCs and the Paul Pang switch, these differences become quite small. Again, YMMV, but if I were to start from scratch, I would get a pair of FMCs, an LPS-1 to power the receiving end and a Supra CAT8 and be done with it.

[romaz]

Has anyone used a hard drive plugged into the back of the SMS 200? does the hard drive need to be powered?

Yes, I have tried it and to be honest, it doesn't sound that great this way with any of the drives I've tried (thumb drive, SSD, 2.5 inch hard drive). It sounds very clear with great details but the image is very thin and soundstage is flat. Not my cup of tea. Nonetheless, the answer to your question is "it depends on what you're using to power the sMS-200." The sMS-200 needs just under 0.5A for itself. An SSD or 2.5 inch hard drive can get buy with 0.5A. The larger 3.5 inch hard drives can consume much more, especially the enterprise drives that spin at 10K. If the power supply you're using for the sMS-200 outputs at least 1A continuously, you should be able to power both the sMS-200 and an SSD or 2.5 inch drive without problems.

[romaz]

Other question: Can I keep this unit always power on?

I agree with what Lebouwsky has said. While I have not read any formal statements from SOtM about this, John Swenson has indicated that the microRendu is best left on 24/7 because it does take some warm up time for it to sound its best. While all electronics have a finite lifespan, because the sMS-200 has no moving parts, runs fairly cool and barely consumes 4 watts at idle, I suspect this device will have a very long life span.

 

I have read somewhere in this forum that a superclock upgrade will be available for this unit, is that correct?

 

As for their new superclock, the sCLK-EX, SOtM has stated that incorporating this clock into the sMS-200 is planned, however, it will require a minor reworking of the sMS-200's internals as well as a larger chassis to accommodate it and so there is no timetable. This clock will be featured in their soon-to-be released tX-USBUltra (SOtM's version of a USB Regen) and paired with the sMS-200, in May Park's personal system, she has indicated that the improvement in SQ she is hearing is "huge." Of course, Uptone's upcoming "Iso Regen" will also incorporate a better clock in addition to galvanic isolation and so it would seem this area of "end points" remains a rapidly evolving field.

[romaz]

Hey Guys and Ladies, I've got a simple question from a simple mind. I just ordered the sMS200 and should have it any day now. Curious about the PS. Currently I have a microRendu whose power source is the sotm mBPS-d2s. No complaints whatsoever. I was considering getting another mRendu for another room in my home. I am running ROON on a QNAP and its great. After seeing Hans B. comments on YOUTUBE and reading the comments on this forum along with other reviews, I'm going to try the sMS200. Actually I met May at THE SHOW in Newport this past year and was told about the sMS200. Anyway I was considering getting the Sbooster 9v-10v for a PS. That is what I think Hans B used and really liked it. My question is this "those of you using or are considering using the Sbooster are using the 12v-13v Sbooster. My question is why? I was under the impression the lower voltage was better. Please help me understand. The specs on the sms200 say 6.5v-14v I believe. Thats why I selected the 9v-10v. Also I recently got the W4S PS-1 for another item in another room nonrelated to the mrendu or the sMS200. What are your thoughts concerning that? Thanks for your imput.

Here is Sbooster's response to your question:

 

The sMS-200 accepts an input voltage of 6.5V – 14V. Based on this specification you can use your 7V – 2A power supply. Please note that the 2A can be insufficient to power the two additional USB ports. This because the offical power consumption is rated at 15W max.

 

The internal power supply circuit of the sMS-200 is arranged by two or more DC/DC converters. A DC/DC converter runs on Power (Voltage x Current). This means that the DC/DC converter will pull a high current with a low power supply voltage and a low current with a high power supply voltage.

 

Further there is a relation between the output noise of a DC/DC converter circuit and the power supply voltage. When the power supply voltage goes up, the output noise of the DC/DC converter drops. So in theory when you have an audio device and two power supplies that are identical, but one PSU outputs 6.5V and the other PSU is a couple of volts higher, the later will perform better.

 

Regards,

Wiebren

 

Sbooster

 

http://www.computeraudiophile.com/f10-music-servers/soul-music-sms-200-unveiled-munich-hi-end-28284/index10.html#post606647

[romaz]

Here is a simple way to significantly improve SQ with your sMS-200:

 

http://www.computeraudiophile.com/f10-music-servers/novel-way-massively-improve-sq-sms-200-and-microrendu-31110/#post618454

[romaz]

Hi, recently I just sold my Aries Mini and bought the SMS-200. I notice that the sound of the unit is rather sub-par when compared with the Mini. I have already upgraded the power supply to using the Sbooster (9V), so I don’t think that’s the issue. I hope I have not made the wrong decision by moving over from the mini.

 

Not sure if the play back software is the cause. Im using the Logitec Media Server, with iPeng9 on my iPad as remote control. The music files are on a USB SSD. Is this a good connection option?

Notice from previous postings that a lot of you seems to be using the MPD option. Is this

recommended? I tried using MPad but notice that the user-interface does not

display my albums correctly and also there seem to be no way to disable the software

volume control. This will also affect the sound quality, I presume. Have not evaluated if this sounds good as Im frustrated with the UI

 

Appreciate your advice and suggestions on better options. I would like to still use my ipad as the remote and files are still stored on the USB drive. Thanks

Here are my observations in my system.

 

Playback from storage connected directly to the sMS-200 doesn't sound good, regardless of whether it's SSD, HD, thumbdrive, etc. Good detail but no body -- it just sounds thin and not to my liking at all. It's not clear from your post if this is how you've connected your USB SSD.

 

This could be system dependent but LMS, especially with iPeng didn't sound very good in my system. Same thing with MPD. I own HQPlayer and have tried it but with my Chord DAVE DAC and the sMS-200 and unfortunately, HQPlayer doesn't add anything (actually sounds a bit worse). Roon is where I get my best SQ and I expect the soon to be released Roon 1.3 will sound even better.

 

I used to own the full Aries with femto clock and LPS option and what I am getting from my sMS-200 connected to my Paul Hynes SR7 is way better. The SBooster should be excellent also.

 

If you have the option to move to a Mac Mini or Windows PC server (nothing fancy necessary) that you can attach 2 ethernet ports to, you would have the option of directly connecting the server to the sMS-200 with a single ethernet cable and this should significantly elevate your SQ.

[romaz]

Romaz,

 

Did you also try UPnP/DLNA using MinimServer in your journey? How did that fare in SQ for you?

Not with my sMS-200 but I tried it with my microRendu. For me, it was no better than the other lesser options and Roon was still better.

[romaz]

romaz --

 

Thanks for your contributions (and replies to me earlier) - I'm looking forward to try out the direct, bridged LAN-connection, and will add ROON once I have my NUC in place (my NAS is not powerful enough for this task).

 

A question regarding the PSU to the sMS-200: have you tried out SOtM's battery supply (or any other battery supply), and compared it to the Paul Hynes SR7 or other linear PSU's?

Sure. I hope you succeed with the bridged connection.

 

Between my sMS-200 and my microRendu, I have tried the iFI 9V, a 9V Li-ion battery with switching regulators, Teradak 12V, HDPlex 9V, the LPS-1 and the Paul Hynes SR7. Paul Hynes is making another SR7 for me that will be double regulated and will have line rejection as high as 150dB which he insists will make an audible improvement with the sMS-200 when compared against his standard SR7 as it will reject not only mains noise but also noise that the PSU itself creates (rectification noise) much more effectively. We'll see.

 

I have not had the privilege of trying SOtM's mBPS-d2s. I'm sure it's excellent. I'm sure Vinnie Rossi's Mini Pure DC-4-EVR is also very good. I have heard good things about the SBooster from trusted sources. Same thing about Teddy Pardo's supplies. I have not heard the Sonore Signature but having spoken to Barrows about the detail that went into this supply, I'm sure it's excellent. I'm sure the JS2 is very good although John Swenson has already suggested his LPS-1 is better. I have custom LPSUs made by Paul Pang and Kenneth Lau and they are also very good compared to the stock switchers they replaced but they are for other applications and not for the sMS-200 or mR.

 

I had assumed that with all the talk about leakage current that a battery supply would sound best but I have not found that to necessarily be the case, at least not in my system. For example, my 9V Li-Ion supply is only barely better than the iFi 9V. What is interesting is that when I compared my LPS-1 against this 9V Li-Ion battery supply, the LPS-1 trounced it and so even though neither of these supplies are connected to ground and neither create leakage current, it was clear to me that with a low impedance device like the sMS-200 or mR, a low output impedance PSU was a much more important parameter.

 

I found the SR7 superior to all of the supplies I have heard for either of these NAAs and not by a small margin. The LPS-1 came second and everything else a distant third. I have found the LPS-1 to be easily the best value of the group but it's difficult to ignore just how the SR7 has transformed not just my sMS-200 and mR but also my Mac Mini and modem/router. It's not just about low noise (~5uV) but also about extremely low output impedance (<3 milliohms from DC to 100kHz), supply line rejection (80dB standard, 150dB with double regulation), transient response (<100 nanoseconds), settling time (<100 nanoseconds) and extremely high transient current delivery of >30A. I am open to something better but having asked around, no one seems to be able to provide any specs beyond ripple noise either because they don't own adequate measuring equipment or they don't believe these other specs are important but to my ears and in my system, I have not heard anything more transformative. Bass impact, bass control and definition, dynamic contrasts (both macro and micro) and soundstage are all very significantly improved.

[romaz]

Hi everyone,

 

How far is it necessary to go in the optimisation process of the PC/Mac which is used as a server, when using an SOtM sMS-200 ? Is there still value in having a fanless PC, with a LPSU or, given the design of the sMS-200, is a standard PC/Mac convenient enough ?

 

Thanks in advance.

Yes, I have very much found this to be the case but only if you power both the sMS-200 and your music server with a good PSU. With the stock switching PSU that comes with the sMS-200, it's much tougher to distinguish one upstream source from another. With a good low impedance PSU driving the sMS-200, differences among sources are much better appreciated. If you then put a good PSU to your source, this is what tends to really elevate that source over another. I believe good power is foundational to any good system.

[romaz]

Batteries have their own intrinsic noise profile which can even increase greatly under a load such as a DAC.

 

These are great specs, noise and impedance could be better although how much is audible with these better specs, I still have to determine in my system.

 

 

It's actually not a simple affair to measure properly when you get to really great spec territory. A properly set up simulation of the circuit can give an idea, although here there are three caveats:

 

- The circuit sim is merely an approximation of what occurs in reality

 

- Its accuracy is highly dependent on how the circuit sim is built (e.g. modeling parasitics, accuracy of the components)

 

- It may not model all the phenomena that become important in the build, especially the physical layout and actual implementation

 

At these specs, the layout itself and the grounding implementation can have really large effects.

 

Those universal PSUs can be very good, but one can get better SQ with Regs tailored to each sub-system, not really a trivial affair.

 

I get way, way better noise specs and output impedance over that same range in my latest design (simulated, as yet untested, so the usual caveats apply).

Would love to know more about your PSU, especially your output impedance measurements as I have yet to have anyone show me measurements that are consistently better over such a broad frequency range. Even the output impedance of Vinnie Rossi's ultracap supply for his LIO is 6x worse than the SR7. Like I said, I'm always open to anything better but it's extremely rare that people can provide measurements. My thinking is how do you really know how good your PSU is unless you can measure it? As we know, putting together high-quality components doesn't always lead to something that is better. Careful design and implementation is more important. Of course, it comes down to how something sounds compared to another and I am just blown away by the SR7. I have never heard a gap so large. As stated, I will be getting a double regulated SR7 soon and I'll see how that one compares.

[romaz]

(simulated, as yet untested, so the usual caveats apply).

Sorry, my bad, I read it through without rushing this time.

 

Batteries have their own intrinsic noise profile which can even increase greatly under a load such as a DAC.

 

This is true but it applies to transformer-based PSUs also with respect to core saturation which is why you can almost never go too big. It is interesting to me to see a low power device like the sMS-200 which consumes 3-4 watts benefit noticeably from a 250VA mains transformer with a 125W continuous power rating and a 480W transient power rating.

 

These are great specs, noise and impedance could be better although how much is audible with these better specs, I still have to determine in my system.

 

 

With a low impedance device like the sMS-200, I don't think the output impedance of a PSU can be low enough and I am inclined to believe that any impedance will have an audible impact.

 

This is according to Paul Hynes:

"The ideal power supply would have zero impedance at all frequencies of operation as you cannot develop any voltage into zero impedance no matter how much current passes through it. In the real world, all circuits have some level of impedance and any current passing through this impedance will generate a voltage fluctuation, which in reality becomes an additional noise source in the system, which degrades signal integrity."

 

How you achieve low impedance is also important and this is something we know to be true with respect to DACs and preamps also. Consequently, you really need to assess a combination of factors beyond just impedance when you are assessing the quality of a power supply. Specifically, this would include operating bandwidth, transient response and settling time which is why I quoted these figures for Paul's SR7. Again, here is what Paul has to say:

 

"Typical circuit topologies in voltage regulator designs often achieve impedance reduction by an error amplifier using high levels of negative feedback, which introduces all manner of problems with operating bandwidth, transient response and settling time. For exceptional power supply design, it is important to consider all of these parameters and optimize them to the best of your ability. Neglect one or more of these parameters in the design stage and you will have noticeably lower performance. I do not use typical circuit topologies in my voltage regulator designs to achieve low impedance over a very wide operating bandwidth."

 

- It may not model all the phenomena that become important in the build, especially the physical layout and actual implementation

 

I agree, there are more things to consider that won't show up on a sim including mechanical noise generated by the PSU that will have an impact as well as the impact of the DC leads with respect to lead length, metallurgy, gauge, dielectric effect and even the impedance of the connectors.

 

At these specs, the layout itself and the grounding implementation can have really large effects.

 

Agreed. Here is what Paul has to say:

 

"All circuits require a reference to operate and react with each other. This is typically via a ground (0V) system. Some circuit sections also require a voltage reference above (or below) ground to provide precise operation and this voltage reference is usually connected to ground for its own reference. If the power supply is not clean and free from noise and transient disturbances, it will pollute the ground reference and anything connected to it creating uncertainty of reference voltage. This noise and transient disturbance can be passed on from stage to stage once embedded in the signal and it is quite capable of causing timing errors in data streams."

 

Those universal PSUs can be very good, but one can get better SQ with Regs tailored to each sub-system, not really a trivial affair.

I completely agree.

[romaz]

I don't have an SMS-200, but for having implemented and tested my updated Linear Regulated PSU design yesterday for very low and flat output impedance for my DAC, i.e. line-level, I can concur - the sound becomes immense, all three regions expand greatly. Both ripple and noise are reduced in my new iteration. To think that I have at least 3 more levels of enhancement planned... I wonder where this takes the SQ from now on, or how much of it is still audible - I've said that a few times, and yet, every time, the benefits are really apparent so far.

 

 

 

Paul has been at it for years, he definitely knows what he's talking about, so thanks for sharing his perspective.

 

I agree pretty much with the rest of the post except to say that some phenomena can be modeled with the simulator, but not all (things like trace length in the different layouts can be if you know how, which I do).

 

That GND reference is of prime importance, therefore everything having to do with GND plane pollution is as well.

 

I have seriously re-engineered what a direct USB connection for high-speed async USB audio should be because of this and right before building the Linear Regulated PSU. All the enhancements so far are really, really obvious, down to the caps at output and the above-mentioned - heard these for myself, including remote sensing vs none, un-optimised layout vs optimised layout/grounding, and now further ripple rejection and so on...

 

A side, but nonetheless important, change with the above is that I also reduce Leakage Currents that would otherwise have used the USB connection.

I imagine that you have an awesome system. Your attention to detail is impeccable.

[romaz]

Would it make sense for Uptone to develop a custom board for sms-200?

 

I mean, one would remove sotm's DC-DC board and screw in something like LPS-1 based, but with fixed voltage to remove LPS-1's DC-DC and fully get rid of DC-DC in the path.

It seems there's enough space in the sms-200 case to accommodate it.

This is an interesting thought but it would depend on who is using the better regulator. There is a benefit to cascading regulators in terms of improving line noise rejection and so removing a voltage regulator from the path would only make sense if you are removing a regulator of lower quality.

[romaz]

3 hours ago, gionaz said:

SMS-200 Ultra ? WOW

i sell my sms200 now ! :-)

i think to sell also the Uptone JS2 power supply...

 

 

The JS2 would be a great way to power the sMS-200 Ultra.  The JS2 can supply plenty of current and my sMS-200 Ultra sounds especially good at 12V.

[romaz]

25 minutes ago, gionaz said:

the ultra is now available ?

 

Not officially but I have one, nonetheless.  It should be available next month.

[romaz]

Mine is a prototype of sorts.  It has the new sCLK-EX but my sMS-200 is housed in the original chassis.  Since the clock board is larger, I have it housed in a separate chassis.  Not ideal but it was the only way.  The official Ultra version will have a new larger chassis to accommodate everything into one chassis and will be more attractive than my setup.  My guess is that it will look like the tX-USB Ultra but I don't know that for a fact.  What I will say is that the upgrade will very much be worthwhile.

[romaz]

15 minutes ago, Em2016 said:

 

Hi Romaz, in addition to the new clock,  what are the other changes to the board of your prototype? 

 

 

It's just the clock that has changed (the sMS-200 has 2 clocks and both have been upgraded).  This is, however, quite a big deal.