Mystery revealed: UpTone Audio "UltraCap™ LPS-1"

[Superdad]

John,

 

Can you run the microRednu out of it ?

 

If you mean can the UltraCap™ LPS-1 run a MicroRendu, then YES, you bet! Jesus, John, and myself have all been anticipating that this isolated LPS will be a big hit with MicroRendu users.

 

[Jesus was hoping we would be ready to ship when the MicroRendu first made it out of production. But the fact is, there were months when John was tied up on that Sonore product, and that is part of why the LPS-1 is just now going into final pre-production. It's okay though, I think the MicroRendu is the more important of these two groundbreaking products. :)]

[Distinctive]

If you mean can the UltraCap™ LPS-1 run a MicroRendu, then YES, you bet! Jesus, John, and myself have all been anticipating that this isolated LPS will be a big hit with MicroRendu users.

 

[Jesus was hoping we would be ready to ship when the MicroRendu first made it out of production. But the fact is, there were months when John was tied up on that Sonore product, and that is part of why the LPS-1 is just now going into final pre-production. It's okay though, I think the MicroRendu is the more important of these two groundbreaking products. :)]

 

Well,

[Distinctive]

It might be that this has been covered, but one use of mine will be the Meanwell feeder - LPS-1 - uRendu - Chord Mojo - SF Pryma headphones.

The Mojo is battery operated and will not pull power from the uRendu.

Could the LPS-1 power the uRendu without the feeder permanently connected for portable use since it is the LPS-1 capacitor bank not charging that will operate the uRendu?

[JohnSwenson]

It's all about specs; right?!?! I'm sure in your case (no pun intended) it was more about the physical size.

 

I spent a fair amount of time looking at spec sheets, specifically checking impedance, voltage ratings, temp specs, longevity, size, availability and cost. (availability and cost were not in the spec sheet!)

 

The Maxwell HC were the only ones that came close to doing well on everything. So that is what I designed the hardware for. I have not tried any other models since many of them would take somewhat different hardware to properly make use of them.

 

John S.

[JohnSwenson]

What about the reproduction of very fast transients? What does John say?

 

I don't design ANY power supply that doesn't handle fast transients!

 

Alex doesn't want me going into nitty-gritty details, but the LPS-1 will handle fast, slow, short, long, just about anything you can think of transients.

 

John S.

[JohnSwenson]

It might be that this has been covered, but one use of mine will be the Meanwell feeder - LPS-1 - uRendu - Chord Mojo - SF Pryma headphones.

The Mojo is battery operated and will not pull power from the uRendu.

Could the LPS-1 power the uRendu without the feeder permanently connected for portable use since it is the LPS-1 capacitor bank not charging that will operate the uRendu?

 

Two charged banks in the LPS-1 will power a microRendu for less than a minute, so not particularly useful.

 

In actuality it will only run for about 4 seconds without the feeder plugged in. The limitation is all the control circuitry, this is powered off the feeder supply. I added some small supercaps on the control side to keep them going for a few seconds so brief power blips would not shut down the whole thing, but I only had room on the board to put enough cap in to keep it going for about 4 seconds.

 

Since the input spec is 7.5 to 12V you could power it off a 12V battery that can go all the way down to 7.5V.

 

John S.

[Distinctive]

Since the input spec is 7.5 to 12V you could power it off a 12V battery that can go all the way down to 7.5V.

 

John S.

Good idea, so now we have to chase for such a battery.

Suggestions welcome!

[JohnSwenson]

Good idea, so now we have to chase for such a battery.

Suggestions welcome!

So used in this way the LPS-1 is the ultimate battery de-crappifier. It doesn't matter if the battery has high impedance, lots of noise or lousy regulation, the LPS-1 cleans all that up.

 

John S.

[JohnSwenson]

Good idea, so now we have to chase for such a battery.

Suggestions welcome!

So used in this way the LPS-1 is the ultimate battery de-crappifier. It doesn't matter if the battery has high impedance, lots of noise or lousy regulation, the LPS-1 cleans all that up.

 

John S.

[jtwrace]

So used in this way the LPS-1 is the ultimate battery de-crappifier. It doesn't matter if the battery has high impedance, lots of noise or lousy regulation, the LPS-1 cleans all that up.

 

John S.

 

Well, not really cleans it....it's only using that battery energy to charge the Ultracapacitors. As you know, Ultracapacitors are used daily in many applications.

[jtwrace]

Good idea, so now we have to chase for such a battery.

Suggestions welcome!

 

No, you can use anything to charge them as long as it meets the input voltage spec and current requirement.

[Cornan]

So used in this way the LPS-1 is the ultimate battery de-crappifier. It doesn't matter if the battery has high impedance, lots of noise or lousy regulation, the LPS-1 cleans all that up.

 

John S.

Interesting John! Does this mean that the LPS-1 can possibly turn my 7,5v KingRex uPower battery supply to something much better than it already is?

[genjamon]

I've noted Vinnie is now offering dampening on the switching relays for his ultracaps - because people could hear the clicking when the banks switched over. Is this something you've addressed already as well?

[jtwrace]

No, you can use anything to charge them as long as it meets the input voltage spec and current requirement.

 

Interesting John! Does this mean that the LPS-1 can possibly turn my 7,5v KingRex uPower battery supply to something much better than it already is?

 

See my above post.

[Cornan]

See my above post.

Thanks jtwrace! So you mean that it does'nt matter what power (Smps/Bps/lps) is charging the Ultracapacitors...the end result will be the same? As I see it it will benifit battery supply by discharging the enery much faster. Slow discharging is AFAIK one of the (few) down sides with batteries. I also noticed that Ultracaps is more effective. Could this be the "cleaning" part of the Ultracaps?

[jtwrace]

Thanks jtwrace! So you mean that it does'nt matter what power (Smps/Bps/lps) is charging the Ultracapacitors...the end result will be the same?

 

Correct.

[genjamon]

Correct.

 

Kind of, but not completely correct. There is also the matter of whether the power supply to charge the ultracaps is pumping noise into the AC line which is then affecting other system components. It's the other half of the noisy power supply equation.

[jtwrace]

Kind of, but not completely correct. There is also the matter of whether the power supply to charge the ultracaps is pumping noise into the AC line which is then affecting other system components. It's the other half of the noisy power supply equation.

 

Obviously but that's not what this is about.

[Superdad]

I've noted Vinnie is now offering dampening on the switching relays for his ultracaps - because people could hear the clicking when the banks switched over. Is this something you've addressed already as well?

 

There are NO relays in the UltraCap LPS-1. Bank switching is solid state. So the unit is mechanically dead silent.

[Cornan]

There must be something else to the equation. Otherwise it is just a matter of soldering a Ultracap to the power supply and be done with it. That would'nt have kept John and Alex that busy! ;-)

[Distinctive]

No, you can use anything to charge them as long as it meets the input voltage spec and current requirement.

My point was that there are different types out there more suitable than others.

I am looking for sealed, low weight, small size, capacity, way of charging, etc. for portable use.

[jtwrace]

My point was that there are different types out there more suitable than others.

I am looking for sealed, low weight, small size, capacity, way of charging, etc. for portable use.

 

OK, then use a battery. Still have to charge the battery though...

 

SMPS is probably the best bet as it is small.

[Distinctive]

OK, then use a battery. Still have to charge the battery though...

 

SMPS is probably the best bet as it is small.

I am not sure I understand your answer.

I was talking about a battery all along, not an SMPS into a socket outlet.

So, I am looking for such a free standing rechargable 12V battery. How this battery is charged (when not used) is less of an importance, but the power is 230VAC, 50Hz.

A size about the size of the LPS-1 would be perfect if the VA can run the LPS-1 for minimum a few hours (ideally 8-10h) before dropping to 7.5V.

[Dev]

I am not sure I understand your answer.

I was talking about a battery all along, not an SMPS into a socket outlet.

So, I am looking for such a free standing rechargable 12V battery. How this battery is charged (when not used) is less of an importance, but the power is 230VAC, 50Hz.

 

But ultimately you would need to charge the 12v battery itself when it runs out of juice and thus you need a charger for that. Might as well use the charger to charge the LPS-1 and get rid of the feeder 12v battery supply altogether.

[Distinctive]

But ultimately you would need to charge the 12v battery itself when it runs out of juice and thus you need a charger for that. Might as well use the charger to charge the LPS-1 and get rid of the feeder 12v battery supply altogether.

This would imply that the power outlet is available at all times, which isn't necessarily the case for a portable solution.