ISO REGEN launch thread! (product web page up; photos, etc.)

[pl_svn]

18 minutes ago, kalinka said:

I have a question for those who already listened to the iso regen

 

On 4/24/2017 at 5:45 AM, Superdad said:

The first 250 units will ship May 16th–May 19th.

[Kafy]

Hello,

 

I have a question for John Swenson. 

John, if you have time, can you tell if the JS-2 and MMK for a Mac Mini are still usefull if I add an ISO REGEN and LPS-1 ?

 

If not, I could remove the MMK from the Mac Mini and use the original power supply to be able to use the JS-2 to power the network switch on which the Mac Mini is connected to. 

 

Thank's in advance for any help. 

[JohnSwenson]

4 hours ago, Kafy said:

Hello,

 

I have a question for John Swenson. 

John, if you have time, can you tell if the JS-2 and MMK for a Mac Mini are still usefull if I add an ISO REGEN and LPS-1 ?

 

If not, I could remove the MMK from the Mac Mini and use the original power supply to be able to use the JS-2 to power the network switch on which the Mac Mini is connected to. 

 

Thank's in advance for any help. 

I don't know. The ISO REGEN and LPS-1 will block the leakage loop from either the JS-2 or the original supply, but I'm not sure about the the signal integrity issue. The ISO REGEN seems to be more resistant to SI issues on it input than the USB REGEN, but exactly how much is I really don't know yet.

 

So my guess is that there might be  some difference in SQ with the two supplies but only you can determine whether it is important to you.

 

John S.

[Kafy]

Thank's a lot John for your help.
I understand the main question is how much the SI is in the ISO REGEN input.
If I can, I will try and test when I could order the ISO REGEN and give my impressions.

 

[thyname]

Voltage question:

 

Currently have a LPS-1 powering a microRendu.

 

Orderd the ISO Regen.

 

My chain is Roon --> microRendu (powered by LPS-1) --> Singxer SU-1 --> i2s --> Holo Spring L3 KTE

 

I ordered the Kitsune DC conversion kit to use the LPS-1 for the Singxer SU-1.

 

Trying to figure what powers what. I know uRendu needs LPS-1 set to 7v.

 

ISo Regen needs 6-9 volts, but according to previous posts, will work fine with 5v.

 

SU-1 works with 5v but not higher.

 

So far correct?

 

In the perfect world I would need three LPS-1's, but cannot afford two extra ones for now.

 

So, I am assuming I can use my LPS-1 set to 5v via a Y cable for both SU-1 and ISO? And either use uRendu with its iFi iPower it came with, or buy a second LPS-1?

[Vangelis]

 I've ordered the new ISO Regen and was hoping to see if it would benefit / improve a Melco or even be compatible.  I would imagine if the USB Regen worked with the the popular streamers, the new ISO would likely work as well. Has anyone tried the old USB Regen from out of a Melco or Aurender streamer?

[jaaptina]

6 hours ago, thyname said:

So, I am assuming I can use my LPS-1 set to 5v via a Y cable for both SU-1 and ISO? And either use uRendu with its iFi iPower it came with, or buy a second LPS-1?

Don't you think powering microRendu with iFi instead of LPS-1 might have a negative effect on sound quality that isoregen cannot fix? 

 

I think isoregen is aimed at using between pc and dac. Streaming over ethernet using microRendu powered by LPS-1 already solves a lot of sound quality issues. Inserting isoregen could help a little but this is not a promised so far. Powering microRendu with iFi will certainly have a negative effect. 

So in your situation I think you need an extra LPS-1 if you want to use isoregen and Singxer. 

[thyname]

3 hours ago, jaaptina said:

Don't you think powering microRendu with iFi instead of LPS-1 might have a negative effect on sound quality that isoregen cannot fix? 

 

I think isoregen is aimed at using between pc and dac. Streaming over ethernet using microRendu powered by LPS-1 already solves a lot of sound quality issues. Inserting isoregen could help a little but this is not a promised so far. Powering microRendu with iFi will certainly have a negative effect. 

So in your situation I think you need an extra LPS-1 if you want to use isoregen and Singxer. 

 

I realize that. My question was more on the voltage requirement of each device.

[thyname]

Let me rephrase my question:

 

Can somebody confirm the power supply voltage requirement for each device:

 

1 - microRendu: 6-9 Volts DC

2 - ISO Regen: 6-9 Volts DC

3 - Singxer SU-1 external power supply: 5 Volts only??

 

Thanks.

[scan80269]

18 minutes ago, thyname said:

Let me rephrase my question:

 

Can somebody confirm the power supply voltage requirement for each device:

 

1 - microRendu: 6-9 Volts DC

2 - ISO Regen: 6-9 Volts DC

3 - Singxer SU-1 external power supply: 5 Volts only??

 

Thanks.

All correct.  Don't run anything higher than 5V DC into the SU-1.  There is one chip inside directly powered by the 5V feed, so the 7V setting of an UpTone LPS-1 is a no-no for SU-1.

 

[tboooe]

21 minutes ago, thyname said:

2 - ISO Regen: 6-9 Volts DC

IsoRegen can run off 5V.

 

But doing so wont allow it to regulate the power for the VBUS downstream.  If you power it off something nice like an LPS-1 then its ok.

[thyname]

Hmmm... For now I have microRendu and SU-1 (ordered the DC conversion kit already), as well as LPS-1 currently powering the microRendu. Ordered the ISO Regen, but that does not arrive until June (did not get into the first launch batch).

 

I was hoping I could use existing LPS-1 for both SU-1 and uRendu via Y cable, but it looks like this would not work, as I need to set the LPS-1 at 5v, and uRendu needs at least 6 (range is 6-9). Which means that I may need to buy the second LPS-1 now, or just go back to powering uRendu with its iFi iPower. Or maybe I buy a (cheaper) sBooster. Don't know....

[tboooe]

1 minute ago, thyname said:

I was hoping I could use existing LPS-1 for both SU-1 and uRendu via Y cable, but it looks like this would not work, as I need to set the LPS-1 at 5v, and uRendu needs at least 6 (range is 6-9). Which means that I may need to buy the second LPS-1 now, or just go back to powering uRendu with its iFi iPower. Or maybe I buy a (cheaper) sBooster. Don't know....

You have an option...you could use a quality low noise voltage regulator like this one.  I own this as well.  It has good specs. 

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ultra-low-Noise-40-V-Adjustable-Voltage-Regulator-Module-Based-on-LT1963-/201209828911?hash=item2ed90a562f

[scan80269]

3 hours ago, thyname said:

Hmmm... For now I have microRendu and SU-1 (ordered the DC conversion kit already), as well as LPS-1 currently powering the microRendu. Ordered the ISO Regen, but that does not arrive until June (did not get into the first launch batch).

 

I was hoping I could use existing LPS-1 for both SU-1 and uRendu via Y cable, but it looks like this would not work, as I need to set the LPS-1 at 5v, and uRendu needs at least 6 (range is 6-9). Which means that I may need to buy the second LPS-1 now, or just go back to powering uRendu with its iFi iPower. Or maybe I buy a (cheaper) sBooster. Don't know....

Another option is to insert an additional discrete regulator between the DC input jack and the SU-1 board +5V input.  This regulator will then accept 7V DC from the LPS-1 and generate 5V to feed the SU-1.  With good soldering skills, a 3-pin discrete regulator plus an input capacitor should not be too hard to add to the SU-1.

 

LPS-1 @7V ==> additional linear regulator @5V out ==> SU-1 board

 

If you want this regulator to have very low noise spec, the Belleson or Sparko Labs discrete regulators can be considered.  It would then make sense to also replace the LD1086 LDO regulator on the SU-1 board, otherwise you can end up with an ultra-low noise regulator feeding a higher noise regulator downstream.

 

Come to think of it, the above sounds a bit over the top to me, but I guess far more extreme measures have been done for the sake of achieving better sound...

 

 

[SWL3600]

Just to be clear......

 

If I'm replacing my USB-Regen with an ISO-REGEN.....powered by the LPS-1,the voltage setting of 7v will stay the same, correct?

[JohnSwenson]

3 hours ago, SWL3600 said:

Just to be clear......

 

If I'm replacing my USB-Regen with an ISO-REGEN.....powered by the LPS-1,the voltage setting of 7v will stay the same, correct?

Yes. The only difference power wise between the two is that the ISO REGEN takes about 40mA from the VBUS (on the USB B connector) to power the upstream side of the isolation chip.

 

All the other issues about voltage and dissipation etc are the same as before.

 

John S.

[JohnSwenson]

21 hours ago, thyname said:

Hmmm... For now I have microRendu and SU-1 (ordered the DC conversion kit already), as well as LPS-1 currently powering the microRendu. Ordered the ISO Regen, but that does not arrive until June (did not get into the first launch batch).

 

I was hoping I could use existing LPS-1 for both SU-1 and uRendu via Y cable, but it looks like this would not work, as I need to set the LPS-1 at 5v, and uRendu needs at least 6 (range is 6-9). Which means that I may need to buy the second LPS-1 now, or just go back to powering uRendu with its iFi iPower. Or maybe I buy a (cheaper) sBooster. Don't know....

This has been discussed further up thread. It does in fact work. You can set the LPS-1 to 5V and power both the ISO REGEN and SU-1 off a Y-cable.

 

The only part of the ISO REGEN that needs higher than 5V is the 5V VBUS regulator. If you feed the ISO REGEN 5V this regulator will not be regulating and will drop the 5V a little bit (to 4.95V). Since the output of the LPS-1 is the same regulator as in the ISO REGEN VBUS you are not really loosing much in this scenario.

 

John S.

[Daudio]

21 hours ago, tboooe said:

you could use a quality low noise voltage regulator like this one.  I own this as well.  It has good specs. 

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ultra-low-Noise-40-V-Adjustable-Voltage-Regulator-Module-Based-on-LT1963-/201209828911?hash=item2ed90a562f

 

I have one of those LPSU's also ! It powers my Amber Regen quite nicely, and it only cost me $20 for the module and a barrel connector. I had a transformer from an old wall-wart, some old Kimber cable strands, and some other stuff. You can read about the construction on my CA Blog (but all the photos are still MIA since the 'upgrade').

[elan120]

19 hours ago, scan80269 said:

Another option is to insert an additional discrete regulator between the DC input jack and the SU-1 board +5V input.  This regulator will then accept 7V DC from the LPS-1 and generate 5V to feed the SU-1.  With good soldering skills, a 3-pin discrete regulator plus an input capacitor should not be too hard to add to the SU-1.

 

LPS-1 @7V ==> additional linear regulator @5V out ==> SU-1 board

 

If you want this regulator to have very low noise spec, the Belleson or Sparko Labs discrete regulators can be considered.  It would then make sense to also replace the LD1086 LDO regulator on the SU-1 board, otherwise you can end up with an ultra-low noise regulator feeding a higher noise regulator downstream.

 

Come to think of it, the above sounds a bit over the top to me, but I guess far more extreme measures have been done for the sake of achieving better sound...

 

 

Been thinking about the same idea for the last few days, after getting the Canare 4S6 cable in shipment last night, this is what I end up with.  Using 7V input from LPS-1 with LT3045 set at 5V soldered to the connector pins directly at the end of the cable.

[SWL3600]

7 hours ago, JohnSwenson said:

Yes. The only difference power wise between the two is that the ISO REGEN takes about 40mA from the VBUS (on the USB B connector) to power the upstream side of the isolation chip.

 

All the other issues about voltage and dissipation etc are the same as before.

 

John S.

Thank you John!

[guzmanatm]

We're about a week or so away from the first ISO Regen units shipping and . . . The hype is real! I'm happy to be getting one from the first batch. Looking forward to seeing what kind of improvements the ISO Regen brings over the USB Regen.

 

I'm especially interested to see how much of an impact the ISO Regen has in my particular system. I have a "portable" setup that doubles as desktop audio system at home:

 

Windows 10 w/ Fidelizer Plus (foobar2000; bitperfect mode)  > Supra USB > Uptone USB Regen (LPS-1) > Curious Regen Link > iFi Micro iDSD > Zenwave D1 > Neco Soundlabs v5 > Audeze LCD-X

 

The iDSD Micro and Neco v5 are both battery powered, and the USB Regen runs off of the LPS-1. Both my LPS-1 and computer are plugged into a Topaz isolation transformer. I've never tried an Intona in my system, so I have no idea how much my system will benefit from galvanically isolated USB. I guess we'll find out in a couple of weeks-- I'll be sure to report back with my impressions.

[T-Bone]

On 5/6/2017 at 0:22 PM, elan120 said:

Using 7V input from LPS-1 with LT3045 set at 5V soldered to the connector pins directly at the end of the cable.

Hey @elan120 - would you mind sharing a few more details about your little "voltage regulator" dongle?  I thought that was a clever solution to the 5V vs 7.5V disparity between the SU-1 and ISO Regen.  Nice thinking!  
Do you have a closer picture?

[elan120]

Hi @T-Bone, I don't mind at all.  This dongle thing was a result of seeing some posts asking about using one LPS-1 to power both ISORegen and SU-1 together, and since I have this LT3045 set for 5V not doing anything at the moment, I soldered the 4S6 cable to the input and have the output soldered directly to the 5V input connector pins, and then set the LPS-1 output to 7V to show as another option for people planning on using a Y-connector from single LPS-1 to both ISORegen and SU-1, but prefer using 7V instead of 5V.  This mod turned out improving the overall SQ quite a bit, so even though I will be powering ISORegen and SU-1 using separate LPS-1, I will still be keeping this mod.

 

I don't have more pictures at the moment, but can take more if you need it still when I get home from work later this evening...in the meantime, I just placed an order for more of this regulator since I also planning to try comparing LT3045 against Belleson 3.3V (what I currently have), but they will take couple weeks to get here, so if you want, I can wire one up for you to try for a few days before you order any parts to make one yourself.  Send me an email if you are interested.

[rickca]

Alex, you said that when you and John evaluated the Crystek CCHD-575, you quickly decided it was well worth using in the ISO REGEN.

 

Have you experimented with more expensive clocks?  I'm trying to understand whether there's a point of diminishing returns even if you had no cost constraints.   

[tboooe]

Alright gang.. theoretically which is the lesser evil:

A.  Powering both my SU-1 and IsoRegen with a single LPS-1

B. Powering my SU-1 with the LPS-1 and IsoRegen with my HDPlex linear power supply?

 

Once I get my IsoRegen I can test this out myself but until then I am really interested in hearing the theory why one approach could be better than the other.