Schiit EITR

[Abtr]

On ‎19‎-‎10‎-‎2017 at 12:38 PM, Charente said:

Since getting the Balanced Power Supply (BPS), I have been experimenting with placement of the SMPS's I have as part of my setup. This was originally spurred on by @Abtr 's comment quite a few pages ago, which motivated me to try a BPS in the first place. The initial results I got from the BPS were very notable and welcome and I wrote up my views on that at the time.

 

I currently have 3 SMPS ... for the WD NAS, Netgear Switch and UpTone LPS-1. Through trial and error, I found that the iFi iPower (powering the LPS-1) was a key culprit in polluting  the AC supply to everything else. So, this has been relegated to a mains socket on its own, outside of the BPS. Equally, the other 2 SMPS were also guilty to some extent but I didn't want them sharing the socket that the iPower was using. So, I connected the other two SMPS to the battery side of an APC 900Pro UPS (used for the iMac in the same room). 

 

The rest of the gear chain (MacMini, EITR, GMB and MJ2) shares a strip connected to the BPS in glorious isolation.

 

Listening to some of my reference test albums, the improvement that the EITR delivers has been enhanced further to a significant degree by this power setup. The clarity of the instruments and soundstage depth & ambient quality is startlingly good. One particular album that had me sit up was 'Revisiting Grapelli' by Matias Levy, a wonderful alternative jazz performance with some amazing violin, cello and bass. The depth of detail of the effects played (and deliberately misplayed) on the strings was palpable. I'm not usually given to superlatives but this is truly superb and a great test of what the EITR/GMB pairing is capable of.

 

I don't know if my power setup makes sense from an EE point of view, but just using my ears and listening to music I now feel I have the optimal set up for ALL my audio gear, with what I have available.

 

The BPS, being system independent (together with a considered placement of any SMPS's) has become my favourite tweak ... a close run thing with the EITR for this crown.

 

Where do I go next ? I'm not sure there is much more I want to do with the main system. I did consider an audio optimised AQVOX switch but they are quite a price for an unknown, possibly small, SQ return in my system. Perhaps even a Schiit Gadget ? However, I think I'll focus on the headphones first ... something a bit more neutral than the HD650 ... perhaps the new Mr. Speakers Aeon Open ?

 

Hi Charente. I like your taste in music! May I suggest: The April Maze, album: Recycled Soul.

 

It's funny that I get the SQ that you describe by connecting the USB output of my MacMini via an Intona USB isolator to the USB input of my Modi Multibit DAC. No Gen 5 Eitr or any other USB processing device is in the chain. And I found that clean, isolated 5V USB power injected at the DAC by an Uptone LPS-1 improves SQ.

 

Any of my attempts to include the Eitr in the USB audio path significantly reduced clarity, soundstage and dynamics, as relative to 'direct USB'. So I wonder how your results with the Eitr can be opposite to mine. Possibly your balanced (XLR) setup causes the difference but I don't quite see how. Other differences between our systems are the Intona, and I placed the MacMini *before* the BPS, and I use 'floating' balanced AC power with a DC-blocker..

[Abtr]

3 hours ago, Charente said:

...

From my experience, I had previously used the USB input on GMB exclusively, including some months with the mR (+LPS-1). That was fine ... it was clean and clear and I had no cause at the time to grumble. That was until I discovered I preferred the sound when I experimented with S/PDIF. I found the sound to have more body (weight) to it whereas, by comparison via USB, it sounded 'flatter'. To my ears, the EITR gave additional clarity and therefore detail. So, I guess, the other (potentially big) difference in our system is our ears !! 

 

Hmm.. I only experienced 'flatter vs. more body' issues when there was an impedance mismatch somewhere. USB in my system really sounds better than S/PDIF with all the clarity and detail and body I want, to my ears of course.
 

Quote

I have never tried an Intona, although I have heard good comments about it. I'm not sure what you meant by ... "And I found that clean, isolated 5V USB power injected at the DAC by an Uptone LPS-1 improves SQ" ... could you elaborate ?

...

 

I mean inserting clean 5V DC into the USB connection at the DAC, Aqvox style, by an LPS-1, as shown for  the Eitr USB input in the picture below. Currently I use this at the Modi Multibit USB input..
 

[Abtr]

51 minutes ago, Charente said:

... I see what you're doing with the clean 5v injection at the DAC ... I've never tried that so, didn't understand your original suggestion. I do have a USB adapter with a pigtail somewhere in my collection of bits, so I could try that at the same time to try and replicate your setup. 

 

IME these adapters are difficult to find. I used one from an Aqvox USB PS.

[Abtr]

Looks great!

[Abtr]

1 hour ago, mordante said:

Just installed my Gen5 USB card in my Schiit Gumby. Was a bit a of fiddle to get the LEDs of the DAC back in holes of chassis but otherwise it wasn't that hard.

 

My source is a Auralic Aries LE with a Sbooster power supply. I'm not sure whether or not the Gen5 makes a sound difference.

 

Do you compare the Gen5 USB upgrade with the coax (S/PDIF) output of the Auralic Aries or with the original (Gen2) USB receiver of the Gungnir?

 

[Abtr]

1 hour ago, OldBigEars said:

Wasn’t sure which forum to post this on, but decided to post here as this really goes back to the question about whether or not Eitr needs a superior source to get the best SQ,  or if it magically compensates for any source (as has been suggested).  

 

Recently i added a mRendu 1.3.  I thought it sounded marginally better than a straight connection from my MBP,  but not  a huge gain.  It was powered by an ifi ipower. 

 

Last night i added a CIAudio power supply.  Holy crap - what a jump in performance.  My wife couldn’t tear me away from my music collection last night.  I’m very pleased with it.  

 

Now that I’ve proved to myself that the source does indeed matter with Eitr,  I’ll probably go ahead and get the 1.4 board upgrade for the mR.  

 

Nice. The iFi iPower basically is a very good DC power supply. Unfortunately (like all SMPSs) it puts back a rather large amount of noise into your AC mains. You could try isolating this noise from your audio equipment by using a good (audio-grade) mains isolation transformer and connect your DAC, pre-amp and power-amp(s) to the IT, and the iPower to any wall outlet..
 

[Abtr]

21 hours ago, OldBigEars said:

Thanks @Abtr but I probably wasn't very clear...I rushed my earlier post in my enthusiasm to gush about my new CI Audio power supply.  It's a linear power supply, and has replaced my iPower.  This difference in SQ is really surprising me, in the best possible way.  I was kind of expecting at best a marginal improvement, due to the aforementioned Eitr.  But no, it's a stark, obvious step up in musicality, body and detail.   Now about that AC power conditioner....I may well get to that soon.  I don't doubt what you say about the importance pf clean power.

Yes, I got that. I merely (implicitly) suggested that the iPower might sound as good or better than the CI Audio LPS if you isolate it from your analogue audio gear with a good mains isolation transformer.

 

I'm interested in any experience with the AQ Niagara which, according to AudioQuest, might be a game changer. Yet I'm skeptical it could outperform an audio-grade (low capacitance) mains IT..

[Abtr]

On ‎4‎-‎1‎-‎2018 at 11:20 PM, One and a half said:

Unless wholesale mods are performed on the Mac mini and other high leakage impedance noise sources, it is an optimum solution to leave them alone and isolate their effects somehow. 

Agreed.

 

Quote

Adding a second BPS was thought to be a bad idea since the 2nd BPS due to inherent differences in output voltages would cause more problems with the signals downstream.

Possibly.. Did you somehow experience this yourself?

 

Quote

One way around the problem of two BPS is to connect the centre points of each transformer to earth/ground. The point here is that it keeps the reference at the same potential between the two systems and any assymetric voltages are dealt with by the respective transformer noise cancellation.

A GFCI is still required for the 2nd BPS and the connections that run with that. 

How to join the two earth grounds is to open the connection covers and find a secured exit for a 4 or 6mm single green yellow wire and connect the two transformer centre points. This is simple inside a panel but using cables and connectors is doable but needs some DIY skills.

Actually the Airlink BPS units already have the (secondary) center tap connected to mains ground/Earth as standard. No need to DIY. And no need  for a GFCI *after* a BPS as long as the center tap to mains ground connection isn't lifted..

[Abtr]

On ‎21‎-‎10‎-‎2017 at 9:27 PM, Charente said:

@Abtr I can't understand why we hear USB & S/PDIF inputs as exact opposites ... bizarre to say the least ! I can't imagine that Gungnir's USB input is worse than Modi's ... probably the same, but I don't know for sure ... I may give USB direct another whirl at some stage if only to quell the seed of doubt in my mind !!

 

Ah, OK ... I see what you're doing with the clean 5v injection at the DAC ... I've never tried that so, didn't understand your original suggestion. I do have a USB adapter with a pigtail somewhere in my collection of bits, so I could try that at the same time to try and replicate your setup. 

 

An update.. Some months ago I installed a couple of 24dB/octave Linkwitz Riley 70Hz active crossover boards (from Xkitz Electronics) for my sub and front speakers. The result is a very nice overall SQ improvement. Anyway, I think you will be interested to hear that although I reported earlier that my Intona to Schiit Modi Multibit Gen 2 USB interface sounded better than the EITR Gen 5 USB to S/PDIF interface, this is now reversed. With my previous sub-front crossovers  I preferred USB->Intona->Modi Multibit Gen 2, but in its current configuration with the new crossovers and the EITR Gen 5 interface, my system sounds better than ever over USB! Maybe even better than my reference CD player + Mutec S/PDIF reclocker to Modi Multibit (coax).

 

So apparently upstream improvements can influence the subjective perception of downstream changes. The Intona still seems to make a slight difference when used in front of the EITR, but I'm not sure whether it's an improvement and I didn't do a DBX. What's immediately audible however is that clean 5V injection at the USB input of the EITR (still) improves SQ.

 

Regards.   

[Abtr]

On ‎3‎-‎4‎-‎2018 at 4:47 PM, Charente said:

 

Thank-you for the update @Abtr ... I have done switch-outs to check my 'audio sanity' but keep going back to the original set-up (in my signature). In a similar way to your experience, the microRendu also is a keeper in front of the EITR, together with the fact that I can feed the music via Ethernet, away from the computer. I am delighted with the system and am not tempted by any new components other than I have recently purchased a Forza balanced cable for the Aeon Flow Open to MJ2 connection. That exceeded expectations ... I am usually cable agnostic !

 

One more update.. I recently solved an issue related to system grounding. It involves inserting a capacitor into the(safety) ground connection to the center tap of the Airlink in order to block DC, which improves overall SQ in my system. Anyhow, it also changed how different components in the USB  chain contribute to SQ.

 

I reassessed my USB connection chain from MacMini to the  Eitr: MacMini > Intona > Eitr (with USB 5V injection). I found that now the Intona was actually doing more harm than good before the Eitr even though it still significantly improved SQ as a galvanic isolation device directly before the Modi Multibit. So I removed the Intona from the chain to Eitr. The USB 5V injection (from an Uptone LPS-1) remained a SQ improvement.

 

Then I revisited the Uptone ISO Regen (with Uptone LPS-1) before the Eitr, replacing the USB 5V injection. I must say my system never sounded better! Very natural, open, detailed, easy/relaxed sound. The effect of the ISO Regen on SQ may be similar to xRendu and SoTM units used before the Eitr.

 

The theory that nothing before the Eitr matters is clearly flawed IMO. And it seems that certain mains power and grounding issues may mask the SQ effects of real system improvements..  

[Abtr]

10 hours ago, Ralf11 said:

what makes you two think that?

 

do you have a proposed mechanism?

The transformer in the Eitr will fully isolate/block DC but only attenuate AC (noise). Some noise may pass right through it.  

[Abtr]

49 minutes ago, buonassi said:

I can attest to this .... every time my thermostat clicks 'off' it sends a spike through the mains and reboots eitr.  power conditioner didn't work.  had to move to completely different circuit and I still get some 'clicks' but at least no reboot.

I agree about the thermostat clicks, although here the Eitr doesn't reboot, it only 'stops working' for a second or so. I think it must be RF/EM radiation from the thermostat connecting and/or disconnecting.

 

49 minutes ago, buonassi said:

Actually, I still own the eitr, but found the SU-1 by singxer used for a great price, and prefer it because of the linear power supply built in and zero disturbances from transient spikes on my AC line.  Sound quality wise, they are very close - really can't say one sounds better than the other.

Eitr also has a (built in) linear power supply.

[Abtr]

54 minutes ago, Lebouwsky said:

@Abtr what do you mean by RF radiation? Mine even clicks when turning the light on/off and is very sensitive for small peaks and drops in current.

Electro magnetic radiation from sparking mains switches. Mine also once in a while stops when I turn on a light switch.

 

54 minutes ago, Lebouwsky said:

What I know from an lt3045 regulator for example  is that it is capable of dropping a DC voltage at a very precise level (DC to DC). But the drop down can only be in the range of 1 to 8 volts max, otherwise it gets to hot.

 

This schitt A-C to A-C  voltage regulator drops it from 230 to 6.5. One might ask how precise it is and how variable input to the linear power supply might influence it. I dont know what’s the operating voltage of the Eitr’s linear power supply, but I can imagine it’s got its min and max.

...

The wall wart AC-AC transformer of Eitr transforms 115 or 230 Volts AC down to 6,3 Volts AC, which is nothing an AC-DC rectifier and LT3045 can't handle. The advantage of the Schiit trafo being away from the Eitr is that any EM radiation from the trafo will not interfere with the operation of the Eitr.. 

[Abtr]

I found that a Mutec MC-3+ S/PDIF reclocker (Link) between Eitr and DAC made a positive SQ difference. USB finally sounds better than CD (also through the Mutec) in my system!

[Abtr]

17 hours ago, Charente said:

...

I have recently moved house and the electricity installation needed updating, so, I took the opportunity to arrange a separate circuit for my audio. That has made a noticeable difference to SQ and noise removal ... I very rarely experience an EITR related click now ... maybe once a week, if that.

Congratulations on the new house! I really think the Eitr clicks are RF induced, possibly the isolation transformer coils pick it up..  I can't imagine that the buffered and regulated DC supply of the Eitr would be sensitive to mains voltage drops that seem to have no impact on other gear. Maybe mains switches in your new home are of better quality or newer and/or spatially further removed from the Eitr..  

[Abtr]

On ‎11‎/‎23‎/‎2018 at 11:11 PM, Charente said:

...

I experimented quite a lot with what I had plugged in to the BPS and in the end I decided to connect just the DAC and AMP to the BPS (no strip) and leave the energiser for the LPS-1 and the EITR wall-wart outside of the BPS. 

...

Regarding the Eitr I have the opposite experience. Plugging Eitr into the BPS sounds better in my system.

[Abtr]

6 hours ago, Charente said:

 

@Lebouwsky & @Abtr ... thank-you. 

 

I dug back on what Mike Moffat said about this problem ... in an earlier post on the issue ...

 

 

Yes,  ... perhaps, the new circuit, new switches/sockets and new earth cable and ground rod have all helped.

It's not clear to me from Mike Moffat's explanation what the exact mechanism that causes the clicks is. He says: "The situation is that the Eitr is isolated – electrostatically and electromagnetically. […] There is no, none, nada electrical connection between the input and output USB and coax, respectively." And power switches "can send pulses back through the wiring, which acts like an antenna, and rarely can cause a tic or a few millisecond interruption in the Eitr." He then compares this with the Mani "which can pick up RF in a very few environments." He also seems to say that capacitance combined with stray inductance in the specific environment ultimately causes the clicks. But what is stray inductance?

 

I don't see how the coaxial part of the Eitr is different from the coaxial output circuitry  of e.g. a CD transport and likewise the power supply should be able to handle power voltage transients from switches. So it must have something to do with the isolation of the USB input and coaxial output. But what, and how does that work? Is it a discharge of capacitance triggered by stray inductance (whatever that is)? All power wiring and switches in my house are fairly new so that shouldn't be a problem.

 

Whatever the cause, like you I can live with an occasional click or drop out. The SQ improvement the Eitr gives far outweighs this slight annoyance.

[Abtr]

8 hours ago, Charente said:

Stray inductance ... briefly described here ... 

http://www.learningaboutelectronics.com/Articles/What-is-stray-inductance.php

I'm trying to figure out how this might apply in the EITR situation.

Thanks. I also can't figure it out. I think by now that Mike Moffat suggests that a power switch causes voltage transients that may induce stray inductance in (parallel) AC power wires in the home which in turn and in combination with Eitr's capacitance might somehow trigger a drop out..      

[Abtr]

37 minutes ago, Charente said:

End of life ?

 

It seems that EITR's days are numbered ... as a product.

 

Schiit's new UNISON USB (TM Schiit) is their new own in-house development USB solution that will eventually roll out to all the USB based products. But no, it seems, there won't be a UNISON EITR replacement (according to Jason Stoddard) ... some disappointment, from me anyway.

 

So, UNISON USB could be another game changer.

Can you provide a link?

[Abtr]

49 minutes ago, Charente said:

I see the decision NOT to produce a UNISON version of EITR as a strategic ploy ... it could attract more punters over to Schiit products if they are the only ones that have UNISON ... IF it's as good as the beta testers say it is. BIG if at present.

What about the suggestion to stop the production of Eitr, with or without a Unison successor? In the Head-fi post Jason Stoddard writes: "Eitr is pretty much dead as a product due to slow sales (like Wyrd) and will probably not be made anymore." I had no idea. IMO Eitr is a brilliant product (apart from the occasional dropouts) and I thought it could take a substantial slice of the DDC market (I recommend it to all my friends ). Wyrd is still available and (I assume) produced. I don't get it..

[Abtr]

Recently I tried a number of different computer audio hardware configurations involving all, or a subset of the following components: PC/Mac > Intona > Eitr > DAC > preamp. Generally SQ is better with Eitr in the USB chain, but with one (Lenovo) laptop, without the Intona isolator between PC and  Eitr, there are regular dropouts which do not seem to be related to mains switching noise (fridges, etc.). It seems that somewhere some static charge is building up which periodically discharges, typically breaking the USB connection at the PC side (resetting Eitr doesn't restore the connection). The Intona's galvanic isolation prevents this from happening. With the Intona before Eitr, dropouts are only caused by mains switches and (in my home) are fairly infrequent and they are short and don't coincide with USB connection loss.

 

Now, I 'upgraded' this particular laptop some time ago by grounding it with a wire that connects the negative output of the SMPS (usually the outer jacket of the power plug) to mains ground. Note that  @JohnSwenson recommends this to eliminate SMPS leakage current. Anyway, in this case it introduced a ground loop that ultimately caused the problem described above. Not grounding (floating) the laptop basically had the same effect as inserting the Intona in the USB chain: no more disconnecting dropouts.

 

So, if you are experiencing dropouts and disconnects with Eitr then I recommend trying the Intona. The cause may well be a ground loop. I personally use the non-industrial version (isolation up to 1000V) which is cheaper.

 

I'm not sure how Eitr can support such a ground loop but apparently it does.

 

[Abtr]

23 hours ago, Abtr said:

Recently I tried a number of different computer audio hardware configurations involving all, or a subset of the following components: PC/Mac > Intona > Eitr > DAC > preamp. Generally SQ is better with Eitr in the USB chain, but with one (Lenovo) laptop, without the Intona isolator between PC and  Eitr, there are regular dropouts which do not seem to be related to mains switching noise (fridges, etc.). It seems that somewhere some static charge is building up which periodically discharges, typically breaking the USB connection at the PC side (resetting Eitr doesn't restore the connection). The Intona's galvanic isolation prevents this from happening. With the Intona before Eitr, dropouts are only caused by mains switches and (in my home) are fairly infrequent and they are short and don't coincide with USB connection loss.

 

Now, I 'upgraded' this particular laptop some time ago by grounding it with a wire that connects the negative output of the SMPS (usually the outer jacket of the power plug) to mains ground. Note that  @JohnSwenson recommends this to eliminate SMPS leakage current. Anyway, in this case it introduced a ground loop that ultimately caused the problem described above. Not grounding (floating) the laptop basically had the same effect as inserting the Intona in the USB chain: no more disconnecting dropouts.

 

So, if you are experiencing dropouts and disconnects with Eitr then I recommend trying the Intona. The cause may well be a ground loop. I personally use the non-industrial version (isolation up to 1000V) which is cheaper.

 

I'm not sure how Eitr can support such a ground loop but apparently it does.

 

 

My conclusion above is incorrect! The ground loop is *not* running through Eitr. This is no surprise because Eitr is advertised to provide full galvanic isolation, like the Intona.

 

I use an Uptone Audio LPS-1 to inject clean 5V DC into the USB input of Eitr (even though that may not be necessary). This device is advertised to work like a battery power supply, completely isolated from mains power and ground. It switches between 2 banks of ultra-capacitors, one charging and the other providing DC power. I suspect that at the exact moment the switch is made between the 2 capacitor banks there is no mains ground isolation and some energetic ground loop causes a USB dropout or disconnect. Note that I grounded the LPS-1 by connecting the negative output of its (Meanwell) SMPS to mains ground. Possibly  @JohnSwenson or @Superdad  can comment on this.

     

Without the LPS-1 (for 5V USB power injection) I experience no more dropouts/disconnects with Eitr in my system.

[Abtr]

52 minutes ago, Superdad said:

 

I am mistaken about the topology of the Eitr.  The USB signal first goes through the Cmedia USB processor before encountering the Wurth transformers (and yes, if you look up the part number, thier primary application is for LAN signals).

 

I am remembering now what the mechanism of @Abtr‘s issue really is:

It has nothing to do with the output of the LPS-1 into his VBUS injector cable.  No pulse or glitch of any kind occurs on the output.  Rather, what he is experiencing is related to the AC charger side and the considerable current draw/ramp/drop that takes place as the charger responds to the needs of LPS-1 when the ultracapacitor banks alternate.

Somehow, either fields off the unshieled zip cord of DC coming from the charger are affecting other cables through the air, or the path through the ground-shunt wire he has on the Mean Well’s DC output cable is forming a loop with something else in his system. That also is probably not helped by the fact that the AC side of that particular Mean Well model is not grounded (despite the 3-pin IEC socket of the brick, that unit does not have its ground pin atteched to anything internally). Hence my recommendation that he first try unhooking the ground shunt and also that he get our internally shunted brick (the one that we supply with the newer generation LPS-1.2).

 

Don’t know why I did not think of the above earlier—since we have had the rare client encounter this in the past and it was always tracked to an AC side interaction.

 

Hi Alex. Thanks for the reply. I use this adapter for the 5V injection:

https://www.audiophonics.fr/en/various-adapters/usb-b-adapter-cable-for-55-21mm-female-power-supply-p-8332.html

It is wired correctly, otherwise I suppose it wouldn't work. Currently there's nothing else in the USB chain from laptop to Eitr. I will try your suggestions. This will take some time because dropouts/disconnects occur only each half hour or so and sometimes it takes longer.

 

Regarding the grounding of the laptop, I grounded it mainly to remedy some dropout problems that I had with the USB receiver of an RME ADI-2 DAC. There existed a 59V potential between the USB ground (the black wire) of the ungrounded laptop and the USB ground of the grounded ADI-2 USB input. After I grounded the laptop this potential was exactly 0.000V. Now the Eitr USB is floating so grounding the laptop may be quite pointless, but it shouldn't heart either.. 

[Abtr]

3 hours ago, Superdad said:

... what he is experiencing is related to the AC charger side and the considerable current draw/ramp/drop that takes place as the charger responds to the needs of LPS-1 when the ultracapacitor banks alternate.

Somehow, either fields off the unshieled zip cord of DC coming from the charger are affecting other cables through the air, or the path through the ground-shunt wire he has on the Mean Well’s DC output cable is forming a loop with something else in his system. ...

 

Okay, the problem is basically solved by removing the ground-shunt from the MeanWell (keeping the ground connection of the laptop). No more dropouts/disconnects with Eitr, and it sounds great. The original problem must then be a high energy ground-loop in the laptop and grounded MeanWell SMPS at the point the LPS-1 switches its Ultra-Cap banks..

[Abtr]

On 3/10/2019 at 1:43 AM, Superdad said:

Probably very little sonic benefit (I can't hear the difference between the new one and the original Mean Well, though others say they do). 

But technically it completely fixes the one Achilles heel of our UltraCap design.  

By shunting to AC mains ground the zero-volt (-ve) "ground" of the SMPS output, high-source-impedance leakage is prevented from ever entering the UltraCap unit.

Unlike typical low-source-impedance leakage--which virtually all SMPS produce a lot of and which our UltraCap units completely block--the high source-impedance variety can get through.  That is because we use transistors--as opposed to mechanical relays--as switches to alternate between the two ultracap banks, and in their off-state the transistors have enough capacitance (total of all of them being about 80pF in the LPS-1, 35pF in the LPS-1.2) to pass high-source-impedance leakage.

 

So I replaced the Mean Well SMPS with the Uptone internally shunted/grounded SMPS and (with a grounded laptop) there are no more dropouts related to the LPS-1 switching its UltraCap banks. I suppose that proves the theory that said dropouts were caused by a ground loop running through the Mean Well and the PC and not (somehow) through the LPS-1 and the PC. Thanks!

 

I can't say sound quality improved but it certainly didn't worsen.