The new generation UltraCap LPS-1.2: USER IMPRESSIONS and QUESTIONS thread

[Narcissus]

Need some suggestions where I could use the LPS 1.2 (I have one unit which is redundant), was looking forward to pair it with the ISO Regen but Alex says my unit has malfunctioned :(

Anyone powering a Raspberry Pi4 with the LPS 1.2?

[gstew]

Nope. RPi 4 officially requires 5V 3A, LPS-1.2 is 5V 1.1A. I tried one on the earlier & less current-hungry RPi 2B with occasional success, but mostly aborted boots.

 

What's up with your ISO Regen, if I may ask... Just curious.

 

Greg in Mississippi.

 

 

 

 

[Narcissus]

 

Hi Greg, I purchased a “used” IR in Oct 21, but only managed to try hookin it up last month Aug 22. I have a Denafrips Ares II Dac & RPI4 (picoreplayer OS). The IR is unable to do a “handshake”, in fact tried out several tests to conclude the health of this unit but the results were not positive.

 

a) Removing the LPS-1.2 from the chain and powering the ISO REGEN directly from the UpTone-branded 36W AC>DC power adapter brick (normally used to “energize”/charge the LPS-1.2 unit).

 

b) Putting the red switch of the ISO REGEN into the up (‘ON’) position.

 

c) A different USB cable from the RPI4 streamer to the input of the ISO REGEN.

 

d) Also tried using USPCB A>B Adapter from the ISO REGEN into the Denafrips Ares II DAC, with its tiny VBUS switch still in the “ON”position.

 

e) Finally, On a Macbook pro I plugged in an USB thumb drive into the IR's output, with & without the USPCB (see attached pic). The IR is still unable to mount the drive.

 

FWIW, The thumb drive has a red led indicator as you can see in the pics, which lights up when its installed correctly. I had to fiddle a bit with the IR's output to get that red indicator light up, yet no luck mounting the thumb drive.

[gstew]

@Narcissus, sounds like a thorough troubleshooting regime provides by Alex or John or you are just good with HW... Yup, dead.

 

@[email protected], my experience trying to use an LPS-1 or 1.2 on an RPi 2B is that booting was hit or miss, I assume to the higher current draw at boot. Also these were all powering just the RPi & in some cases the dirty side of an I2S isolator board which at most adds something in the low 10s of mA.

 

Over time more trouble than benefit. Of course YMMV.

 

Also, as Alex shared here: 

 

... the failure rate on these units was higher than expected.

 

I've experienced a few failures with them & most have been at currents nearing 500mA, as I don't run any at higher currents as so not to stress these then fairly expensive & now rare & more delicate than expected supplies.

 

OTOH, I have several running at 200mA or lower 24-7 for the past several years with almost no issues.

 

Also YMMV, this has been what works the best for me.

 

Greg in Mississippi

 

 

[Narcissus]

Gents, I’m happy to confirm that the LPS 1.2 is successfully powering a RPI4. Been playing music for an hour without any hiccups.

FYI, I’m running a Server and Player setup, RPI #1 server (4TB Music HDD) running LMS &  RPI #2 Player (connected to Dac) running Picoreplayer, Squeezelite if you will.

Its possible due to the OS being very lean it’s not overloading the LPS 1.2. YMMV.

 

[Narcissus]

@gstew Greg, the whole troubleshooting gig was thanks to Alex C. 

Let’s just say, I’m no slouch with HW :) 

[gstew]

No slouch with HW indeed. 

 

Glad it is working for you. Sorry I left you both astray!

 

Which of your 2 RPi is it powering?

 

Any sonic differences noticed?

 

Greg in Mississippi

 

P.S. My 2 player setups are topologically similar, LMS servers are Zotac ZBox PI-320 micro PCs with music both on the onboard storage & an attached 1Tb SD card on each, PiCorePlayer on Allo USBBridge Signatures (custom audiophile-ish carrier board for an RPi 3 compute module), both setups hosting DIY I2S-connected DACs.

 

 

[Narcissus]

@gstew It’s powering RPI #2 (player connected to Dac). The most immediate positive sonic improvement was the Bass becoming fuller & tighter, never heard before sounds popping out of my reference albums :).

 

I still need to spend more time listening to it & give a confirmation. But yeah in brief, what I mentioned  above definitely is a step up. 
 

True, our systems are topologically similar. I’ve been eyeing the Soekris 1941 DAM (Balanced), not sure if it does i2s.

[properlydeafened]

Well...came to see how isolated my problems are with the LPS 1.2.  I bought mine in 2018, it failed and was replaced in 2020 and now has failed again and appears to not be repairable.  Fell in the 7% defect rate two times it would seem...time to buy some lottery tickets. 

[Superdad]

On 11/1/2022 at 1:04 PM, properlydeafened said:

Well...came to see how isolated my problems are with the LPS 1.2.  I bought mine in 2018, it failed and was replaced in 2020 and now has failed again and appears to not be repairable.  Fell in the 7% defect rate two times it would seem...time to buy some lottery tickets. 

 

Hi Mitchell:

I just replied to your e-mail.

Yes, the failure rate--calculated over the years and for the approximate 4,000 total units of LPS-1/LPS-1.2--is now probably a bit higher than 7%. 

A very sad state and quite a stain on our reputation given that global parts shortages keep us from being able to supply replacement boards for repair.

So sorry about this,

--Alex C.

[richard_crl032]

Hi Alex,

 

Thanks for the quick response on my failed unit last night after almost 3 yrs of service and I truly understands your situation and will just accept that it cannot be repaired by Uptone Audio 

 

Opened up mine and obvious failure was the regulator#6 as seen but sure, it may be some other upstream or downstream issue(s) and not actual failed regulator.

 

Nevertheless, I will see if anyone here locally can source the regulator to replace it as a last ditch effort before it goes into the bin and never to be reminded.

 

Fyi and cheers.

 

Richard

 

[richard_crl032]

Admiring the wonderful piece of engineering 🥳

[MarkusBarkus]

...PCB structures are beautiful, IMO. With a little imagination, they remind me of flying over urban environments. And similarly, the design beauty you see hides the amazing invisible internal complexity going on. Thanks for the pics and reminder of the hidden-life of all things, @richard_crl032 

[richard_crl032]

1 hour ago, MarkusBarkus said:

...PCB structures are beautiful, IMO. With a little imagination, they remind me of flying over urban environments. And similarly, the design beauty you see hides the amazing invisible internal complexity going on. Thanks for the pics and reminder of the hidden-life of all things, @richard_crl032 

 

Indeed and crazy audiophile of me with "golden ears" has 12v power supplied to such complexity to have  "same" 12v power output .. 1st world phenomenon. 😑

[FIndingit]

7 hours ago, richard_crl032 said:

Hi Alex,

 

Thanks for the quick response on my failed unit last night after almost 3 yrs of service and I truly understands your situation and will just accept that it cannot be repaired by Uptone Audio 

 

Opened up mine and obvious failure was the regulator#6 as seen but sure, it may be some other upstream or downstream issue(s) and not actual failed regulator.

 

Nevertheless, I will see if anyone here locally can source the regulator to replace it as a last ditch effort before it goes into the bin and never to be reminded.

 

Fyi and cheers.

 

Richard

 

 

Some of the caps on the other side have leaked through the vias (those small holes).

[richard_crl032]

8 hours ago, FIndingit said:

 

Some of the caps on the other side have leaked through the vias (those small holes).

Tks tks .. indeed the case after closer examination. Strange caps and not sure if can be sourced .. but retired 1.5 yrs ago and have time to try 😂

[Mat]

My LPS 1.2 stay on red , what is wrong ? 

[Superdad]

1 hour ago, Mat said:

My LPS 1.2 stay on red , what is wrong ? 

Hi Mat:

I replied to your email. Please check. 
Assuming you were “energizing”/charging your LPS-1.2 with the supplied UpTone-branded 36W/7.5V AC>DC adapter, and that you had the output set to 12V for the EtherREGEN you said you were powering—you UltraCap LPS-1.2 may indeed have failed.  
Please see the email I sent you with regards your options. 
 

Thanks and regards,

Alex C.

[Mat]

6 hours ago, Superdad said:

Hi Mat:

I replied to your email. Please check. 
Assuming you were “energizing”/charging your LPS-1.2 with the supplied UpTone-branded 36W/7.5V AC>DC adapter, and that you had the output set to 12V for the EtherREGEN you said you were powering—you UltraCap LPS-1.2 may indeed have failed.  
Please see the email I sent you with regards your options. 
 

Thanks and regards,

Alex C.

Thanks Alex C.

 

[Bernstein]

It is so sad…Ultracap 1.2 was my favorite!!!

 

Will be there a replacement of sorts in same size etc.? 

[Superdad]

7 minutes ago, Bernstein said:

Will be there a replacement of sorts in same size etc.? 

 

No, we do not have a similar small model in the immediate plans.

We are 2-3 months out from production on a very advanced, triple-regulated, dual-output, 2/4A supply.

Below is a sneak peak of it without its rear panel or front LED PCB. Will begin posting more details in a few weeks.

 

[Bernstein]

5 hours ago, Superdad said:

 

No, we do not have a similar small model in the immediate plans.

We are 2-3 months out from production on a very advanced, triple-regulated, dual-output, 2/4A supply.

Below is a sneak peak of it without its rear panel or front LED PCB. Will begin posting more details in a few weeks.

 

Will this be higher or lower in price of the JS-2? Looks like same size, right? CE certification for EU usage?

[Superdad]

10 hours ago, Bernstein said:

Will this be higher or lower in price of the JS-2?

Parts cost is much higher than the $960 JS-2. So retail price will likely be around $1,350.

 

10 hours ago, Bernstein said:

Looks like same size, right?

Yes, exact same case and finish as JS-2. Of course rear panel openings and text will be different. And on the front panel the same amber LED in the 'p' of UpTone, but 25mm down and 20mm to the left of that main power LED will be two same size green LEDs indicating good DC output from the two outputs. (One goes off if a channel is overcurrent, and only one will be lit if the unit is switched into 4A single-output mode.)

 

There are a lot of interesting aspects to the circuit design to discuss--once I have time and start a new thread about JS-4 when the final beta units ship.

 

10 hours ago, Bernstein said:

CE certification for EU usage?

Probably not. An arduous and expensive process (typically about $20K to fully comply with all paperwork and test procedures) that can take nearly a year, and which in the end does not really net much.  Our products are completely safe, but meeting the newest regulation for efficiency is sometimes difficult for a linear power supply.

 

For example, for an external power supply with an output voltage of 1-50 volts DC and a power output of 1-250 watts, the European Commission Regulation (EC) No 278/2009 sets out the following minimum energy efficiency levels that must be met at various load levels:

49% efficiency at 25% of rated output power

68% efficiency at 50% of rated output power

74% efficiency at 75% of rated output power

75% efficiency at 100% of rated output power

 

We'll have to check to see if the JS-4 can meet the above requirements at all output voltage levels--especially at full load.

But in the end it does not matter too much as European clients have been receiving direct shipments of the non-CE marked JS-2 for over 7 years. There are probably 750 JS-2s in Europe alone. 

 

[Mops911]

On 4/20/2023 at 11:19 AM, Superdad said:

Probably not. An arduous and expensive process (typically about $20K

welcome to the asylum and tax hell :-D

 

and for energy efficiency, dont you know, you are killing the planet with your music....bad boy!!! :-D

 

[davide256]

mmm, my LPS 1.2 failed after several years of service, I suspect that the 5v UP Atom PC endpoint just ran it too close to its current limits for too long.

It was a nice unit and  the price/performance was right for running an endpoint. Much preferred it to the JS-2 as a 5v source for small renderer devices

that could run on its 1.2A, just had more delicacy for mezzo piano woodwind performances.