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  • JCAT OPTIMO 3 DUO Reviews

       (1 review)
    Manufacturer: JCAT
    Model: OPTIMO 3 DUO
    Price $: 1500

    NO COMPROMISE ULTRA-LOW NOISE DUAL-OUTPUT LINEAR POWER SUPPLY 

    Designed to partner JCAT USB & NET Cards, as well as any other component requiring up to 3A load, the OPTIMO 3 DUO will drastically improve every aspect of sound.  

     

    SPECIFICATION:

      • Features two independent galvanically isolated DC outputs, each capable of delivery up to 3A to load.
      • Designed to provide the best possible quality power to our USB & NET Cards; default voltage is 5V at each output. As it can be used with any other equipment (DAC, USB converter, network equipment, etc.) that requires up to 3A of DC power, 9V and 12V versions are available on special requests too (please specify Voltage in purchase note, lead time for a custom version is 4 weeks. Each output can be made with a different Voltage)
      • Truly linear design (no switching power supplies anywhere)
      • Bespoke massive low induction 100VA transformer with magnetic and electrical shielding, sealed with epoxy resin for noiseless operation.
      • Ultra fast low noise rectifier.
      • Supreme quality audio grade capacitors.
      • State-of-the-art ultra low noise linear voltage regulators (LT3045).
      • Noise below measuring range (< 2uV)
      • Low-resonance enclosure made of non magnetic materials.
      • Supreme quality sockets (Furutech IEC, Neutrik Speakon for DC outputs).
      • Comes with 2 high quality 1.2m PC-OCC 0.7mm² double shielded DC cables with 5.5mm x 2.1mm DC barrel plugs (2.5 plugs available on special request).
      • Protection features: short circuit protection, current limit and thermal overload protection, transient overvoltage protection.
      • Manufactured in EU with either 115/230V input.
         

    Manufacturer's product page: https://jcat.eu/product/optimo-3-duo/




    User Feedback


    Oliver H

       3 of 3 members found this review helpful 3 / 3 members

    I bought the Optimo power supply on the basis of what it appeared to promise: an improvement on what I was already using to power my JCAT XE USB card. What I was using was a W4S PS-1, with a Kimber DC lead. That sounded pretty good in the audio-only SSD-driven computer that I have been using and improving for over 3 years now. I am using Audiophile Optimizer on it, with Windows 10 Pro, a Pachanko Pure Reference SATA lead to a Samsung SSD, among other things (including Ghentaudio DC leads internally and to the HDPlex 200w linear power supply that is powering an HDPlex 400w DC-ATX). I am not streaming via that computer: that is done via another one, in which I have a JCAT Femto USB card and a JCAT network card. When I put the Optimo DC lead into the XE card input, the sound was immediately much closer to what I wanted from a digital source. I always check changes to the computer/digital source chain by comparing the sound of a recording which I have in both digital and vinyl form: I have a Nottingham Analogue Ace Spacedeck with an Origin Live Illustrious Mark 2 arm, with an Audio Technica AT-OC9iii cartridge, played via the balanced output from an Origin Live phono stage. The SSD-driven computer sound is now such that it is at least comparable to that of a very good vinyl pressing of an analogue recording, played on my system. I like the sound from the computer with the XE card now so much that I am not going to remove the Optimo input for comparison purposes. It would be a waste of time. 

     

    I have a Yamaha CD-S3000, and the sound from the XLR socket output is both lower in volume and more soft than from the phono socket output. That is unusual, since the balanced output is often higher than the single-ended output. I mention the difference because the sound when playing a CD or SACD on the Yamaha is often more mellow when using the XLR socket, and generally I prefer the more mellow sound when playing a CD, especially when it consists of a digital version of an analogue recording. I have also in the past preferred (to my great annoyance, as I have wanted my computer sound to be better) the sound of a CD played through the Yamaha as compared with the digital replay (fed into either a Chord DAC64 or an MHDT NOS DAC) of the CD ripped to iTunes and played back on the SSD computer system. (Incidentally, I have had a Chord DAVE in my system for several weeks and compared it with the DAC64, and to my ears the DAC64 on the second filter, so the most filtered, output, is more musical than the DAVE.) Now, with all of the things that are in place in the chain, the computer sound is, finally, to my ears, preferable to that of the Yamaha playing a CD. I have no doubt that the Optimo contributes significantly to that result. It is in my view worth having for that reason alone. Yet it has a second output, and it is contributing significantly also to the good quality of my streaming output sound (which, it has to be said, while good is still not as good as the sound of the SSD-driven computer output, which is full and rich, while yet being crisp and clear). So, the Optimo, while expensive, is overall in my view a good buy.

    Link to review




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