One step forward: ER +lpsu

Well pulled trigger on the mcru lvl3 lps for my ER hopefully should arrive next week or so

Went for that as i upgraded the power cable and it came with the fancy orange fuse which may use on another of my mains cable on my dave so felt overall good price with 10% off aswell :grinning:

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I broke down and ordered direct from Uptone the Ultracap LPS-1.2 late yesterday afternoon as a last resort to see if it would make a difference compared to the other LPSs I tried on my eR, though without any perceived effect. I have reported that the eR made very little difference in my setup regardless of configuration but will try this to see if there may not be some needed synergy. If no change I can always use it to power my Anti-Mode 2.0 Dual Core.

As a quick aside: Iā€™ve never received anything so quickly after placing an order. Alex sent it via FedEx about an hour after I completed the order and it arrived today (I live halfway across the country). Just incredible CS! I have it hooked up but wonā€™t be able to listen to it until later tonight. Hereā€™s hoping for even that little extra SQ nudgeā€¦

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maybe on element to mention when speaking about ER SQ improvement is what sort o inputs we listen to. In my case (huge improvement) I currently only listen to streamed Qobuz. So actually I cannot say that SQ for locally downloaded files increases. Maybe the impact there is far less? Please let us know. But this may explain differences of opinion.

Itā€™s an interesting point you make. I think initially with the release of the eR on the CA/AS site, if I remember correctly over the course of many months, many who received it used it nearly exclusively in this manner which surprised me, being that I wouldā€™ve thought its creatorā€™s intended audience would be using it with oneā€™s home network to help mitigate the ā€˜noiseā€™ responsible from such components being introduced into the Ethernet signal and into our systems/DACs. I, too, listen to a majority of my streaming at 80+% Qobuz/Tidal and the rest local NAS (Synology). I cannot say there is an improvement in SQ locally, but then again I thought even before I purchased the eR that my particular streamer coupled with even 16/44 and especially 24/96 albums where available sounded nearly identical with the former and surely equalled or surpassed in some instances with the latter anyway, so I didnā€™t expect an uplift in the least.
Listening to Qobuz and Tidal with the eR installed netted nothing discernable in my case; at least nothing to get excited about compared to the majority whoā€™ve reported its quialities. I ā€˜thinkā€™ I hear subtleties from album-to-album compared to itā€™s absence, but I really have to concentrate, which in my estimation defeats the purpose of enjoyment/improvements. If I had to ascribe anything to its character, Iā€™d say it gives the music an overall ā€˜etchedā€™ quality; I have no reservations in saying that it really seems to shine on electronic music and piano. However, thatā€™s me really attempting to give this switch a voice in the discussion.
I now have a new Ultracap LPS-1.2 thatā€™s been connected for a few hours and will have another few daysā€™ listen before reporting back, but your post is something Iā€™m glad was brought up and should be talked about as well. Thanks!

Since I feel the impact was so noticeable on remote streaming in my case, a few further thoughts. Is it possible that there is an ā€œissueā€ in the input data supply chain? what about the ethernet cables, maybe worth trying different ones just in case? Also I got the strongest SQ quality lift when I replaced the lpus 1.2 ultracap with the mcru option 3. Good luck

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Incoming!
SR4/T with copper cable for the ER.

Another SR4/T with silver cable is also on its way for the opticalRendu.

Both expected at the end of November.

Best regards, BF

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Impact about the same for both here.

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Good for me to know for when I buy a melco or innuosā€¦or the reference naim core when it comes out?

I bought the Melco n1z2 and the uplift was very nice. 2 months later the Etheregen, gave similar improvement ( but not on same areas).
Both enhanced local streaming ( I donā€™t stream online).

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i also found the ER gave a nice uplift in SQ when placed before my innuos zenith mk3 when running hiRes files from it locally :slight_smile:

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I will have to make the jumpā€¦waiting for the naim new box, hopefully.

Add me to the list of eR fanboys.

I have just substituted my second Cisco 2960 for the eR, so I now have my Cisco 2960 (the one with the external SMPS) connected to the eR which in turn is connected to the ND555.

I listened to an album first with the 2 x 2960s and then the same album again with the 2960 and eR. Initially I could detect a nice uplift but nothing to write home about. But have now listened to a second album (CD rip of Eva Cassidyā€™s Nightbird, CD2) and blimey this thing is coming on song, even with the eRā€™s stock SMPS.

More air around instruments and vocals, more crispness but less hardness. Climaxes and loud passages are under better control. Where before I might wince a tad when the music peaked in intensity, there is more control but the impact of a loud passage when the mix gets complex is still retained. Vocalists have better diction and lyrics are more intelligible.

Soundstage has improved with greater width and the position of instruments/vocals is more clearly defined without losing any cohesion.

I should be clear and say right now that the improvement is not on par with a black box upgrade but it is significant and not subtle.

Now back to the music.

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Nigel,
You are such an ER fanboy!

Nice club to be in, isnā€™t it :grin:

Best regards, BF

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Indeed.

Next, I am going to try and move the eR closer to the ND555.

In the manual it recommends this, but currently the 2960 and eR are on a rack in a cupboard (together with the router, NAS and UnitiServe), which is all a few meters from the Fraim with the ND555. One of the reasons for this arrangement was to electrically and physically separate the network devices (router, switches, NAS, UnitiServe) from the Naim black boxes, and utilise separate ring mains and distribution boxes for each group. (No, I have not installed a dedicated mains feed for the black boxes, as I will be moving in time). So I first have to work out where the eR will be plugged into the mains as I donā€™t want to pollute the ring main/distribution box where the black boxes are plugged in.

I could of course be over-thinking this.

I wonder if anyone has heard a benefit from moving their eR close to their ND streamer?

Yes welcome to the club Nigel another happy ER fanā€¦ now what about that linear PS??? (Runs for cover)ā€¦ but seriously enjoy what you have so far ā€¦ no rush to go further. I think it is a good idea to have a short ethernet run from the B port of the ER I use 1.5m Catsnake 6e to my Melco from the ER

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Over thinking it? Probably but you are not alone.

Our ER is with all the TV, virgin box, music server and related gubbins, about 2 metres from the hifi.

We have 2 separate mains distribution blocks plugged into the dedicated radial at the wall.
The first one supplies the turntable and amplifier boxes.
The second supplies the music server, ER, oR, Chord M Scaler and DAVE. This one has some chunky Fair Rite type 75 ferrites on it to inhibit any SMPS naughtiness from getting at the supply to the Naim boxes.

There are a couple of Paul Hynes Design SR4T linear power supplies on their way to power the ER and oR. These will hopefully provide a dual benefit of better power for the ER and oR, plus feeding less SMPS naughtiness back into the mains.

Am I over-thinking it? Gosh I hope so!

Best regards, BF

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Well glad you finally joined usā€¦been waiting for you for at least a week or sošŸ˜‰. I did try moving it to my first switch position, that is replacing the hp 408 procurve which is 5m away via AQ Forest cable. You can still hear the benefits, but a little diminished. Which gets me thinking of the benefits of two in my system.
Glad it is working for you.
P.S i would like to have kept its power supply separate too, but it is plugged into the sparkly bottom G3 mains unit, it and the system works fine. Hence that is why i did try it a few metres away on a different ring main.
P.S. on thinking about it the diminished sound could have been the difference between AQ Forest and Vodka cables.

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I didnā€™t. Itā€™s now about 5m away.

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Mine is in a network cabinet, in my climbing gear room.

I have ~12 meters of ethernet cable between my ER and the ND555.

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I picked up my new unit today. Sounds great out of the box, but if aural memory of my recent borrow of @Michaelb ā€˜s unit serves, then thereā€™s more to come.
2 observations though:
1] The unit is so small and light that with 4x stiff Cat6a cables coiled into it, itā€™s impossible to get the box to sit flat on a shelf under its own weight! Currently, it half sits, precariously, on a pile of unused, coiled Ethernet cablesā€¦
2] Sad to say, but in my rig it unreservedly sounds better with a Naim Powerline feeding the SMPS power supply than with a standard mains cable. Damnā€¦!

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