Amptastic Mini-1 Linear power supply

[brian2957]

I have one of these cracking little amps and would like to upgrade the power supply as I'm sure it has more to give . Can anyone please suggest a suitable upgrade before I spend all my crimbo money on one of these : http://www.custom-hifi-cables.co.uk/home/power-supplies/dc-power-supplies

The specs for the amp / PSU are at the bottom of the page I have linked to .

[struth]

looks the bizz Brian although dearer than the amp. alas i dont have anything like that at moment

[brian2957]

Thanks Grant , it does look pretty good doesn't it .

You have PM mate.

[Covenant]

I have the DC1 powering a custom hi-fi cables HA-10SE headphone amplifier. Quality products, well worth the price and they offer a five year guarantee.

[brian2957]

Ah , thanks for that Jerry . You're the first person who I've heard from who actually owns one of these units . I'm just exploring my options before making a final decision . :)

[Gazjam]

Hey Brian,
Can you get a trial of the PSU?

Have to say, the Mini-1 has surprised me how well it's sounding with my Eddingdales.
Quite musical with a surprisingly sweet sounding top end, not what you'd maybe expect from a digital amp?
The speakers are easy to drive being very efficient, but they are enough of an open window to show what the wee amp can do.

Had a play comparing plugging it in directly to balanced mains vs via the Belkin PF30 and its two quite different sounds.
Seems it's pretty sensitive to how it's powered, so I reckon it'd benefit from a decent psu.

[brian2957]

Yes mate . It's the information you have been passing on which has made me decide that this is worth investigating further .

[mr sneff]

I have one of these cracking little amps and would like to upgrade the power supply as I'm sure it has more to give . Can anyone please suggest a suitable upgrade before I spend all my crimbo money on one of these : http://www.custom-hifi-cables.co.uk/home/power-supplies/dc-power-supplies

The specs for the amp / PSU are at the bottom of the page I have linked to .

I have one of these PSUs for my Amptastic Mini-1. Well worth the money and a significant upgrade, good improvments to bass control, high frequency smoothness and levels of detail. And Sean is a good bloke to deal with.

[brian2957]

Excellent David , thanks for sharing that . It looks like I may be contacting the owner regarding this PSU in the next week or two . :)

[Ali Tait]

Seems well priced mate.

[brian2957]

Thanks for that Ali . I'm not sure how much these should cost so that's good to know . Any luck yet mate ?

[Ali Tait]

Not as yet, but most are still on holiday.

[brian2957]

Good luck mate :)

[struth]

+1 on that Ali. :) Hope it works out for you.

[Ali Tait]

Thanks guys.

[0rangutan]

The DC1 is excellent (I used one with a Bel Canto amp for a few years).

Does anyone have any experience or opinions on these two eBay options:
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=web&id=281491894869
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=web&id=111544612626

The prices are rather more realistic for the price of the amp :)

[Firebottle]

Interesting pair of psu's for the money.
Neither look like the case is earthed properly, just a screen wire from the transformer is connected to the earth tag of the mains socket. Not good.

The sep_store one has a pathetically small heatsink for a 2.5A rating, that's going to get seriously hot when run at high current.

I would use one but only after modification :rolleyes:

[0rangutan]

The sep_store one has a pathetically small heatsink for a 2.5A rating, that's going to get seriously hot when run at high current.

How would that manage driving an Amptatstic T-amp though? I imagine that these are actually quite low current and so perhaps not a problem?

[Firebottle]

Should work OK if you don't have it on really loud for extended periods.

The regulator in the psu does have thermal protection if it gets too hot, so would just shut down. Worth a try :)

[Alan D]

Be patient and keep an eye on ebay. I bought 3 second hand MCRU / LDA power supplies on there last year, one was just £58:)

I have also built my own PSU for for my Bantam Gold amp, it cost around £80 in parts. I have now added a second DC lead and run the amp and a Bushmaster MKII from it with it set to 14.5V

13733

[brian2957]

Thanks Alan , that psu looks excellent BTW . Sometimes I wish I had lisened at skool mate . :rolleyes:

[brian2957]

Taking this to a scottishmafia board meeting today http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/30W-DC12V-HiFi-Linear-power-supply-Regulated-PSU-for-DAC-headphone-amp-CL-215-/111544612626?pt=UK_Sound_Vision_Amplifier_Parts&hash=item19f893b712
I'll be plugging it into the Amptastic Mini-1 which Gary has on loan . I'll be back :)

[Tarzan]

Hey Brian,
Can you get a trial of the PSU?

Have to say, the Mini-1 has surprised me how well it's sounding with my Eddingdales.
Quite musical with a surprisingly sweet sounding top end, not what you'd maybe expect from a digital amp?
The speakers are easy to drive being very efficient, but they are enough of an open window to show what the wee amp can do.

Had a play comparing plugging it in directly to balanced mains vs via the Belkin PF30 and its two quite different sounds.
Seems it's pretty sensitive to how it's powered, so I reckon it'd benefit from a decent psu.


I have stated on a few occasions that PSU's and power cords are key on Tripath amps, this was demonstrated to me again when l brought Anthony K's Nordost Vishnu and plumbed it in to my Virtue Audio Sensation's 30v/130w PSU, why it should l do not know, but it is fun trying.

[hughandella]

Taking this to a scottishmafia board meeting today http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/30W-DC12V-HiFi-Linear-power-supply-Regulated-PSU-for-DAC-headphone-amp-CL-215-/111544612626?pt=UK_Sound_Vision_Amplifier_Parts&hash=item19f893b712
I'll be plugging it into the Amptastic Mini-1 which Gary has on loan . I'll be back :)

Hi

Any update on the performance of the PSU ? ..... I should say I have had one of custom cables' PSUs before and they and sean's service are great --- but on a budget for this project ...

[hughandella]

Taking this to a scottishmafia board meeting today http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/30W-DC12V-HiFi-Linear-power-supply-Regulated-PSU-for-DAC-headphone-amp-CL-215-/111544612626?pt=UK_Sound_Vision_Amplifier_Parts&hash=item19f893b712
I'll be plugging it into the Amptastic Mini-1 which Gary has on loan . I'll be back :)

Hi

Any update on the performance of the PSU ? ..... I should say I have had one of custom cables' PSUs before and they and sean's service are great --- but on a budget for this project ...