A few weeks ago I am across this one in a mag.

http://fidelityaudio.co.uk/spower.html

These small modules are basically plug and play for most CD players. But having the capability to output 21V, they tickled my curiosity, so I got in touch Fidelity Audio to ask him a few questions about implementing the SPower within Techie.

Brent (a true gent BTW) was my point of contact, and he explained me that they do build PSUs for Inspire HIFI using these small regulator boards. The Monarch and the Monarch Baby being their flagship designs based on our trusted techie, I felt in safe hands…

But before any confusion arises, a few quick disclaimers, I will at some point get a Paul Hynes PSU with all Regulation Modules, but while I am saving money towards it, I had the urge to play around…

Second disclaimer: Electricity and electronics are NOT toys, and YOU should NOT attempt to replicate what I did in this thread. You DON’T want to harm yourself or your equipment! So, please DON’T follow my example…

Swiftly the SPower HC 21V was ordered and received. £50 later, here we are…



What a nifty design, compact and neatly laid out. The Pin out being clearly labeled, all I was left to do is to upgrade a few caps within the techie and remove the existing regulator.

First, I upgraded C1 to a Nichicon 2200uF rated at 50V. Because the cap is way too big to fit within the main PCB, I had to hard wire it and lodge it on the left hand side of the PCB.



Next on the list, C3. I removed the existing one and hard wired a Nichicon 33uF rated at 350V (a bit of an overkill I know)…



And finally, all left to do is to wire the SPower with the existing cabling left in place. So the ‘I’ pin gets wired to the cable coming from J1, the cable that was going to J2 now gets to the ‘G’ pin of the regulator and at the other hand to the ‘G’ pole on the PCB on the right hand side from the motor. The ‘O’ pin gets connected to J3.



So with minimal fuss, we have it, an upgraded regulator in the techie.



Not the neatest of all jobs, but some more tidying to come up soon.

So obviously, now the BIG question is HOW DOES IT SOUNDS?
Well, in comparison to the bog standard regulator, this modest upgrade feels just more natural. Somehow the music feels just more together, if that makes any sense. The top is less shouty, and the bass less boomy, giving a more even presentation I feel…
One thing for sure is, the platter gets up to a solid (iron tight!) speed in no time…
The strobe gives a rock solid speed reading.

So, here we have it, for a very modest outlay, a subtle but noticeable sound upgrade for the techie.

I am curious to see if anyone has tried before and what their findings are…