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Going Battery Powered

I have a number of components that run off of 12V DC power. This includes my DAC, preamp, tube buffer, etc. I’m looking into powering them with batteries instead of 120V AC power supplies. Does anyone have any input on if this is worth my time? Seems like DC power is the cleanest power you can get in this situation. I’ve heard batteries can have reduced dynamics but I plan on using as big of a battery as is reasonable, most likely a large sealed AGM type battery. Do I need power supplies/voltage regulators if I use a large battery and only power low draw components (no power amps); e.g. the max amp draw is probably around 1-2 amps, if that. If I do, does anyone have a link to a design for the power supply/voltage regulator? Thank you.
128x128mkgus
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
Hey, I remember the Reflections Audio dude, Stephen Balliet. I met him at the show back in 2000 or maybe even 1997. He had just finished working on the set of the Matt Damon and Jin Voight movie by Francis Ford Coppola, The Rainmaker (1997)-  the tobacco industry legal case flic. We were thinking of getting together for a show but never did.
mkgus's avatar
mkgus OP
324 posts
 
So does it go without saying that gear that can accept 12V DC will always sound better running off batteries instead of a 120V power supply (assuming you have enough capacity to not choke dynamics)?
georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
10,312 posts
 
gear that can accept 12V DC will always sound better
Base line background noise is what your gain is with battery and you can measure it if you have a good crow, it's a sense of being even blacker between notes, in a quite room.
  
(assuming you have enough capacity to not choke dynamics)?
And a battery is not current limited, it's how long it can give that current for that important, and this dictates the amp hours needed in the size of the battery

Cheers George


ricevs
1,543 posts
 
I recommend the inverter route.....I have the Yeti 400 (modded) on my modded Oppo 205 and will be adding a modified 2000 watt pure sign wave inverter on my class D power amp.  Cost will be about $800 including a battery and charger.  Then I will be completely off the grid.  You still need to use the PPT stuff......still makes a big difference.
mkgus's avatar
mkgus OP
324 posts
 
I like the idea of the inverter. Seems like that would be good for my 120V devices. For the components that run off 12V DC, wouldn’t a battery be the better option for clean power as long as you don’t mind the maintenance of charging it? Best of both worlds: battery for 12V gear and inverter for power amps/120V gear?
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