ifi LAN iSilencer

@boucher Sorry to hear about your very rare negative experience with the iSilencer.  I have three iSilencers in my system to brilliant effect.  Happy listening.

@arnold_h

+1

There was a sequential series of clear and unambiguous audio performance improvements provided by the following upgrades as follows until concluding with the iFI Silencer:

in order: investing in the following for my MOON 280D MIND2 streamer / DAC.

- First, premium silver over copper high-end build Ethernet cables with Telegartner connectors

- Next, an “ audiophile grade’ Silent Angel network switch ( yeah, yeah I know, I was a card-carrying “WTF? Are you sh**tin’me?” Hardline skeptic too, until I actually bought one myself …. It worked for me )

-Next, an external quality high-end build linear power supply for the Silent Angel network switch, replacing the cheap provided OEM switch style wall wart .(this wall wart was better than most ) 

NOTE: All three.had progressive incremental audio performance upticks.

Finally, I read about first and drank the KoolAid reviews and bought the IFI gizmo…..

my take ….” Kind of? … maybe a bit, I guess ….” to even leaning to “meh?”

TAKEAWAY:

- The iFI did not have anywhere near the same clear and unambiguous audio performance upticks produced by my first three steps above .

- In fairness, it is a very small size apparatus and a non-unique device among other available peer options, offered at a puny fraction of the price of each other three items first listed .

= Choose wisely.

@erik_squires 

That's an interesting idea.  I talked with my wife about what they do -- they have two things going on. 

First, is patient safety to interrupt a surge because the patient is strapped to a machine that, in turn, is tied to the LAN.  What they do there is have the grounded/gas surge protector between the monitor and the LAN.  Having a ground wire is considered part of the standard of care and mandated by the FDA.

Second is isolation of the patient from electronic noise.  (They have multiple sensors detecting very faint electrical signals from the heart.  Kind of like a super EKG.)  This has to be very precise because they do ablations (surgery on the heart to stop irregular heart rhythms) while the patient is strapped up.  For these "very local" connections they use the simple, non-grounded, isolators.  They are typically less than $10.

The iFi silencer is one of these simple sub $10 devices, marked up.

Hi @davetheoilguy

I wonder if we are talking about two different things? There’s a surge protector on the equipment that goes through the power cord, which I have no issue with, and there are LAN surge protectors (which I think are iffy) and LAN isolators which I recommend.

Here is an example of what I’m talking about, the Tripp Lite which meets IEC 60601-1 for use in patient care vicinity, which have no ground but does add 4kV of isolation. Also, while the components inside are very cheap, I don’t know of any isolators that cheap. Usually cheap is around $70 here.

Ethernet LAN surge protectors, ironically, are much cheaper.

So far, I haven’t seen any hospital grade LAN isolators which also include some sort of surge protection. If you find one online let me know, I’d love to learn about it.

Let me know what you find!

Hi again, @davetheoilguy - My recommendations for LAN isolation instead of surge protection is from this article.

As I understand it, the author argues that LAN surge protectors encourage surge voltages to find a path to ground through them, which of course causes large and damaging upstream currents as well. By isolating the equipment instead, a lightning voltage must find a local pathway instead, which while still damaging, now localizes the problem instead of letting it spread downstream.

Let me use my own situation as an example. I have about 50’ between my router and home entertainment system.

I use a LAN isolators for the Ethernet cable that feeds that system at the stereo end. This increases the breakthrough voltage from the normal Ethernet (1.5kV per side) from 3kV to ~ 7.5kV.

However, if I put in a LAN surge protector at my living room, I am reducing the breakthrough voltage to ~1.5kV because it’s now just 1 Ethernet jacks isolation and the surge "protector" which is under 100V. That’s what causes the damaging current flow. I potentially now have melted Ethernet in my walls.

With an isolator anything less than a 7.5 kV surge has to find a path in my data closet, probably through the router power supply, or the incoming coax, a much safer and much more localized event than spreading that current through my home.

Of course, I’m not actually a surge scientist, I’m just sharing how I understand the article to read and why I avoid LAN surge protection inside the home. OTOH, if I had say, outdoor fiber which converted to Ethernet through my exterior wall I’d definitely want to consider a LAN surge protector outside. Also, I do use a coaxial gas discharge tube for the cable modem outside, and air-gap the cable modem from the rest of my system via fiber. I’m the paranoid kind. :)