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No interest in battery powered components?

I would have thought that with all the hoopla going on around here with AC power problems and the myriad of band aid fixes for sale, that some would be interested in using battery power for their systems. Apparently not. I have posted previously on this subject and got little interest. I am using battery power on two-thirds of my system right now and am working of converting my preamp to battery supply. This is not as hard as it may sound. My David Berning amp came standard with a battery power option, and my Teres turntable has a DC motor/controller with battery power option. When comparing the exact same equipment with the same system, in the same room, with the same records, the battery supplied system sounded considerably superior to the same system using AC mains supply. Now, as some of you know, I generate my own power, so I do not have even as much line contamination as a standard house AC mains. And the improvement was still great. I would venture to say that the improvement in a normal home with street mains would be astonishing.
I am posting this because there is a method available to eliminate, not band-aid, the power problem and nobody seems to care. Why is this?
I can understand that people with 1 kilowatt amps may not be able to power that amp for very long off of batteries, but that does not affect their using battery supply for other components like turntables and preamps and head amps and CD players. Why does nobody consider this?
A battery supply system is cheaper than most of the line conditioners and power cords out there and eliminates the problem at the source. A battery power supply system eliminates the internal(or external) power supply transformer of the component, thereby reducing hum and stray fields and making the unit run more efficiently, using less power. A battery power supply system has no line induced voltage fluctuations, RF hash, digital noise, or AC switching to rectify. It automatically charges up when not in use. It requires no special knowledge or extra care or maintenance over and above what the normal audiophile would do anyway. If you want, you can have totally separate battery supplies for each component, thereby eliminating any interaction between components in the power supply section(think CD). They will run for hours without going dead or reducing voltage. They don't have to be big cumbersome units. I use the portable power units that are commonly affixed with jumper cables for automotive use.
Why is nobody pursuing this idea but me? Is there anyone out there that is thinking like me, but has not talked about it? If so, please post here because I would like to converse with others who are interested in leading-edge stuff like this. If you think I'm crazy, you can post that too. :-)
twl
twl OP
3,251 posts
 
Brtritch, I think that the wall wart supplied components are easiest to convert, since many actually step-down and rectify to DC right at the wall wart. This would only require a battery and simple regulator circuit to make it battery powered. Some other units, like my preamp, have outboard power supply that give an easy way in. The charger you refer to as "automotive" is not the one like you use to fast charge your car battery. However a small trickle charger would do the job of charging. The one I use is built into the Portable Power Pack/Jumper Unit that is sold in Auto Zone or others for jumping or supplying 12vdc accessories. It has an charging circuit built in that you can just plug into the wall when it needs charging. Don't charge when you are using the battery, though, or you will get the undesireable charging circuit noise on your power. For small loads, around 2 amps or so, this type of unit will give you a nights worth of listening and you can recharge it during the day or overnight by plugging it in. For components that require other voltages than 12vdc, a simple regulator circuit can be used to set the voltage to whatever the power requirement may be for the component. Be sure to use a regulator that can handle the current needed for the component. That is all there is to it. You have to be a little handy with simple circuits, but it is not too difficult.
I am glad to see that there are at least a few adventurous souls out there that are interested in this subject. I believe that this is the wave of the future in audio design. Leading edge companies like Rowland, Berning, Teres, Redpoint, and others are starting the ball rolling. I will be happy to report more of my results to you guys as I complete further projects.
oneprof
147 posts
 
I have Merlin Milleniums with the Battery Bam. Once in a while I forget to unplug the Bam, which lets it run in AC mode. It doesn't take me long to realize my mistake, because the sound with the Bam run by batteries is noticeably superior to the AC. It just sounds more 'real'.
By the way, twl, I have a Berning too, only it's the 270.
audiofile9
45 posts
 
Excellent post Twl. It sure would be nice if more manufacturers made it easy to substitue batteries for AC. Almost everything except for some turntable motors rely on DC anyway, so it makes a heck of a lot of sense to skip the AC->DC step, which can't even approach the "clean" power of a battery. Not to mention, batteries can supply gobs more _instantaneous_ current: the typical auto battery pumps out 5-600 amps to start an engine! and even the porta-powers come close.

Your suggestions for exploring components with walwarts or other external power supplies is an excellent suggestion indeed!

Questions:
how does one achieve HIGHER than 12 volts?
Can the batteries be connected in series for say 24 volts?
How about a few in parallel for more stamina?
Is there any danger to doing that?
How many could one connect in series?
If I remember correctly, a typical 100w solid state amp would like 70-80V DC. That then brings up the question of tubes. I think some amps run as high as 600V for output tubes?

I suppose there is info "out there" on the net somewhere. Perhaps others could post links that they have run accross.

Keep carrying the torch Twl. It is a worthy quest. I think I'm gonna hunt down a wal-warted thinga-ma-jigger of some sort.
twl OP
3,251 posts
 
Audiofile99, yes you can increase the voltage by adding batteries in series. With 12v batteries, 2 in series would give the 24v you are talking about. And yes, you can parallel the batteries for more run time. No danger in doing this. There is no limit to the number of batteries that you can connect in series or parallel, except for the space required for a large battery bank. Connections should be short, and kept clean and tight. For the higher voltage requirements, the 70-80v should be no problem with several series batteries. The 600vdc you refer to for some tube amps is generally stepped up inside the amp from some lower voltage that is supplied. Just supply the necessary supply voltage, and the amp will kick it up to the high voltage. But remember that whatever voltage you are dealing with, the current requirements must also be met. 1 amp at 600v is going to be 50 amps at 12 volts, or 25 amps at 24volts, or 12.5 amps at 48 volts, etc. The entire package needs to be considered for the parameters involved, including wire guages and wire run length with losses calculated. This is not to be off-putting, but just a necessary part of doing the job correctly. Glad you are interested. Please let me know if you have some successes with your experiments. If I can help you, don't hesitate to email me.
twl OP
3,251 posts
 
One caveat to the above post. Since large battery systems can dump enough current to arc weld, proper fusing of the output cables is needed to reduce the possibilty of a fire in case of a direct short circuit on the output lines.
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