Radiating EMI – Continued
In this previous thread, I discussed my approach to radiating EMI - behind my equipment rack.
This one is about radiating EMI at the streaming head – modem/router/access point/switch/etc. These digital components radiate EMI from their housings - as do transformers in LPS’s. Shielded cables are important.
The streaming SQ for my modest system is full-bodied, dynamic and immersive. No fatigue whatsoever. It turns out there was still wiggle room for more improvement.
My 3 LPS’ s, for the modem/router/access point, have power cords with shielding. Two are Purist Audio Design Aqueous Aureus – containing the proprietary Contego mixture. The 3rd power cord was an Acrolink 7030 – also with its own proprietary shielding.
Recently, I replaced the Acrolink 7030 with another PAD power cord– also with the Contego mixture. Another incremental gain happened. Richer timbre, more transparent – blacker background. My TV picture quality also improved - via the Amazon WiFi Fire Stick.
I honestly don’t know if the change in SQ should be attributed to the difference power cord designs - or the difference in the quality of the shielding – or both. (The PAD and the Acrolink each use heavy gauge pure copper wiring). My tweaking experience over many years gives me the impression that not all shielding is the same.
Radiating EMI – along with conducting EMI– continues to be detrimental for quality streaming.
My Modem/Router/Access Point are described here.
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Interesting articles about EMI:
Radiating: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electromagnetic_radiation
Fields: Near and Far: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Near_and_far_field
Number one source of EMI/RFI is router with wifi enablled. I disabled wifi on router serving audio network, this router near audio system, longest ethernet cable on my audio network 1.5m. So this router connected to whole house router with long ethernet cable, wifi enabled on this router. I also have lps on every streaming component, high quality AC and DC cables, everything goes into balanced power conditioner. Disabling wifi on router serving audio system was one of the most impactful network upgrades. Relocating modem near audio system another nice upgrade, keeping ethernet cables shortest length possible is nice opttimization. |
Why not consider inserting a fiber optic cable with media converters to completely eliminate electrical noise and allow the router to be placed further away? Are you concerned that the electrical-to-optical and optical-to-electrical conversion might degrade signal quality? Just curious your thought process. |
+1 @lanx0003 I replaced a 50 foot ethernet run from my router to my streamer with an optical setup. Made a real difference, |
@upshift Could you share your setup? SFP-based or fixed connect? Multimode or single mode fiber? Brands of media converter/SFP? My streamer is not far away from the router, about 2.5-3 meters. The quality ethernet cable I am looking at is around $300 with that length (DH Labs). So I sort of set the price tag there. |
