Which company manufactures this Ethernet switch for the other?


I am looking to buy an "audiophile" switch to isolate my audio and video connections from the main switch in my home. One important consideration in my decision is cost;  another is that this AV Ethernet switch must have 8 ports to accommodate all my audio and video equipment. I have done as much research online as I can, with the result that I found two products that especially appealing: the English Electric 8Switch and the Silent Angel Bonn N8.

Studying their constructions, features, and components, these two Ethernet switches seem so similar that with the exception of one being 10mm higher than the other (their widths and depths are the same) that these two appear to be identical. 

Consequently, I am asking -- does anyone know whether Silent Angel OEMs this product from English Electric or vice versa? OR, is this just an extraordinary coincidence?

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Showing 2 responses by mitch2

Interesting discussion but FWIW, to clarify the photos shown in the first response to this thread:  

  • The picture labeled "SA Bonn" is actually the Silent Angel Bonn N8 Pro model, and not the Silent Angel Bonn N8, which is the direct comparison to the English Electric 8Switch.
  • The picture labeled "English Electric 8" is actually the Silent Angel Bonn N8, which you can see by looking at the corners of the case, which are square and constructed of sheet steel as in the Bonn N8 and not the rounded machined aluminium enclosure used for the English Electric 8Switch.

This Audiophile Style thread provides a further interesting comparison and value discussion about these switches, and pretty good pictures of the insides of two switches (see the third post by MarkusBarkus).  Notice the picture of the NuPrime Omnia SW-8 Network Switch shows the machined aluminium enclosure with rounded corners, exactly like the case used for the English Electric 8Switch.  Also notice it is the same board used in all three switches. 

Further down in the thread, Superdad, the owner of UpTone Audio, provides an answer to the original question posted in this thread:

"Thunder Data did the actual board themselves.  They market their product themselves as the Silent Angel Bonn N8.  And they sell the same board to NuPrime and English Electric."

You guys can read the rest of the thread and decide for yourselves, but the gist of it is that this is basically a $30 part, as was used in the Zyxel 8-Port Desktop Gigabit Ethernet Switch" (photos), and that it makes "no audible difference."

This article shows no difference in measurements after adding the Bonn N8 switch in the signal chain, and listening tests that correspond with the measurements. 

To wrap up, these manufacturers make a lot of money on these switches under the guise that "audiophile" switches make a significant improvement in sound quality, even going so far as recommending doubling up on their switches for further improvements.  I own two Bonn N8 switches and run both with 5V LPSs.  I have heard no reliably significant difference between having them in the signal chain or not, or between the Bonn N8, the Netgear switch I have here, or my TRENDnet 4-Port Gigabit Switch with SFP Slot that SGC sells for $160 but can be had on Amazon for $35.  YMMV

@cleeds - Most here seem to believe in having a "solid network". In my case, that was achieved by isolating my server in a separate room with my network gear, powering all of it from LPSs through a dedicated 20A line, and using fiber optical cable from the server to my streamer. While I believe all of that stuff may help with noise reduction, to the point made by @ghdprentice , improving my streamer was the one thing I can point to that made a noticeable improvement in the sound of my digital front end (before the DAC). None of the many other costly add-ons I have tried have made a reliably noticeable improvement.