Just browsing the internet as one does and came across this gem: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nobsound-Elfidelity-Filter-Purification-Internal/dp/B01825TRCG There's another variant on Aliexpress: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/327...expid=591f840f-d853-483b-9763-2f8746f743d3-11 This looks like the most amazing product, that just adds a shi!t ton of capacitance to the pci-e bus! I mean, I like the arrangements and colours, and different capacitor technology but I really can't see this doing anything useful. Thought you guys might enjoy it. Edit: just realised this is called Nobsound ...says it all really. Edit 2: my favourite review from Ali "Month patting the month additional purchase by PC fitted the kneader like the four key good good"
Wait, you mean you don't have one? Hah! what a noob! My rig is ITX, so I don't have room inside the PC. I've found that it works just as effectively laying the card on top of the case, or even in a drawer, or a packing crate. In the loft. At my parents' house. 500 miles away.
I actually had a nobsound super-integrated amp for a bit. It... worked. It was excellent for the money, but then again IIRC it was £25 for wireless streamer, DAC, pre and power amp in a tiny little box, so frankly simply switching on and functioning as designed was a win. A PCI card full of capacitors is far from the most ludicrous bit of hi-fi snake oil I've heard though. That said, at least a magic statue you put in your fridge can't actively do any harm... this seems like its more likely to set fire to your PC than improve sound quality.
The maddest one i recall was simply a plank of wood. It hasn't been updated in years, but if you want a laugh there's always Wat Hifi - https://wathifi.com/
I looked around and it does seem like they have some equipment which actually has a function, and at a low price point like you mentioned. I am in agreement with that you said about it harming your PC. If something went wrong then there's a lot of energy sitting in those caps that would just love to dump itself somewhere!
Damn, there's audiophile snake-oil for PC components too? Why haven't I been making a mint selling up-priced sharpies to paint over the edges of your PCBs (to stop the... electrons leaking out?) or rocks to tape to your SSDs (to smooth out that harsh electronic buzzing or something)?!
You are very generous in your assumption that 1: The caps even are caps (rather than something that escaped the basement of a fired Jou Jye Ltd Engineer) 2: The connection between the Pci-e slot and the caps is more than imaginary
Well, looked at lots of pictures of those two cards. I worked in electronics for a number of years and one characteristic all functioning PCBs have, is tracks to connect the devices on the PCB. I looked high and low for as many pictures as I can and in not one of them, could I see any sign of any tracks. Methinks this is just a load of caps, which may or may not be real, soldered in to a non-functioning PCB. I think I'll tie a piece of nylon garden string between my headphones and my monitor, perhaps that will improve the detail resolution...
Looks like I gave them way too much credit! Didn't even cross my mind that the caps might not be connected...
Good for a laugh... but when you're actually looking for hi-fi reviews it does my head in. Like watching/reading a review or comparison thinking this is all relevant and useful information, and then the reviewer says "it wasn't until I swapped to a linear power supply on my wireless router that the sound really opened up" or something ridiculous like that... great, I've just wasted 10 minutes of my life reading up to this point.
You gotta love their strap line: It does appear that there is a, more than significant, minority of the audiophile industry dedicated to farming cash from morons.
You didn't look very well as I can see plenty of traces on the Aliexpress link and a few on the Amazon one
A quick flick of the scrollwheel and look for a Bode plot, or at least a table of values. Not got one? That article goes to the end of the list. Maybe if we dance in a circle and ritualistically sacrifice a vector analyser then NWAVguy will reappear?
