Dampening Coil Whine

Oooh ... That high pitch noise that is coming from the power adapter/brick of my SMSL class D amplifier, they are so annoying. Yes, coil whine. It is audible even from 6 feet away. The worse part of this all: this problem began on the 13th month after purchase. So no warranty claims here for me for a 12 month warranty only.

A replacement power adapter from SMSL is not cheap either. Quite hard to find too. A quote from the seller that sold me this amplifier says that it costs RM 100. A bit too steep for me. Plus there is no guarantee that the same thing will not happen again weeks or months down the road.

So what am I to do?

I did try a couple of things.

Most failed but this helps, albeit just to dampen that high pitched noise - I plonk the power adapter into a big enough tin and then cover the top of the tin with a plastic container. The cover is not exactly air tight but this manages to soften the coil whine quite substantially. Standing at about a-feet-and-a-half , I can only here it if I really listen with my one of my ear being perpendicular to the power adapter. Getting a thicker container and cover would certainly help here, but I don't have any at hand.

At about 6 feet away, I cannot hear it at all. So, all in all that is good enough for me.

After about an hour of usage, the tin is just slightly warm. So the risk of a fire is minimal here. (Note: I am at the tropics which is warm all year round.)

I am not sure how hot it will get after 2 or more hours of usage as I didn't try.

Yes I know, it looks silly. But then it helps and they cost me nothing. The tin and the cover is destine for the bin anyway.

Quality control issues at SMSL production line, in my opinion. For something that I would consider quite basic, this coil whine shouldn't have happened in these days and age.

I don't think I will be getting an SMSL amp in my next upgrade. Aiyima or Fosi Audio would be a better bet, and their power adapters are cheaper too and readily available for sale online, unlike SMSL's. Sorry SMSL. I am just telling things like it is from my experience.

Audio quality is still good though with my current setup.