iFi iSilencer+ External USB Power Noise Filter

iFi was born in 2012 with one goal in mind: to produce 'ultra-fidelity' audio products that push the sonic envelope whilst still priced within the mainstream.

iFi audio is under our parent company, AMR, Abbingdon Music Research, which designs and produces top-end luxurious audio products. AMR saw in 2010 that customer demand for wireless and portable headphones was expanding as the whole audio dynamic was changing. Thus, iFi was launched.

iFi offers small but prodigious personal audio products thanks to the superior knowledge of AMR’s technology. Today, we are proud of our British (and international) roots. We continue to design and produce over 35 different products. We are headquartered in Southport, UK with distribution including retailers such as B&H and etailz with production overseas.

We source parts from around the world from manufacturers including AMOS (UK), GE Valves (USA), WIMA (Germany) and TDK (Japan).

iFi iSilencer+

In recent years, more and more music lovers have taken to using computers as their primary audio source. These are often connected to audio gear via USB – the universal interface that enables digital data to pass from one piece of hardware to another.

We decided to improve on the previous generation of iSilencer. The all-new iSilencer+ is reinforced with the additional low ESR Tantalum capacitors for input The new iSilencer+ sports several enhancements compared to the outgoing iSilencer3.0. The circuitry has been upgraded with the addition of low-ESR (Equivalent Series Resistance) Tantalum capacitors for input and output filtering, further elevating its noise-busting abilities with a 10-fold increase in filtering capacitance. It is also available in more flavours of USB; while the iSIlencer3.0 is only available with USB Type A connectors, the iSilencer+ comes in three versions to include the newer USB-C connector:

• USB-A to USB-A

• USB-C to USB-A

• USB-C to USB-C

All versions support the ‘SuperSpeed’ USB 3.0 standard, as well as USB 2.0 for backwards compatibility, and incorporate high-quality gold-plated connectors for optimal signal transfer.

iSilencer+ A-A

The transfer mode used for ‘USB Audio Class’ devices is more demanding of USB hardware/software than the bulk/burst mode used for peripherals such as printers and hard drives. Error checking is present but there is no re-transmission in the event of CRC (Cyclic Redundancy Check) errors. Electrical noise on USB signals causes CRC errors and thus data loss, as does poor signal integrity. This can result in audio signal distortion, artefacts (such as clicks and pops) and latency – all things that can affect the performance of computer-based audio systems. The iSilencer+ solves this issue by removing electrical noise (including EMI/RFI) at source, thereby enabling bit-perfect transfer of audio data to the DAC.

iSilencer+ C-A

Uniquely, it does this by combining passive filtering with iFi’s ANC II (Active Noise Cancellation II) circuit. Developed from military radar technology, ANC II works in a similar way to active noise-cancelling headphones – it generates a signal identical to that of the incoming electrical noise but in the opposite phase, actively cancelling it out. This is highly effective at removing low- and mid-frequency noise, while passive insulating filters deal with higher frequency interference. This combination is measurably more effective at eradicating noise corrupting the USB signal than devices relying solely on passive filtering.

iSilencer+ C-C

Whilst removing noise, the iSIlencer+ reduces the occurrence of jitter – a form of digital distortion that leads to data ‘packet errors’ and results in cold, harsh sound. It also re-balances the signal via iFi’s REbalance technology, ensuring that the digital signal received by the DAC is identical to the original source, no matter which audio format is being played.

The more the merrier

As well as plugging an iSilencer+ into the active USB output between computer and DAC, more iSilencer+ ‘sticks’ can be plugged into spare USB ports to further reduce radiated EMI. Each time the number of units (and therefore the number ANC II circuits) is doubled, noise reduction capability also doubles. And the iSilencer+ can be used between external hard drives and music servers, too. The precise effect of the iSilencer+ on sound quality varies from system to system; typically, one can expect to hear more clarity, greater dynamic extension and sharper leading edges, making the music sound more vivid and open.

Tech Specifications

Super-Speed USB3.0 (and USB2.0 backwards compatible)

USB3.0 gold-plated connectors

Dimensions: 50(l) x 20 (w) x 9mm (h)

Weight: 7g (0.25oz)