At Red Wine Audio, we strongly advocate the use of high current, sealed lead-acid (SLA) battery power in all our products. The power supply section used in a home audio component is very critical to its sonic performance. Conventional high-end audio products that run on AC (alternating current… 50 or 60Hz) power use a power supply unit to convert the high voltage AC to lower voltage DC (direct current). Typically, the power supply is installed inside of the audio component.

In the case of a linear power supply, the AC is passed through a transformer, diodes, voltage regulators, and other components and the output is lower voltage DC used by the audio component’s circuitry. This conversion process is not perfect and there is noise from the rectification process of the diodes, the coupling of the magnetic fields of the AC power supply onto other internal components, and noise that already exists on the AC power line (from computers, household appliances, local industry, etc.). This noise finds its way through the power supply onto the DC voltage rails at the power supply unit’s output.

In the case of audio electronics that use switch-mode power supplies (SMPS), there is even more noise to deal with from the high-frequency switching and harmonics that are at the heart of the SMPS design. This noise is not only conducted into the lower voltage DC rails at the output of the power supply, but it is also radiated in the air as electromagnetic interference (EMI). This EMI couples onto other internal components and sometimes even escapes the enclosure and causes interference with other components nearby (e.g. FM radio, amplifier, etc.). It also works its way back into your AC power line and pollutes your other components that are connected to it.
 

We believe that the best source of power for audio equipment is one that skips the entire AC to DC conversion process. Choosing battery power frees your music from the noise and grunge of AC power, but not all types of batteries are ideal for high-end audio applications. We believe that SLA batteries do a remarkable job because they have very low internal resistance and they are very robust in delivering clean power. This should be no surprise as the lead-acid battery family is used to crank over your automobile’s heavy engine via its starter. There are no transformers, diodes, voltage regulators, and other components in the path choking the delivery of current in an SLA battery. Large “soda can” sized storage capacitors are not needed, nor are power-conditioning equipment, dedicated power lines to the circuit panel, after-market power cords, and “magic” outlets and plugs (and we all have seen how expensive these power improvement products can be)!

In our products, the power path is kept very short and sweet. The only component between the SLA battery and circuitry used is a heavy-duty ON/Charge switch with very low contact resistance and silver-plated contacts and terminals. This is the switch that turns ON our product or puts it in CHARGE mode (See below). Every SLA battery powered component is isolated from each other and the AC power line. This is what we mean by “off-the-grid” – completely skipping the AC to DC conversion process and all the negative attributes associated with it. We believe that once you hear the difference that a complete “off-the-grid” audio system makes, you won't go back.

The Simplicity of SLA Battery Power

You will find that our SLA battery powered products are very easy to use. They include an automatic charger that plugs into your North American power outlet (for our customers overseas we offer a charger that works anywhere in the world -- for $50.00). There is a cable from the charger that plugs into the mating jack on the back of our product.

NOTE: Do not use any battery charger other than the one provided by (or approved by) Red Wine Audio for use with our products.

Our products use a simple two-position toggle switch to either turn ON our product or to turn it OFF and put it into CHARGE mode. When the toggle switch is in the UPWARD position, our product is ON and only running off of the clean SLA battery power (the charger is internally disconnected via the toggle switch). When the rear toggle switch is in the DOWNWARD position our product is turned OFF and the battery is charging (as long as the battery charger connected).

A red LED on the charger indicates that battery charging is taking place. At the end of the charge cycle, a green LED on the charger indicates that the battery is fully charged and is being maintained (float charging). It is really that simple!

Recommended Charging Habits

We recommend that you keep the charger plugged into the power outlet and charger cable plugged into our product at all times as long as your power outlet is live. We also recommend that you plug the charger into an outlet that you can easily view (to see the charger’s LED color status mentioned above). When the charging has finished, the automatic charger will float charge (maintain) the batteries. It can be left plugged in indefinitely as long as the AC receptacle is live. If you unplug the charger from the AC receptacle, make sure that you unplug the charger cord from the product to avoid the battery discharging through the internal resistance of the charger.

The SLA batteries used in your products DO NOT like to be deep discharged, so please follow the recommend play time between charges that we list on our products’ web page and user guide. Implementing careful charging habits will allow you to get the maximum life out of the batteries.

Have any questions about SLA battery power that are not answered above? Feel free to contact us to discuss.

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