Review and Measurements of Klipsch PowerGate DAC & Amp

[OrrinC]

The Gates are all in sync, but they are extremely delayed from the Analog Input audio. My guess is that Play-Fi uses a huge buffer in order to sync the devices, but at the expense of high overall latency. My system now includes some Squeezebox players, one Sonos speaker, and the three Gate boxes. The delay between the Gate boxes and everything else is intolerable. The other boxes are all pretty close . . .

The new "TV Audio" mode reduces the delay, but only allows a single box.

 

[511pf]

I picked up a Klipsch Powergate and it was delivered today. I wanted to post a couple of (non-audio) issues I've seen come up in hopes it might help other people struggling with configuring this device, and because this thread has more info about the device than anywhere else. My Powergate came with firmware 1.3.0, and I believe 1.4.5 is the most recent version. Like many others, I had trouble with the Klipsch Stream Utility Android app detecting the device to update firmware.

I want to use the Powergate as an amp only and don't care to have it on my wifi network. However, to solve the Android app not connecting, I actually had to setup the Powergate up on my wifi network. I did this using the Browser setup described on the Play-Fi site, but I imagine the Klipsch Stream app would likely have done the same job.

Once the Powergate was setup and functioning on my internal wifi, the firmware update process was easy using the Klipsch Stream Utility app. Note that the instructions in Klipsch's YouTube video to put the Klipsch in "Update mode" by holding the power button while plugging it in, were *wrong* for me. The Stream Utility app only worked for me when the device was on and connected to my wifi network.

As I mentioned, I don't want the Powergate hanging around on my wifi network. According to the Play-Fi site, if you plug the device into Ethernet, it effectively disables wifi. The preceding link is also useful in telling what the wifi is doing based on how the light flashes. A bonus is that putting the device on Ethernet also turns the wifi light off, for those who find the flashing light annoying. A final note on this is that I'm assuming the wifi is disabled based on documentation, but haven't looked at my internal network to verify that's true.

I also experienced the Powergate's bottom plate becoming hot to the touch while playing audio and even just being on and doing nothing. AC Infinity makes $50 receiver coolers that are almost the perfect size for this device, but I think I'm going to go with their less expensive 40mm USB fan setup next to the vents on the power supply side of the Powergate.

I've also seen the Powergate switch to standby mode after 15 minutes, which I find annoying for desktop PC use. Like one of the posters upthread, I may write a Powershell script to play a silent audio file of x seconds every x minutes in hopes of keeping the device alive while I'm using the computer. If I end up doing that, I'll post it here.

I can't speak to the measurements you all have been discussing, but I can say that the Powergate combined with the Q Acoustics 3020 speakers is light years better than the Lepai 2020Ti and Micca MB42X combo I've been using for several years. Most of that improvement at normal volume is in the speakers, but it's absolutely noticeable.

Anyhow, I know this isn't the usual subject matter, but I think the info might be useful to other owners of this device.

 

[511pf]

and i've stuck the unit on a kill-a-watt meter, and it's drawing about 11-12 watts while off. so not a lot. the heat is obviously more of an issue versus electrical usage.

Confirming this is true for my device. Standby mode uses 11W and the bottom plate is very warm to the touch. Interestingly, when I first setup the device, it only used 3W in standby mode and stayed cool. I'm wondering if the 1.4.5 firmware update that says "Removed hard sleep mode so Wi-Fi stays active in sleep mode" means the idle power changed. Ironically, I would have preferred the 3W idle, because I don't care about the network features.

Also note that the wifi light shut off last night when connected to ethernet, but now the light continues to flash. I tried to factory reset the device hoping to get back to the lower 3W power standby. When you follow the factory reset process, all of the lights flash quickly, but I'm not sure what to do from there. It does not seem to reset the config. I may try again over the weekend.

 

[511pf]

One more post for anyone who wanders into the forum and needs some non-audio information about the Powergate. I ended up buying a perfectly sized trivet and a tiny 40mm fan to aid in cooling, and the two combined keep the Powergate at room temperature. As had been mentioned elsewhere in the thread, the thermal cooling on this device was poorly designed at best.

 

[Toma]

One more post for anyone who wanders into the forum and needs some non-audio information about the Powergate. I ended up buying a perfectly sized trivet and a tiny 40mm fan to aid in cooling, and the two combined keep the Powergate at room temperature. As had been mentioned elsewhere in the thread, the thermal cooling on this device was poorly designed at best.

In order to turn off the flashing light I have to set up the WiFi first. After resetting the WiFi I plug the Ethernet cable and the light turns off. When a new software gets updated you have to do it again, maybe because I update the software using the phone app, which usually happens automatically.

 

[samgab]

Hi, I just joined the forum to add this comment, in case anyone else is having the same conundrum.

I've had the Powergate for several months now. I use it mainly as my PC speaker amplifier. I'm running the latest firmware.

When I first got the unit, it drove me CRAZY by turning itself off every 15 minutes when I wasn't playing audio from my computer, and then I'd go to play a song or a YouTube video, and there would be silence, then I'd have to turn the Powergate back on again, then restart the song, or video, or whatever.

THEN, I spent several hours playing around with all kinds of button combinations to find any "hidden" functions.

You know how you hold down the source and volume knob for 10 seconds when the power is on to do a factory reset (never seems to do a factory reset in my case.. the lights all flash, but it still remembers the Bluetooth connections and the Wi-Fi connection etc.)

Or you hold down the power button for 5 seconds while connecting the power cable to go into firmware update mode. Or you hold down the volume knob for a few seconds to go into subwoofer volume mode... Or you hold down the source button when in Bluetooth source to go into Bluetooth pairing mode.

So I was playing around with every other possible button pressing and holding combination I could think of. I held down all three buttons while connecting the power for more than 10 seconds. I tried holding down all three buttons from power off or from power on. I tried holding down different pairs of buttons with the power off, on, while connecting the power lead... you get the idea.

ANYWAY, long story short, at some point, I managed to stumble on a particular button sequence that disabled the auto power off, and it remained that way for the past few months, even persisting through power disconnections.

THEN, just a few hours ago, I was messing around and went into firmware update mode, and reloaded the same firmware version (v1.45) again by mistake, which completely reset the device. Afterwards, my device started auto turning itself off again every 15 minutes. After this happening about half a dozen times it is driving me crazy again.

I've been playing around with the button combos again. I thought I had it when I started typing this diatribe... I was sure it had been turned on for more than 15 mins with no audio playing.

Alas, while typing the last paragraph, it switched itself off yet again.

So now I'm trying to connect it to Wi-Fi and the Klipsch stream app again, to see if that makes a difference with it staying awake while I'm using the computer with the input set to USB on the Powergate...

And that didn't work. Powered itself off automatically after 15 mins with the Wi-Fi set up.

I tried every other possible combination I could think of, but I couldn't figure it out. Which is annoying because I know there's a way to do it, as for the past few months it was staying powered on as long as I left it on, and only turned off if I turned it off. Which is how it should be, IMO.

If anyone else out there knows how to disable auto standby mode, please post. It annoys me so much I'm considering getting a Sprout100 instead...

 

[daftcombo]

Hi, I just joined the forum to add this comment, in case anyone else is having the same conundrum.

I've had the Powergate for several months now. I use it mainly as my PC speaker amplifier. I'm running the latest firmware.

When I first got the unit, it drove me CRAZY by turning itself off every 15 minutes when I wasn't playing audio from my computer, and then I'd go to play a song or a YouTube video, and there would be silence, then I'd have to turn the Powergate back on again, then restart the song, or video, or whatever.

THEN, I spent several hours playing around with all kinds of button combinations to find any "hidden" functions.

You know how you hold down the source and volume knob for 10 seconds when the power is on to do a factory reset (never seems to do a factory reset in my case.. the lights all flash, but it still remembers the Bluetooth connections and the Wi-Fi connection etc.)

Or you hold down the power button for 5 seconds while connecting the power cable to go into firmware update mode. Or you hold down the volume knob for a few seconds to go into subwoofer volume mode... Or you hold down the source button when in Bluetooth source to go into Bluetooth pairing mode.

So I was playing around with every other possible button pressing and holding combination I could think of. I held down all three buttons while connecting the power for more than 10 seconds. I tried holding down all three buttons from power off or from power on. I tried holding down different pairs of buttons with the power off, on, while connecting the power lead... you get the idea.

ANYWAY, long story short, at some point, I managed to stumble on a particular button sequence that disabled the auto power off, and it remained that way for the past few months, even persisting through power disconnections.

THEN, just a few hours ago, I was messing around and went into firmware update mode, and reloaded the same firmware version (v1.45) again by mistake, which completely reset the device. Afterwards, my device started auto turning itself off again every 15 minutes. After this happening about half a dozen times it is driving me crazy again.

I've been playing around with the button combos again. I thought I had it when I started typing this diatribe... I was sure it had been turned on for more than 15 mins with no audio playing.

Alas, while typing the last paragraph, it switched itself off yet again.

So now I'm trying to connect it to Wi-Fi and the Klipsch stream app again, to see if that makes a difference with it staying awake while I'm using the computer with the input set to USB on the Powergate...

And that didn't work. Powered itself off automatically after 15 mins with the Wi-Fi set up.

I tried every other possible combination I could think of, but I couldn't figure it out. Which is annoying because I know there's a way to do it, as for the past few months it was staying powered on as long as I left it on, and only turned off if I turned it off. Which is how it should be, IMO.

If anyone else out there knows how to disable auto standby mode, please post. It annoys me so much I'm considering getting a Sprout100 instead...

Tried this?
↑↑↓↓←→←→BA

 

[daftcombo]

I hope you find again how to fix that. What's making it even more difficult is that you have to wait 15 min every time to see if the button combo was effective or not.

 

[samgab]

Tried this?
↑↑↓↓←→←→BA

LOL, everything but. I gave up and in a fit of extravagance I went ahead and ordered the PS Audio Sprout100. THAT doesn't turn itself off...
I'll relegate the Powergate to TV amp duties. For that function, turning itself off when not in use can be a useful feature.

 

[samgab]

I hope you find again how to fix that. What's making it even more difficult is that you have to wait 15 min every time to see if the button combo was effective or not.

Exactly. It's past 4am and I've been up all night trying to figure it out again. I have to wait 15 minutes after each thing I tried, and the sinking feeling each time I'd hear it go *click* and see that little red dot... I've given up now, it beat me.

 

[BillG]

I decided a couple of weeks ago to bypass the DAC in the PowerGate by feeding it analog signals instead, one from my CCA via the Phono input which I've set to Line (I'm assuming that turns off the preamp) and another from the Line output my desktop into its Auxiliary input. It does sound crisper to my ears as the measurements indicated it would...

 

[marco07]

Hi everyone, happy holidays^^
Question about the Powergate's case: I know the front panel is glossy black plastic, what about the rest of the unit? Is it all plastic or is there any metal on the exterior?
Thxs

 

[GGroch]

The bottom and back panel are sheet metal. Top, sides, and front are plastic.

 

[marco07]

The bottom and back panel are sheet metal. Top, sides, and front are plastic.

Thank u

 

[ripmixburn]

I’m enjoying mine. A shame that they haven’t (yet?) released the Hypex-module powered “max” edition previewed at CES 2017. Looked great and $999 price.

 

[marco07]

I’m enjoying mine. A shame that they haven’t (yet?) released the Hypex-module powered “max” edition previewed at CES 2017. Looked great and $999 price.

Yup I saw that one on YT but couldn't find it anywhere for sale. Hopefully it'll be released some day.

 

[shindig]

Hey all! Just picked up a Powergate, and noticed a couple issues... just wondering if they're normal or not!

1 - When turned there's an electrical hiss/fizzing sound. It's not terribly loud... but at night, when it's quiet with very little ambient noise, the sound is pretty audible (up to ~2ft). It originates from the back right corner where the power cord plugs in. When in standby mode it's no longer audible unless I go right up the back corner... in which case it's still there, just VERY faint.

2 - There's a very faint, high pitched electrical noise coming from my speakers (and headphones, when plugged in). It's almost not noticeable on speakers, have to put my ears right up to the woofer. But it's noticeable on headphones.

Are these issues normal for the Powergate? Figured I'd ask before starting a return/replacement!

 

[ripmixburn]

Not happening on mine, which was factory refurbished.

 

[SEKLEM]

Hey all! Just picked up a Powergate, and noticed a couple issues... just wondering if they're normal or not!

1 - When turned there's an electrical hiss/fizzing sound. It's not terribly loud... but at night, when it's quiet with very little ambient noise, the sound is pretty audible (up to ~2ft). It originates from the back right corner where the power cord plugs in. When in standby mode it's no longer audible unless I go right up the back corner... in which case it's still there, just VERY faint.

2 - There's a very faint, high pitched electrical noise coming from my speakers (and headphones, when plugged in). It's almost not noticeable on speakers, have to put my ears right up to the woofer. But it's noticeable on headphones.

Are these issues normal for the Powergate? Figured I'd ask before starting a return/replacement!

I heard a noise coming from the unit I returned as well.

The noise from the speaker is normal.

 

[landco]

amirm, if you're taking requests, would love to see measurements of the Yamaha WXA-50 MusicCast amplifier...it fits in this same category, I almost went for it over my Marantz. I kind of like where Yamaha is heading, their app is nice...a next gen all in one with a Hypex NC400 would be an NAD killer.

Yamaha made a gross miscalculation in ergonomics for this amplifier .... used an encoder, but did not make a screen, the current level of the volume control can only be seen in the application for the phone, LOL)))