REVIEW: The best yet most affordable network switch (TPLink WR902AC)

[keithc]

We are not a site that thumbs our noses at DIY, lower cost gear or anything else between that and Uber high end. Everyone here is on their own audio journey, and we have folks from all over the world that are on different paths to achieve audio nirvana. Some folks may be on a budget, others may have what seems like an endless wallet.

Thanks Tom. No offense taken on my part by anyone's post -- I, too, initially found it difficult to accept this plastic dongle (even make fun of how it appears) could beat my brand name gear even though it was so evident to my own ears. And many of the seasoned WBF members who have been talking about this TPLink held reservations about publicly sharing; I would be shocked to not get a bit of negative responses. After all, this is a very low priced item capable of great sound -- we can think of a myriad of reasons why there would be haters

However, after many weeks of pondering, I volunteered to post because 1) I am in this as a pure hobby and enjoy being part of a community of like-minded folks who can learn from each other, and 2) I have zero conflicts or incentive to share or not share. I have a lot of respect for and am friends with some of the manufacturers in this space, and this is in no means a slight to them. Some were aware I am posting and have already heard it for themselves. To NOT share would be against the spirit of why we partake in this group.

My only ask among those who read this thread is: Take a minute to read this and put aside your presumptions. Be willing to respect that some who have adopted the TPLink have top priced systems too and have spent a lot of time hearing a lot of gear, and they are not deaf. I get it, I like bling too and owned those components as well. In fact, some industry folks already joked about just putting the TPLink in a jeweled box and selling it at a commensurate flagship price. But now you can instead order it from Amazon for less than $100 USD and with free returns.

Off soap box and back to the music!

 

[kennyb123]

Really nice write-up @keithc. Despite believing every word you wrote, I’m still in disbelief. Cognitive dissonance, in other words.

 

[microstrip]

As far as I see, the TP-Link WR902AC is not a network switch, as stated in the thread tittle - it’s a travel router. How do you connect it to your server?

 

[keithc]

As far as I see, the TP-Link WR902AC is not a network switch, as stated in the thread tittle - it’s a travel router. How do you connect it to your server?

I stand corrected; it is not a network switch in sense of a product definition, but rather in use for our audio chain.
I directly connect it via a LAN cable (Network Acoustics Muon Pro) to my server. It replaced the Taiko Switch which was then further connected upstream via other switches; instead the TPLink talks to the wifi router in another room (bypassing all the actual switches and ethernet lines that used to be in place). From my server's standpoint, Roon sees nothing different; it's the same network.

 

[jeremya]

One might say that it is a travel router that can function as a switch, but only switches traffic between two network interfaces, one connected via wired Ethernet, the other via wireless.

(In the abstract, this is not dissimilar to the Taiko Extreme Switch, which also only switches traffic between two network interfaces.)

I’m one of the gents Keith kindly shared the contents of the shoebox with before and I immediately ran out and bought my own. I also built an IanCanada power supply for it (a less burly model, but lovely sounding nonetheless).

So far this solution has improved the sound of my music server and my Apple TV — with the caveat that the bandwidth can’t relay content faster than about 90Mbps in my environment. For almost anything streamed (even 4K movies from Netflix etc.) this is not a bother.

Stuff that is felt:

- My kids and my wife noticed that that streamed content (tv shows, music from tidal, etc.) takes a bit longer to skip through and rarely the stream will just fold up shop and need to be restarted. This isn’t a problem with hard-wired Gigabit Ethernet connections.

- I noticed that my UHD movie backups can’t be streamed at full resolution from my NAS without hiccups. This means apps like Infuse or SenPlayer (which let me load my .ISO backups on the AppleTV) and the mount-an-ISO-over-the-network capability of my (modified) Magnetar UDP900 disc player need not apply.

Stuff that works great:

- Music up to DSD 512 or 32/768 PCM (~50Mbps) plays without a hiccup. Pretty much all of Tidal and Qobuz without issue. Local rips from the NAS. HDTT files at max quality. PGGB upscales at (reasonable) quality. You name it.

Beyond that and I get intermittent (but insistent) dropouts that make the juice not worth the squeeze.

What is worth the squeeze is the quality of the sound. I honestly stopped caring about PGGBing everything. I have immense delight just lazily browsing around with Roon and streaming stuff even at Redbook (16/44.1) rates much of the time. There’s joy in every play.

Admittedly, the speed limitation is a bit of a shame. I stepped back from a 1Gbps Synergistic switch to a 100Mbps wireless budget travel router doohickey that can be occasionally fickle (as all Wi-Fi devices are). How I wish that weren’t so on the face of it.

The conversation between Han Solo and Luke Skywalker when Luke first sees the Millenium Falcon in Mos Eisley spaceport sums it up best.

Luke: “What a piece of junk!”

Han: “She may not look like much, but she’s got it where it counts, kid.”

 

[Billgates307]

When I read this thread, I immediately bought one. Just for fun. And if I can get an improvement with it, it'll be even better for this price. If I understand correctly, I only need the router, a battery with a USB-C connection, and a good LAN cable? That's it? I'm terrible at soldering, so I won't be starting the mod.