I totally agree with this, I found d-amps (TA2024, 2020, 2050) somewhat touchy and sensitive to hum/hiss, but this chip amp is robust and quiet. After the mod as outlined here, TDA7297 Build Guide just enjoying the sound... highly recommended... Minimal cost and highest quality ratio
Quite pleased... 
I'm quite pleased how my build (case) turned out.
Everything is done by hand, no CNC tools used. It was rather difficult to align everything properly, given my primitive tools, but I like how it turned out.
The case is square aluminium pipe, sanded by hand and sprayed with transparent acrylic spray (paint can)...
Still a few smaller details to correct, but that's about it...
The case gives it heft
I'm quite pleased how my build (case) turned out.
Everything is done by hand, no CNC tools used. It was rather difficult to align everything properly, given my primitive tools, but I like how it turned out.
The case is square aluminium pipe, sanded by hand and sprayed with transparent acrylic spray (paint can)...
Still a few smaller details to correct, but that's about it...
The case gives it heft
Attachments
I'm quite pleased how my build (case) turned out.
Everything is done by hand, no CNC tools used. It was rather difficult to align everything properly, given my primitive tools, but I like how it turned out.
The case is square aluminium pipe, sanded by hand and sprayed with transparent acrylic spray (paint can)...
Still a few smaller details to correct, but that's about it...
The case gives it heft
By hand!
You are awesome!
(PS do you feel like sending a few across the globe?)
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The only difference between top and bottom is that there's no strip for cap rolling on surface, just anchors for the holes.
I don't communicate with Andrew T specifically.
The crappy Chinese version backed by high end gear has no trouble being way above it's level in cost, without a decent board design featuring plane pours. It's better than many will admit. It could easily serve as a main amp. However I'm hoping the sound relaxes slightly to a more neutral than forward, while enhancing punch from better low ESR caps.
I don't communicate with Andrew T specifically.
The crappy Chinese version backed by high end gear has no trouble being way above it's level in cost, without a decent board design featuring plane pours. It's better than many will admit. It could easily serve as a main amp. However I'm hoping the sound relaxes slightly to a more neutral than forward, while enhancing punch from better low ESR caps.
Sure
But I don't think it's economical: the shipping costs would exceed the value of the amp itself (it's relatively heavy). Besides, the insides don't really look that nice (see attached photos)
Attachments
I've been listening to my slightly tweaked TDA7297 kit (powered with 19V laptop brick feeding a voltage regulator) with hifiberry, stepped attenuator and econowave speakers, a great little bedroom combination.
I was googling about to see if there are any variations of the basic cheap ebay kits and found this:
Brand new DC 12V 12AT7 vacuum tube push-TDA7297 gall stones after the power amplifier (for cars) - iBuyLa_Tmall_Taobao Angent - Online Shopping at iBuyLa.com in Singapore
offered without comment. Obviously the autotranslate dealt out something a bit unusual here.
I was googling about to see if there are any variations of the basic cheap ebay kits and found this:
Brand new DC 12V 12AT7 vacuum tube push-TDA7297 gall stones after the power amplifier (for cars) - iBuyLa_Tmall_Taobao Angent - Online Shopping at iBuyLa.com in Singapore
offered without comment. Obviously the autotranslate dealt out something a bit unusual here.
Sure
But I don't think it's economical: the shipping costs would exceed the value of the amp itself (it's relatively heavy). Besides, the insides don't really look that nice (see attached photos)
Looks nice, but what about the heat?
I tested mine on a scope with 14V DC power supply and 6,8 Ohms resistors as load. The full output just below clipping is 7.2Vrms @1kHz. That's approx. 7.5 W/channel.
I don't know what the efficiency of this amp is, but my heatsink gets pretty hot within a minute at full power.....
I don't go above 12V with this one. As long as the power doesn't go over 12V (laptop "brick" SMPS), there are no problems with heating. I tested it only with 8 Ohm speakers, though... Might be a problem with 4 Ohm ones, and if you're playing it full blast non-stop... I tried it for several hours on 3/4 power (pot turned 3/4 of the way up), and no heating issues...
12V reduces the max power indeed a bit (approx 5W/channel at 8 Ohms I guess), but even then you dissipate easily 1 or 2 watts in the heatsink at full power. Perhaps your aluminium construction helps a bit.
Mine has a slightly smaller heatsink, and I built it in a plastic enclosure with openings for airflow.
I use it to drive high efficiency PA/monitors (98 dB/1W/1m; 12" woofer+1" compression driver) at "living room volume" and I think the output power (7,5 W/channel in my case) is sufficient for that. I like this amp and its simplicity a lot
OK, at 12V Po is 6,5W perhaps.....thanks for the graph.
I just put a scope on the output and went up just "below" the moment the output started to clip. Whether that's 1 or 10% THD I dunno....
5 or 7W in a high sensititvity speaker sounds pretty loud, btw.
Upgraded my best Luncheon (10k sm series atten, silmic 2 input caps)
With AndrewT Approved high-freq X7R, 100V, 0.1uF across left AND right ps (top) as well as mid-freq Pan FM 560uF, 35V across left AND right ps (bot).
(each highf cap and each midf cap has its own connection to GND)
And threw another X7R across the main ps cap (low-freq old Pan FC 2200uf, 35V) after the schottky diode ... for good measure.
Hmmmm, I think I hear a bit tighter bass and better cymbals ... but it could be audioTOMfoolery!
(PS Playing through the AMT Monitors right now with some Tull, then Satriani, hmmm ... Hancock!)
With AndrewT Approved high-freq X7R, 100V, 0.1uF across left AND right ps (top) as well as mid-freq Pan FM 560uF, 35V across left AND right ps (bot).
(each highf cap and each midf cap has its own connection to GND)
And threw another X7R across the main ps cap (low-freq old Pan FC 2200uf, 35V) after the schottky diode ... for good measure.
Hmmmm, I think I hear a bit tighter bass and better cymbals ... but it could be audioTOMfoolery!
(PS Playing through the AMT Monitors right now with some Tull, then Satriani, hmmm ... Hancock!)
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