Cheap car amps on EBay ?

[fireworks]

Hello,

You probably saw those cheap Chinese car amp on Ebay. I bought one just for fun for about $15 including shipping .
Here is the one I got:

USB Hi-Fi Audio Stereo Power Amp Amplifier For Car moto - eBay (item 320575652632 end time Sep-12-10 18:59:43 PDT)

I'll open it up once it arrives .
What should I expect ? Are they a one chip D-class circuit ? Has anyone played with those ?

[Perry Babin]

It's probably a 2 channel class B or class AB audio IC. Maybe something like this:
http://datasheet.octopart.com/TA8210...eet-101904.pdf

[fireworks]

Thanks for the reply.
I am thinking of removing the PCB inside and keeping the box with the buttons and the heat sinks for my next audio amp project.
Any potential problems with that ?

[Perry Babin]

The power switch and the volume control can be easily used but the bass, treble and balance controls require additional components. The heatsink probably isn't suitable for any amplifier with significantly more power. Overall, it's probably not going to be practical to use it for anything else.

[fireworks]

Originally Posted by Perry Babin

The power switch and the volume control can be easily used but the bass, treble and balance controls require additional components. The heatsink probably isn't suitable for any amplifier with significantly more power. Overall, it's probably not going to be practical to use it for anything else.

That's good, actually I only want to use the power switch and the volume control. Also it's a given that the heat sinks are dimensioned for that kind of power but I don't think I'll want more for my next project.