Hi Guys,
Has anyone purchased and tried this bords from Sure, it is based on TI model TPA3123. If so any comments...
2*25W @4? TPA3123 Class-D Audio Amplifier Board on eBay.ca (item 110497396432 end time 22-Mar-10 03:54:53 EDT)
Regards,
Eric
Has anyone purchased and tried this bords from Sure, it is based on TI model TPA3123. If so any comments...
2*25W @4? TPA3123 Class-D Audio Amplifier Board on eBay.ca (item 110497396432 end time 22-Mar-10 03:54:53 EDT)
Regards,
Eric
I've used a couple of these low power TI class-d chips. I think they sound just fine; but I'm not a critical listener. I have a pair of BTL TPA3122D2 powering my mains right now (PhaseTech PC80).
I'm not a fan of SE outputs through output capacitors though. For the price of this board I would just get a low power Tripath amp.
I'm not a fan of SE outputs through output capacitors though. For the price of this board I would just get a low power Tripath amp.
I bought one of these to replace the TA2024 2x15W board in my first boombox build, with the intention of getting more volume from it, but have yet to properly test it. TBH I think 50W is actually too much for the enclosure & it'll just rattle apart if I crank it... It's certainly not an audiophile testing environment anyway, a pair of car speakers in a flightcase on the beach!
me too! here's my build: http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/class-d/177499-my-tpa3123-25-25w-bridge-proto-amp.html
Not a lot of talk about the TPA3123 boards here so I will throw in my two cents. I have one of the Sure 2x"25"w TPA3123 boards, have had for nearly a year. I've only run this board so far with 12V power supplies. It sounds OK, but I don't know why you would choose this board over Sure's TA2024 board or similar. The 2024 sounds markedly better side-by-side on the same supply and costs a bit less. The TPA3123 board is noticeably harsher and hashier in the treble on most speakers than the TA2024 board, at least when running on 12V, and at that voltage it seems to offer no more power on tap than the 2024.
I recently picked up the Meanwell 24V/6A supply and one of Sure's TK2050 boards, and I'll be trying the TPA3123 board briefly on that supply to see if it does any better. But given the THD figures on the TPA3123 board at full "rated" power, again, if you were shelling out for a bigger supply I don't know why you wouldn't just go straight for the TK2050.
I had hoped the TI chips might be a step forward from the Tripath stuff since, who knows, the Tripaths might eventually become scarce at some point. So far, at least to my ears, they are actually a step backward.
I recently picked up the Meanwell 24V/6A supply and one of Sure's TK2050 boards, and I'll be trying the TPA3123 board briefly on that supply to see if it does any better. But given the THD figures on the TPA3123 board at full "rated" power, again, if you were shelling out for a bigger supply I don't know why you wouldn't just go straight for the TK2050.
I had hoped the TI chips might be a step forward from the Tripath stuff since, who knows, the Tripaths might eventually become scarce at some point. So far, at least to my ears, they are actually a step backward.
On the same supply, the TA2024 will have 4x the power into the same load. The TPA3123 has single ended outputs and the TA2024 has bridged outputs.
I just noticed on the PartsExpress page for the TPA3123 it says "Fully-bridged stereo output", which is totally wrong.
I don't know, I think the TPA3122D2 boards I've built sound just as good as the Tripath stuff. The TPA3122D2 has bridged output's and I used better output filter values.
To get a better comparison between the two, you will need to power the TPA3123 with a >24V supply. Even then, the stock output filter values might kill the sparkle on the highs. Don't forget the outputs run through 470uF electrolytics as well. That can roll off the bass depending on the load and also "color" the sound.
All in all, I have to agree that there is no reason to pick the TPA board over the Tripath in this case. It's not that the TI stuff sounds bad IMO, it's just the TPA is poorly implemented here.
I just noticed on the PartsExpress page for the TPA3123 it says "Fully-bridged stereo output", which is totally wrong.
I don't know, I think the TPA3122D2 boards I've built sound just as good as the Tripath stuff. The TPA3122D2 has bridged output's and I used better output filter values.
To get a better comparison between the two, you will need to power the TPA3123 with a >24V supply. Even then, the stock output filter values might kill the sparkle on the highs. Don't forget the outputs run through 470uF electrolytics as well. That can roll off the bass depending on the load and also "color" the sound.
All in all, I have to agree that there is no reason to pick the TPA board over the Tripath in this case. It's not that the TI stuff sounds bad IMO, it's just the TPA is poorly implemented here.
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Though in theory this design should be inferior to a TA2024 design, in fact, despite its potential limitations, this Sure board is a very good performer. In terms of output, when driven with 24-30VDC it is somewhere in between a TK2050 board and a TA202X board, which is to say that if supplied with 30VDC at 2A it will provide about 25 good watts (1% THD) into 4 ohms. The board also has DIP switches for gain selection, and can be made pretty sensitive. Sound quality is very good, on a par with the TK2050 based products I have used, and just a tad less transparent than the lower powered Tripath based products. Plenty of bass and plenty of treble, into reasonable 4 and 8 ohm loads. I don't have a schematic for the Sure board but it appears that the output filter components are a reasonable compromise for these load impedances. Also, you can easily run headphones using this board, since the negative outputs are grounded. However, you need very good power supply regulation, to avoid 'pumping' at high output--a well known problem with single ended designs.
Given that the TPA3123D2 is a relatively low cost part, and can produce upwards of 50W of good power when bridged, I am surprised that nobody has put together a 2-chip bridged board.
According to the TI product sheet, the chip is relatively easy to configure in BTL mode. That would get rid of the coupling capacitors on output, the power supply pumping problem...and also the ability to drive 3 wire headphones directly. (BTW there us a headphone workaround for those designs where you can isolate each transducer (so that the negative leads are not connnected) but this is tricky work because of some of the strange wire used in headphone cords to increase their flexibility. Running a T-amp into isolated headphones is a real ear-opener, even if the phones were a bit mediocre driven by class AB amps. Better headphones thus adapted sound AMAZING. However, given that you can buy a gadget called a 'Boosteroo' for $25 at Radio Shack, and this works extraordinarily well, there are limits to how much futzing arouund with headphones is worthwhile.
Given that the TPA3123D2 is a relatively low cost part, and can produce upwards of 50W of good power when bridged, I am surprised that nobody has put together a 2-chip bridged board.
According to the TI product sheet, the chip is relatively easy to configure in BTL mode. That would get rid of the coupling capacitors on output, the power supply pumping problem...and also the ability to drive 3 wire headphones directly. (BTW there us a headphone workaround for those designs where you can isolate each transducer (so that the negative leads are not connnected) but this is tricky work because of some of the strange wire used in headphone cords to increase their flexibility. Running a T-amp into isolated headphones is a real ear-opener, even if the phones were a bit mediocre driven by class AB amps. Better headphones thus adapted sound AMAZING. However, given that you can buy a gadget called a 'Boosteroo' for $25 at Radio Shack, and this works extraordinarily well, there are limits to how much futzing arouund with headphones is worthwhile.
I've built my own bridged version using this IC. It's not as easy to bridge as the TPA3122D2 because you need to supply an inverted signal to one channel; you can't just ground the unused input like with the 3122D2.
I would say don't bother with bridging this IC unless you really need to work with the DIP package. Move up to one of the better suited chips.
I would say don't bother with bridging this IC unless you really need to work with the DIP package. Move up to one of the better suited chips.
Hi, Can you please advise how to bridge this amp.
Cheers Derek
look here:
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/class-d/177499-my-tpa3123-25-25w-bridge-proto-amp.html
my bridging adapter is taken from this site:
Bridging Adapter For Power Amps
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
From lossfound..
[The TPA3123 board is noticeably harsher and hashier in the treble on most speakers than the TA2024 board,]
As an adjunct to my previous post, I wonder if what "lossfound" is referring to is the sound I'm hearing, particularly the word "hashier" which sounds about right, like "fizzy"...
Disappointing if so because this TPA3123 performs so well in other areas.
Dunno then...
Cheers, Martin
[The TPA3123 board is noticeably harsher and hashier in the treble on most speakers than the TA2024 board,]
As an adjunct to my previous post, I wonder if what "lossfound" is referring to is the sound I'm hearing, particularly the word "hashier" which sounds about right, like "fizzy"...
Disappointing if so because this TPA3123 performs so well in other areas.
Dunno then...
Cheers, Martin
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