Is this a real TDA1541A?

I am thinking a may have an authentic 97 A. As I understand these were fabbed in china and stamped in europe. This one has a german code HBH9751 2 and on the underside the circle indent is molded CHINA which I believe is an indication that it may be a real '97.

The only odd thing is a also recieved a HSH9414 and it has the same lot number 11226 as the 97, it doesn't have the CHina in the underside mold.

No continuity between any pins. The surface is from the mold, not sanded down.

Think the '97 is authentic?

tda1541a.jpg


backimprint.jpg
 
This is what a genuine TDA1541A S1 Double Crown looks like.

This one is inside an unmodified Naim CD3 I have here. The machine is for sale for the right price :)

Naim_CD3_with_S1_Double_Crown_2.jpg

Are you sure? That 1541 looks rather fake to me. The 's1' is displaced and it looks like the font used for the 's1' writing is not correct.
Besides, i have never seen the 2 crows on a horizontal line...

This is my TDA1541A S1 double crown:

philips-tda1541-s1-double-crown-002.jpg


Philips TDA1541A S1 double crown d/a converter
 
Well, I just opened the box and there it is. The machine was bought new and has just come out of storage. The solder is perfect. Yes, I am sure.

I have read that all the best measuring S1s were given a crown, and only later these S1 were re-measured and the best of the best given the second crown, hence the slight change in crown printing. I guess then they started printing both crowns together like yours (unless yours is a fake ;) )

Regardless, it's appearance in a very old and excellent Naim CD3 is a pretty good certification I am thinking. Normally they put single crowns in these machines, but I have heard of one other CD3 with a double crown. Pretty rare stuff, eh?
 
I quote somebody on this forum:

"S1 double crowns are S1 single crowns which have been re-tested at a later date and found to meet the S2 double crown specification. This explains why the second crown printing doesn't match the first one - the second crown was printed on a different machine."

I'll grant you though, it is most unusual. I cannot find another with this same printing on Google images.

I am guessing that Naim bought only from Phillips directly (and requested their best available chips - all S1 crowns usually) so we can say that this is not only a most excellent chip, but also very rare indeed, perhaps one of the earliest ever double crowns.
 
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I'm guessing it's close to impossible to get my hands on a genuine single or double crown IC without spending a fortune?
Ebay sellers charge alot for them and then there's the considerable risk of the TDA's being re-labeled.

Looks like if you can find a real one you'll be well over $100USD. From what I've read and heard there is considerable risk of buying a fake.

Regards,
Dan :)