Yeah cheap!!!
Are the marked caps in the pic below the ones you are talking about?
Thanks!
Attachments
Yes. You can also lower gain to make it less loud and have more bass extention, that is a resistor job closer to chip
Yeah but the TPA3116 costs about $2 a piece when purchased by the thousand that's $4 of the asking price right there...
Many thanks irribeo! I've just been reading up on the datasheet as well. I'll report back with results, or maybe more questions lol!
The coupling caps could also be y5v ceramics to save money, these aren't exactly linear. Neither are the x7r or equivalents that could otherwise be used and are cheap but more costly than y5vs. I wouldn't use either of these as coupling caps and would use some film cap instead. With the higher input impedance of the lower gain setting a nice 1u would do fine. These aren't particularly expensive and can be had in smd form, although any film cap you could make fit would be an improvement.
Thanks alot for all the info. As I'm reading the datasheet and the evaluation user guide everything you have said makes sense!
On the EVM they are using X7R 1uf 16v. Who knows what's on this board probably the cheapest of the cheap like you said.
What do you think about this one?
ECP-U1C105MA5 Panasonic Electronic Components | PCF1132CT-ND | DigiKey
Providing you can make them fit they will be fine.
They are 1210 size though which is quite large as smd parts go. They look like they are using 0805 parts which are two steps smaller. Still there is plenty of space around the components and the PCB pads are very generously sized. You'll probably have to flip the 1210s on their side to make them fit but I think you should be okay.
Stop buying cheap, help to end 'slavery', and save Earth!
790 pages so far for just one chip and its cheap boards mania on this place alone somehow tells it want happen any day soon. 🙄
😀 Absolutely.. and in the Tripath heyday.. Chi Fi fitted Ta chips were about 95% Fake copies, locally made.. often using half of the dies that they copied.
Even Resistors are often faked and those are fractions of a cent items.
The problem expands expotentially on examination.
As a noob I'd say it should be fine. If a complete amp-in-a-box is what you're after, you won't likely beat that on price. I bought the "Breeze" board-only and rolled my own case.
The YJ blue board seems to be the best documented board however. Drawback is it's a roll-your-own case and connectors situation unless you spend $105 or more on YJ's complete amp-in-a-box. There are alternatives like the SMSL SA60.... Depends on budget and mod-afinity really.
J.
We have to give it to them, some how they found a way to make it work using "cheap/fake" components. Isn't it the way that every multinational/huge corporation trying to achieve these day - control cost and maximize profit?? Look at things that are selling at Walmart. These vendors did not designed anything, just copied the EVM and then skim on any parts they can. We do not know what kind of cost structure they have but I am sure they are making money.
Well, one thing that one has to be aware of about these made in China amp boards is quality control, or the lack of. I am sure you have seen posts complaining about boards that are DOA. But then there are people who have bought many boards and everyone of them work - I think xrk971 is one of them. He tried many different made e.g. 3116, TPA7942, TPA7948, IRS2002 etc. and all worked (please correct if I am wrong xrk). I have bought 4 different made of 3116 amp boards and they all worked to my satisfaction for the price I paid.
Since these 3116 boards only require low operating voltage, I believe (I am guessing) they will last a long time. My first TPA3116 from YJ (the red board) is still working fine after more than a year. One thing I learned the hard way is do not buy cheap tube amps made in China online. Typically every component is under spec e.g. capacitors, resistors, trannies and they do not live long due to the much higher operating voltage.
If these boards are not to you liking, you do not have to buy them. These cheap amp boards served a segment of the market and there are people buying them, myself included. They are great fun and inexpensive.
Regards,
😀 No didn't say that. My lil 12$ blu black guy works pleasingly well although the loud frightening Scortch! sound on power up
is relegating its use to disposable speakers.. Dohh.
Even the 90% Fake parts boards seemingly work.
And most everything in DiYaudio these days seems as Craze /Fad of the Month centred.
The lure of Something for nothing (or close to it)...sucks us ALL in. Human nature 🙂
Do know from my last Bandwagon jump aboard experience that OEM Tripath Chip Amps sounded a whole Helluvalot Better than the CHi Fi versions.
I keep a collection as reminder. Few of us are blameless in this. I have 3 DOA boards, as testimony to My own Greed.
Genuine Costs wayyy more though 😉 Far Less 'something for nothing' (underdog?) in that though.
As you pointed out; Cost considerations in a Dog Eat Dog market are serious business.
No brickbats at the Makers.. they are just trying to survive, their lack of scruples is merely a sideshow.
Pay a v few $, you take your chances. A lo cost gamble.
I'm only amazed at what some will spend on a 15$ PCB amp...trying to 'improve it'.
Overspending on lipstick for the Pig imo.
Surprised no one has tried Gilding the rascals.
Seems losing sight of the Ball is a serious issue.
Did notice that the Focus is moving on to the current Chip of the month.
Pilot fish have a new target.
Simple curiousity: No one listened to a Modulus 86 Chip amp??
Really Should do that 😉
is relegating its use to disposable speakers.. Dohh.
Even the 90% Fake parts boards seemingly work.
And most everything in DiYaudio these days seems as Craze /Fad of the Month centred.
The lure of Something for nothing (or close to it)...sucks us ALL in. Human nature 🙂
Do know from my last Bandwagon jump aboard experience that OEM Tripath Chip Amps sounded a whole Helluvalot Better than the CHi Fi versions.
I keep a collection as reminder. Few of us are blameless in this. I have 3 DOA boards, as testimony to My own Greed.
Genuine Costs wayyy more though 😉 Far Less 'something for nothing' (underdog?) in that though.
As you pointed out; Cost considerations in a Dog Eat Dog market are serious business.
No brickbats at the Makers.. they are just trying to survive, their lack of scruples is merely a sideshow.
Pay a v few $, you take your chances. A lo cost gamble.
I'm only amazed at what some will spend on a 15$ PCB amp...trying to 'improve it'.
Overspending on lipstick for the Pig imo.
Surprised no one has tried Gilding the rascals.
Seems losing sight of the Ball is a serious issue.
Did notice that the Focus is moving on to the current Chip of the month.
Pilot fish have a new target.
Simple curiousity: No one listened to a Modulus 86 Chip amp??
Really Should do that 😉
Last edited:
Quality has a cost, totally agree. As you pointed out, these cheap boards sound quite satisfactory. To me they sound better than those 2-300$ amps/receivers sold at the big box stores. One does have to put in some elbow grease to turn the these cheap boards into a working amp.
Have not got a chance to listen to the Modulus 86, I read that it is a very good chip amp. If I remembered correctly, just the PCB of the 86 costs a lot, relatively speaking (I think it is about 5 to 6 times of the price of a typical cheap 3116 amp board at least) . After all said and done, a working 86 will probably cost at least 20 times more. I am sure the 86 would measure better than these 3116. Will the 86 sounds 20 X better? Does the cost justify the price difference? The answer will be totally subjective and one has to judge for themselves.
I have heard some really good sounding amps and they were amazing (expensive too). However, for a good amp to shine, one needs a good pair of speakers too.
Regards,
You could also buy from "Europe", I.e. my implementations. They aren't cheap but work "forever". Only legit parts from valuable sources. You get what you pay for. 🙂
Ummm ... "Fad of the Month" ? ... I disagree. How long has this particular Class D thread/group been on the go & how many posts are there. Same for others on diyAudio & ditto on Audiokarma & similar
I'm sure that the recently started TPA3251 thread will go longer than a month
I'm also sure sure that the bulk of people who spend $40 or perhaps much more "improving" a $15 amp are having a great time, possibly learning new manual skills, learning about electronics etc. And ... if the $40 or more "improvement" of a $15 amp is in fact 99% mental & 1% aural but the "improver" perceives the "improvement" to be 1% mental & 99% aural, who really cares? The $s being spent are not much more than the price of a half reasonable meal, probably providing a hell of a lot more satisfaction
Since I've staring messing around with the Tripaths, TPA3116 & other Class D, my electronics knowledge has hugely increased, my solder flinging skills have improved 500% & I'm having a great time ... far more enjoyment than watching NetFlix 🙂 ... it's a big buzz to be able to remove a TPA3116 chip from a PCB & then reinstall it successfully
Now get some naked gmarsh Wiener pcb's and solder away. Afterwards you'll have a hard time believing you enjoyed YJblue, you'll even wonder if tpa3116 on YJblue is fake. Your own pcb will be better than other chinese ampboards too, but not to same degree, YJblue is horror of horrors imho.
That amp is really making the mods audible.
It is like an education toy.
I had one with almost all the mods (besides input transformers, got differential inputs by opamps) that were discussed here.
Modding was great fun and the result was a good sounding amp.
But i would not buy it again.
Yes every change is audible. And after changing most parts and some layout you get feeling it is a tpa3116 amp....
I bought a TPA 3116 board from a Chinese Merchant on Ebay, and although I have yet to hook it up, I believe it will serve my purposes for a Patio Setup. I don't believe in exploting anyone in the workforce where ever it may be, but there is a global market now! We are helping to support someones family when we buy a product anywhere in the world. So, for those who think we are taking advantage, I say this is untrue! Think about it!!
Mac🙂
Mac🙂
You pay for the "labor" cost of the those people behind the manager or marketing desks and a lot of middlemen who source the same parts as in the cheap boards and probably the same factories.
When buying the cheap board from ebay or so, it cut out a lot of middlemen cost. I know friends doing sourcing in China, quality control can be a nightmare, but if a manufacturer with good quality control is found, the cost can still be cheap. So, cheap is not necessary bad.