SMSL TA2021B Power Supply ?

Turdinator · 28th May 2013, 11:27 AM

Hi guys im new to tri path amps just bought myself the above amp and I am blown away at the sound it produces I have a Marantz pm6004 and a denon pma 520ae and believe me when I say this little amp blows them away for sound quality so detailed natural and can hit low notes easy with punch and detail that the other amps don't quite give me.my question is the amp came without a power supply I hooked it up to a spare 12v 5a supply I had lying around.now the dc input says 14v so could I get a 14v 5a supply to give it a little more oomph ?

Hammett · 28th May 2013, 02:32 PM

My experience is that there was relatively little difference between a 12v and 14v power supply, but there is a BIG difference if you go to a 12v battery (marine/deep cycle battery, which does not suffer when deeply discharged).

Battery power brings the 2020, 2021, and 2024 to another level. The sound is more relaxed, while the bass is deeper. Very nice! I am running an 18ah battery, so it has plenty of juice and lasts for days and days before I have to recharge it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Turdinator

Hi guys im new to tri path amps just bought myself the above amp and I am blown away at the sound it produces I have a Marantz pm6004 and a denon pma 520ae and believe me when I say this little amp blows them away for sound quality so detailed natural and can hit low notes easy with punch and detail that the other amps don't quite give me.my question is the amp came without a power supply I hooked it up to a spare 12v 5a supply I had lying around.now the dc input says 14v so could I get a 14v 5a supply to give it a little more oomph ?

Turdinator · 28th May 2013, 04:59 PM

Thanks for the reply I will give a battery a try and if you say its even better sound then I will be in heaven these things are insane for the money

next up will be mods but will open it up and see whats in there first because I think it has some decent components already the info says it has 9000uf filter capacitor but with what ive read on the forum they can come with a mish mash of components heres a pic of the so called inside of mine any thoughts on mods ?

An externally hosted image should be here but it no longer works. Please upload images instead of linking to them to prevent this.

Turdinator · 28th May 2013, 05:10 PM

So as long as I stick to 12v the ah can be any ?

zakman35 · 28th May 2013, 10:35 PM

I have test my SMSL TA2021B with the following psu's.

A) 12V battery (14V when fully charged).
B) 12V smps with the addition of a 10.000uf Rubycon cap (stiffener cap).
C) original 12V smps that comes with the amp.
D) KingRex 13,5V linear psu.

The best option was A (detailed, without grain, good bass extension and definition).
Surprisingly option B was very very close to A but with just a little more grain.
Option C was ok and D was the worst (muddy).

zakman35 · 28th May 2013, 10:42 PM

This is the internal of my amp.

Turdinator · 28th May 2013, 10:49 PM

I can get a power sonic 12v 21ah deep cycle battery quite cheap here in the uk would that suffice and how long would it last as I play my music most days about 6 hours a day

zakman35 · 29th May 2013, 11:09 PM

The point is that a smps with an additional bank of caps (stiffener caps) is so close to the battery that it doesn't worth to get into the trouble to use batteries and chargers.

My battery is 1,6mAH, it lasts approx 5-6 hours of playing time.

Turdinator · 30th May 2013, 01:05 AM

hi again I have just realised my supply has changeable output voltages 5,6,7.5,9,12 at 5 amp and 13.5,15 at 4 amp ive had it running at 15v 4amp for a few hours with no heat from the amp case or any other issues sound is still superb and actually can go a bit louder before distorting than it did with 12v 5amp. has anyone tried a 16v 5amp supply as im sure the amp can handle it easy.

zakman35 · 30th May 2013, 07:37 AM

According to ta2021 datasheet, 16V is the "ABSOLUTE MAXIMUM" voltage it can accept.

28th May 2013, 11:27 AM	#1
Turdinator diyAudio Member Join Date: May 2013	SMSL TA2021B Power Supply ? Hi guys im new to tri path amps just bought myself the above amp and I am blown away at the sound it produces I have a Marantz pm6004 and a denon pma 520ae and believe me when I say this little amp blows them away for sound quality so detailed natural and can hit low notes easy with punch and detail that the other amps don't quite give me.my question is the amp came without a power supply I hooked it up to a spare 12v 5a supply I had lying around.now the dc input says 14v so could I get a 14v 5a supply to give it a little more oomph ?

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28th May 2013, 04:59 PM	#3
Turdinator diyAudio Member Join Date: May 2013	Thanks for the reply I will give a battery a try and if you say its even better sound then I will be in heaven these things are insane for the money next up will be mods but will open it up and see whats in there first because I think it has some decent components already the info says it has 9000uf filter capacitor but with what ive read on the forum they can come with a mish mash of components heres a pic of the so called inside of mine any thoughts on mods ? An externally hosted image should be here but it no longer works. Please upload images instead of linking to them to prevent this.

28th May 2013, 05:10 PM	#4
Turdinator diyAudio Member Join Date: May 2013	So as long as I stick to 12v the ah can be any ?

28th May 2013, 10:35 PM	#5
zakman35 Account disabled at member's request Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Athens	I have test my SMSL TA2021B with the following psu's. A) 12V battery (14V when fully charged). B) 12V smps with the addition of a 10.000uf Rubycon cap (stiffener cap). C) original 12V smps that comes with the amp. D) KingRex 13,5V linear psu. The best option was A (detailed, without grain, good bass extension and definition). Surprisingly option B was very very close to A but with just a little more grain. Option C was ok and D was the worst (muddy).

28th May 2013, 10:49 PM	#7
Turdinator diyAudio Member Join Date: May 2013	I can get a power sonic 12v 21ah deep cycle battery quite cheap here in the uk would that suffice and how long would it last as I play my music most days about 6 hours a day

29th May 2013, 11:09 PM	#8
zakman35 Account disabled at member's request Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Athens	The point is that a smps with an additional bank of caps (stiffener caps) is so close to the battery that it doesn't worth to get into the trouble to use batteries and chargers. My battery is 1,6mAH, it lasts approx 5-6 hours of playing time.

30th May 2013, 01:05 AM	#9
Turdinator diyAudio Member Join Date: May 2013	hi again I have just realised my supply has changeable output voltages 5,6,7.5,9,12 at 5 amp and 13.5,15 at 4 amp ive had it running at 15v 4amp for a few hours with no heat from the amp case or any other issues sound is still superb and actually can go a bit louder before distorting than it did with 12v 5amp. has anyone tried a 16v 5amp supply as im sure the amp can handle it easy.

30th May 2013, 07:37 AM	#10
zakman35 Account disabled at member's request Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Athens	According to ta2021 datasheet, 16V is the "ABSOLUTE MAXIMUM" voltage it can accept.