TPA 3116 vs the tripaths

Hi, everyone - new to AK but have been lurking for awhile now reading up on the TI chip amps.

I've gotten through a great deal of the TPA 3116 vs the tripaths thread, but I'm not sure if anyone has reported on this TPA3116 mono active subwoofer board:

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The left knob adjusts the crossover frequency and the right knob controls the volume.

I've been using this to power a 10" Pioneer dual voice coil car sub that's under my computer desk.

Been running at 2 ohms using a 24V laptop power supply for a couple of months now and it is working great!

I got mine on the bay for less than $15 shipped - here's some more info about it...

Specifications:
Board Size: 55 x 83 x 29mm (not including potentiometers projecting 15mm)
Operating Voltage: DC 12-24V
Frequency Response: input 20Hz-20KHz
Low Pass Crossover: 20Hz-180Hz adjustable
Audio Input Sensitivity: 500mV
Loudspeaker Impedance: 2-8 ohm
Output Power: 19V: 24W (8 ohm) / 48W (4 ohm) / 60W (3 ohm) / 75W (2 ohm)


I went ahead and installed it in a low cost aluminum project box:

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In my setup I also have a Breeze Audio TPA3116 running Dayton B652-AIR bookshelf speakers - these really are wonderful sounding little amps!

I think the sub amp was mentioned earlier but I believe you're the first to give it a go. Nice job and thanks for the informative post.
 
So you now have two working TAP3116 amps?
Well....I did for a while. :rolleyes:
The $7 USD dual chip red board works great. The blue board dual chip had a hissing sound that was audible at low volume. I thought the trim pots/variable resistor volume controls might be to blame, so I desoldered them from the board in an attempt to bypass. In the desoldering process one of the traces lifted. There is continuity between the lifted trace one of the input pins, so I think the amp can be saved by soldering to the underside of the board.

Any idea how to bypass those trim pots? They have the 3 pin layout and I thought I could just short out a couple of pins. Do I need to throw in a 10K resistor?

Here's a pic of the board. You can see the 103 trim pots in the top left corner.

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Here's a pic of the board. You can see the 103 trim pots in the top left corner.

I had the misfortune of adding one of these to the list of 3116 boards I own. It is the worst of the bunch, very noisy, very harsh. I may get around to removing the pots, but I'm not sure it'll cure the ills of that board. On the pot, in the fully open position, one pair of pins will show a short, the other either open circuit or a 10k resistance. You need to replicate the short on the pins of the board.
 
I think the sub amp was mentioned earlier but I believe you're the first to give it a go. Nice job and thanks for the informative post.

Thank you PG! I'm having a lot of fun playing around with these low cost Chinese boards and mini amps... they are addicting!
 
I'm interested in that sub amp; how do you figure out what the crossover frequency is?

It's pretty easy to dial in a variable subwoofer crossover by ear... listening to a variety of music you are very familiar with is helpful. It may take a little practice and some time to get the result you want. I gradually bring the crossover point down until any boominess or "boxy sound" from the sub is tamed and I have a nice deep tone along with a good solid "thump" from kick drums, etc. This is pretty much how it's done in car audio (I have lots of experience in that arena, used to be in the business).

The mixes and bass response of different recordings also vary widely, so having an adjustable crossover and subwoofer volume control at your fingertips is great for compensating for that. For example, classic rock sometimes lacks the deep bass and kick drum punch of more modern recordings. When listening to classical or jazz it may sound better to turn down the sub a bit (again, depends on the specific recording and mix). Action movies tend to have a lot of high volume, low frequency sound effects in their surround sound mixes so again it's good to have a subwoofer volume control within easy reach in case they are a little too loud for your setup.

The size, placement and frequency response of the subwoofer obviously affects all of this as well. Ported subwoofers are tuned to provide enhanced response at a specific low frequency, while sealed enclosure subs have a flatter response curve. The low end response of your full range speakers and how they interact with the subwoofer affects where the crossover frequency sounds best. If you use a high pass crossover on your mains, then again that affects the subwoofer crossover point and where exactly that interactive sweet spot is. The roll off slope of the crossover (-6dB per octave, -12dB per octave, -18dB per octave, -24dB per octave) also affects the ideal crossover frequency. Generally, subwoofers tend to sound less boxy or boomy the lower the crossover frequency is. I find that most subwoofers sound best with a crossover frequency somewhere between approximately 50Hz and 100Hz. There is a tradeoff however... the lower the crossover frequency, the less volume the sub will be able to produce.

Keep in mind that humans hear low frequencies with less sensitivity than they do for mids and highs... in other words, it takes more SPL of low frequencies to sound as loud as the mids and highs do.
 
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The gentile 12db slope is better for open baffle speakers. Most of the pro electronic crossover like my Ashly are 24dbs.

That makes sense. My experience in car audio is that steeper -24dB per octave roll off slopes don't necessarily sound better. It's really about how the subwoofer output blends with and complements the mains.

I haven't listened to open baffle speakers in a home setting since I was a little kid in the '60's (many of the console stereos back then were open baffle). The modern full range open baffle movement is pretty interesting.

Of course, most car stereo speakers are essentially open baffle or nearly so (with the exception of subwoofer enclosures). The waves emanating from the back the drivers are not usually audible, though. They are trapped in the door, dash or trunk.

I guess it might be more accurate to say that car stereo speakers run virtually unloaded similar to the way open baffle speakers do. No significant "air spring" behind them.
 
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I've been away for awhile, and this thread keeps on a pumping. My double chip red board TPA3116D2 just died on me after 2 years of service.
What should I get now?
Thanks
 
^ There is a newer iteration of that board on sale now. Haven't seen much commentary about it, though.

If you want to spend a little more, consider the Volt+. You can find reviews of it in this thread.

If you want to spend still more, some guys have been buying evaluation boards direct from TI that feature the newest TPA chips, using a 50% off discount code. I think they still end up being over a hundred bucks, though.

If you want cheap but more power than a 3116, there are many other chips and boards; there is more discussion about them over on diyaudio. I think they generally want a power supply that is putting out more volts than whatever you have probably been using with the twin chip board.
 
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