[MCM_Fan]

So, I've order three of these blue/black TPA3116 2.0 boards that I plan to mod and put into cases.  Any strong preference for these Radio Shack metal film caps vs these Wima polypropylene film caps from Mouser:

http://www.mouser.com/Search/ProductDetail.aspx?R=MKP1F041005I00JYSDvirtualkey50520000virtualkey505-M101.0%2f250%2f5

The Radio Shack caps are a little cheaper (and I'm a cheapskate), but not by a whole lot ($1.99 each vs. $2.76 each).  Not that it really matters, but the blue color matches the board nicely.  I have a shopping cart of parts at Mouser ready to pull the trigger, then I came across this thread.  Check the Radio Shack web site and the local store, that I drive right past every day on my way to and from work, has them in stock.  Maybe I should try modding one board with each and do an A/B test to see if I can hear any difference.

OK, picked up 4 of the Radio Shack 272-1055 caps at my local store (that was all they had in stock) and ordered 2 of the Wimas from Mouser (along with some Panasonic FMs and some Bourns toroidal inductors).  I ordered 3 of the Yuan Ling blue/black TPA3116 2.0 boards on Friday.  So, it will probably be a couple weeks before they get here.

I'm really looking forward to getting these things up and running.  Since I will have 3 boards, I'll do an unmodified vs. Radio Shack vs. Wima comparison.

[wushuliu]

OK, picked up 4 of the Radio Shack 272-1055 caps at my local store (that was all they had in stock) and ordered 2 of the Wimas from Mouser (along with some Panasonic FMs and some Bourns toroidal inductors).  I ordered 3 of the Yuan Ling blue/black TPA3116 2.0 boards on Friday.  So, it will probably be a couple weeks before they get here.

I'm really looking forward to getting these things up and running.  Since I will have 3 boards, I'll do an unmodified vs. Radio Shack vs. Wima comparison.

Depending on where you are if you ordered direct from YJ you should get the boards in about 10 days, maybe less.

have fun!

[MCM_Fan]

Depending on where you are if you ordered direct from YJ you should get the boards in about 10 days, maybe less.

I ordered them from eBay seller hiamplifier.  eBay estimates the delivery date to be between April 4 and April 11.  He's located in in Hong Kong and I'm in Oregon.  So, I'm hopeful it will be closer to the 4th than the 11th.  I ordered from him because his price, for 3 boards including shipping was over $10.00 cheaper than ordering directly from YJ.

have fun!

Oh I will.  In fact, I am already.  So glad I found this "circle".  I'm definitely cheap and also very cheerful - especially when listening to great sounding music on equipment that didn't break my bank account.  I'm definitely going to like it around here.

[lacro]

Depending on where you are if you ordered direct from YJ you should get the boards in about 10 days, maybe less.

have fun!

 I wish that were true for my right side of the US location. My experience with YJ is they don't even ship for at least a week. My blue board took 3 painful weeks. I like YJ and feel they are probably more reliable and trustworthy than some. Plus they actually shipped my blue board in a box, not an envelope You guys on the left coast are lucky with 7-10 day Lead Times!

 I placed my order on March 18th. It was accepted at the Hong Kong sort facility on the 25th (1 week later).
Left Hong Kong on the 26th, arrived at SF CA. the SAME DAY

 BTW/ If you want to get the most up to date tracking once your package leaves HK, copy the tracking number supplied by the shipper, and paste it into the USPS tracking site: https://tools.usps.com/go/TrackConfirmAction!input.action.

Here's the current tracking on my 3 tube amp from YJ, getting close; maybe it will beat 2 weeks :

[MCM_Fan]

In my never ending quest to be cheap, which always keeps me cheerful, I'm considering building these amps without a power switch.  I've been reading all sort of nastiness about switching DC, and the NKK P2011E toggle switch rhing recommends is $8.00 each at Digikey.

I know I can just plug it into a power strip and use that to turn the amp on and off.  In fact, in my main system, I have a Panamax M5300-EX power conditioner I use to turn everything on and off (I got it foe a very cheerful $29.99 at my local Goodwill).  So, no need for a power switch on the amp that will go into that system.

But I plan to give the other two to my 14-year old daughter and my girlfriend.  For those, is there any reason they can't just be left plugged in and powered on at all times?  I don't remember the exact numbers, but I've read where these things consumer very little power in the idle state.

If I do decide to all power switches to those, can anyone recommend something less expensive than the NKK 2011E.  Would something like an automotive switch be better?  Aren't those designed for switching DC?

[MCM_Fan]

I wish that were true for my right side of the US location. My experience with YJ is they don't even ship for at least a week. My blue board took 3 painful weeks. I like YJ and feel they are probably more reliable and trustworthy than some. Plus they actually shipped my blue board in a box, not an envelope You guys on the left coast are lucky with 7-10 day Lead Times!

 I placed my order on March 18th. It was accepted at the Hong Kong sort facility on the 25th (1 week later).
Left Hong Kong on the 26th, arrived at SF CA. the SAME DAY

 BTW/ If you want to get the most up to date tracking once your package leaves HK, copy the tracking number supplied by the shipper, and paste it into the USPS tracking site: https://tools.usps.com/go/TrackConfirmAction!input.action.

Here's the current tracking on my 3 tube amp from YJ, getting close; maybe it will beat 2 weeks :

Looks like yours may make it in one week.  That's awesome.

I ordered mine on Friday, which was already early morning Saturday Hong Kong time.  So, I don't have a tracking number yet.

[rhing]

In my never ending quest to be cheap, which always keeps me cheerful, I'm considering building these amps without a power switch.  I've been reading all sort of nastiness about switching DC, and the NKK P2011E toggle switch rhing recommends is $8.00 each at Digikey.

I know I can just plug it into a power strip and use that to turn the amp on and off.  In fact, in my main system, I have a Panamax M5300-EX power conditioner I use to turn everything on and off (I got it foe a very cheerful $29.99 at my local Goodwill).  So, no need for a power switch on the amp that will go into that system.

But I plan to give the other two to my 14-year old daughter and my girlfriend.  For those, is there any reason they can't just be left plugged in and powered on at all times?  I don't remember the exact numbers, but I've read where these things consumer very little power in the idle state.

If I do decide to all power switches to those, can anyone recommend something less expensive than the NKK 2011E.  Would something like an automotive switch be better?  Aren't those designed for switching DC?

The power switch argument on diyAudio.com is complete overkill, but your idea will be okay. I use the high current mini-toggle SPST switches from Radio Shack too, and I don't have problems with arcing or pitting or any of the other shortcomings mentioned. I do like the NKK switch as the contact is pretty solid, and I am willing to pay $8 for it.

[wushuliu]

The power switch argument on diyAudio.com is complete overkill, but you idea will be okay. I use the high current mini-toggle SPST switches from Radio Shack too, and I don't have problems with arcing or pitting or any of the other shortcomings mentioned. I do like the NKK switch as the contact is pretty solid, and I am willing to pay $8 for it.

Yes. NKK makes nice high quality switches.

[ClefChef]

Today tried the "Green Board" TPA3116 http://www.ebay.com/itm/161245338888?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649
I swapped PS decoupling capacitors with 2200uf and bypassed them with 0.1uf wima.
This board sounds the best to my ears. I built two "blue board" amplifiers with various modifications as well. What annoys me with all other boards is turn on - turn off POP, this one seems to have all the proper mute circuitry in place.

Sadly this board seems to be no longer available from the seller.

[rhing]

Can you elaborate on the mods you performed on the YJ blue amps?

[shadowlight]

@clefchef,
can you post some pictures of the audiobah amp that you mention.  are you running them in mono block mode, since they are configured in pbtl mode.
tia

[MCM_Fan]

I just posted this an another forum, but since my goal is to build three of these amps as cheaply and cheerfully as possible (while also maximizing sound quality and having an attractive appearance), I thought I'd share the info here as well.

OK, my first parts have started to arrive and I ordered the remaining bits for building three of these amps.

The first parts to arrive were the three Kilo International Wedged Cylindrical knobs I ordered from ebay seller  itches_love_my_switches.  These are identical to Digikey part number 226-3032-ND recommended by rhing, except they are drilled for a 5mm potentiometer shaft instead of the standard 6mm shaft.  But, they are also much cheaper, if bought in quantity.  If you own a drill press and are comfortable drilling out the mounting hole to 6mm, this is a good deal on these knobs. They are EXCELLENT quality and VERY nice looking.  They sell for $10.60 each plus shipping at Digikey (with the standard 6mm mounting hole).  On ebay, he is selling them for $4.00 each with a $5.95 flat rate shipping fee no matter how many you order.  Very fast shipping, too.  Ordered on Friday, in my mailbox on Monday.  Here is what they look like:



Since two of these amps are intended to be gifts, and I can never have too many knobs on hand, I've also ordered some Chinese made solid aluminum knobs from multiple ebay sellers.  The first two are the very common, and affordable solid aluminum 30x22mm round knobs:





These knobs are very ubiquitous on ebay.  So, I won't bother to mention what sellers I bought mine from.  Just do an ebay search for 30x22 aluminum knob and sort by lowest price plus shipping.  I got one of the silver knobs for $4.45 including shipping, and four of the black knobs for $14.48, including shipping - that comes to $3.62 each delivered to my door.  If you use a lot of knobs and are willing to buy in larger quantities, the price comes down even more.  For example, you can get eight of these 30x22 solid aluminum black knobs for $2.87 each including shipping.  That's a great price on solid aluminum knobs of this size.  I'm anxious to see how the quality compares to the Kilo International knobs.

I also ordered a larger 40x22mm solid aluminum black knob for the amp I'm building for myself.  That one wasn't so cheap, at $12.21 delivered, but it's the same size as the tuning knob on my Magnum Dynalab FT-101A and I want it to match.

I have a bid on one other knob that ends on Wednesday.  If I win that auction, I'll post a photo of that one, too.  Like I said, you can never have too many good quality solid aluminum knobs on hand.

I also ordered three of the Context Engineering cases that rhing recommended from San Jose Scientific.  I got two of the 3008 enclosures in black for the basic gift amps for my daughter and girlfriend and one of the larger 4012 enclosures for the one I'm building for myself.  In addition to the larger volume knob, I have some additional enhancements planned for that one, which will require the larger case.

Finally, I order three of the Panasonic EVJ 50K log taper pots from Digikey that rhing and larco recommended.  I also ordered two these NKK SPST toggle switches:



They are rated at 6A/125VAC and 4A/30VDC and are only $4.32 each.  The Digikey PN is: 360-3239-ND.

These will be installed on the rear of the two gift amps.

I also added one of these Apem toggle switches to my order:



It is rated at 15A/VAC and sells for $5.25.  The Digikey PN is 679-1246-ND.

This one is for the front of the amp I am building for myself and more closely matches the toggle switches on my Magnum Dynalab tuner.

So, now everything I need for these builds is on the way.  I had also previously ordered the RCA jacks, binding posts, etc., along with the inductors and capacitors to mod the amps.  Once the amps are built, I'll post photos and a complete bill of materials with a cost breakdown for each amp.

[Doublej]

Thanks  MCM_Fan. A bill of materials would be excellent. I am surprised that no one offers a kit, e.g.

Board
Board Spacers
Screws
Speaker Terminals
Wire
Connector with RCA Jacks
Power Switch
Knob
Case
Feet
Power Supply (optional)

Are there any manufacturers using these boards in their product?

[wushuliu]

Thanks  MCM_Fan. A bill of materials would be excellent. I am surprised that no one offers a kit, e.g.

Board
Board Spacers
Screws
Speaker Terminals
Wire
Connector with RCA Jacks
Power Switch
Knob
Case
Feet
Power Supply (optional)

Are there any manufacturers using these boards in their product?

Probably because costs rise once you add an enclosure to the mix shipped from China. The assembled amp from YJ for $140 shipped is a good deal in that respect.

The TBI Millenia is the only TPA-based retail amp I'm aware of. It uses an older 3100D2 chip.

[Doublej]

wushuliu

Do you mean this one?

http://www.yuan-jing.com/tpa3116-class-d-2-0-stereo-power-amplifier-50w-50w?keyword=tpa3116%20cla

[wushuliu]

wushuliu

Do you mean this one?

http://www.yuan-jing.com/tpa3116-class-d-2-0-stereo-power-amplifier-50w-50w?keyword=tpa3116%20cla

Yes.

[Poultrygeist]

My latest TPA3116 with fused on/off switch and on board power supply.

[Rubbbq]

$20, I'll take it!!!!...lol  :lol:Very nice work. How does it sound?

[rhing]

Sweet-looking amp PG. Looks like you had no problems wiring in a volume pot or DC power connector. Does this chassis get your nice Acrylic top treatment too?

[Poultrygeist]

$20, I'll take it!!!!...lol  :lol:Very nice work. How does it sound?

Amazing SET like resolution at low levels.