TPA3118 60W Power Amp Module
- Thread starter falzhobel
- Start date
Same question here. Can this board be ordered with the SMD chip already soldered in place? --- NVM, this appears to be a board already populated with the chip and components, right? Looks like the same item and similar versions are availbable from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=tPA3118+60W+Power+Amp+Module&ref=nb_sb_noss
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Robert
Reverse Engineer
The TPA3118 module comes exactly like you see it in the pic, all components are already installed. Yes, you can get the exact same thing from Amazon, eBay, etc. It's offered here as a convenience. (Just be sure the pinout and dimensions are the same if you plan to use it on one of the upcoming projects)
This isn't intended to be used as-is, it will be treated like a large IC and be soldered to a larger interface board.
You could of course wire it up yourself, but it doesn't have any sort of volume control or preamp. The upcoming interface board will take care of that.
This isn't intended to be used as-is, it will be treated like a large IC and be soldered to a larger interface board.
You could of course wire it up yourself, but it doesn't have any sort of volume control or preamp. The upcoming interface board will take care of that.
Nostradoomus
Well-known member
That’s awesome. I hope the preamp I messaged you about is part of this. 
Robert
Reverse Engineer
According to the amazon pages for this (I think it's the same), you can power it with anywhere from 8 to 24V DC. Lower voltage will of course mean lower output power. I'm thinking of a crude calculation where P=IV, and I=V/R, so P=V^2/R. So the relationship between voltage and power is not linear, since the voltage factor is squared. So, if 24v gives 60W, 9v should give about 8.4W. The actual math is probably much more involved, but I think the relationship still roughly holds. Please chime in anyone else if this seems at all accurate or not!
Also, I saw on one amazon page that the 60W at 24v DC is in a 2ohm speaker. So 24V into a 4 ohm speaker would be 30W (linear relationship between R and P). So, 9V into an 8ohm speaker would be closer to 2W (again don't quote me, just trying to make a rough estimate).
I saw that the recommended current for the power supply is 3A. This will be too high to use a charge pump to boost 9V to a higher voltage. It also means you'll probably need to run this of a dedicated power source (most pedal power blocks or 1spot don't offer up to 3A). So, since it requires a separate power source anyway, might as well get one that operates at a higher voltage.
@PedalPCB am I making sense?!
Also, I saw on one amazon page that the 60W at 24v DC is in a 2ohm speaker. So 24V into a 4 ohm speaker would be 30W (linear relationship between R and P). So, 9V into an 8ohm speaker would be closer to 2W (again don't quote me, just trying to make a rough estimate).
I saw that the recommended current for the power supply is 3A. This will be too high to use a charge pump to boost 9V to a higher voltage. It also means you'll probably need to run this of a dedicated power source (most pedal power blocks or 1spot don't offer up to 3A). So, since it requires a separate power source anyway, might as well get one that operates at a higher voltage.
@PedalPCB am I making sense?!
Robert
Reverse Engineer
I haven't worked all the math at this point, but no, this would not be powered by a charge pump.
I've powered it from a 9V 1-Spot (1.7A max) plugged into my 4 ohm Fender Twin cab and it would absolutely take your head off. I couldn't comfortably bring the volume above 1/3. Higher ohm cabs would benefit from a 24V supply.
The first revision will be a basic "clean" power amp that would require (or at least benefit from) a preamp in front, basically a power amp for the end of your pedal chain. As we move forward I do plan to work on complete "amp in a pedal" projects that include everything, possibly even some multi-channel projects. There's even been discussion of some tube-based preamps.
In the cases where 9V (or lower) circuitry is required we'll use a regulator so everything plays nicely together.
I've powered it from a 9V 1-Spot (1.7A max) plugged into my 4 ohm Fender Twin cab and it would absolutely take your head off. I couldn't comfortably bring the volume above 1/3. Higher ohm cabs would benefit from a 24V supply.
The first revision will be a basic "clean" power amp that would require (or at least benefit from) a preamp in front, basically a power amp for the end of your pedal chain. As we move forward I do plan to work on complete "amp in a pedal" projects that include everything, possibly even some multi-channel projects. There's even been discussion of some tube-based preamps.
In the cases where 9V (or lower) circuitry is required we'll use a regulator so everything plays nicely together.
temol
Well-known member
I'm interested if there is another device in the future "power amp" that requires 9V supply. To get the maximum out of the module it's necessary to have 24V (and low impedance speakers), but many (if not most) devices are 9V friendly. No problem when you have separate units. But in case of "all in one box" you have to drop some V for the 9V circuits. Voltage regulator - too much heat I suppose. Step down converter? Other ideas?
ps.
24V supply, 8 ohm load - 1.33A, 44.8V p/p, 15.6V RMS before it starts to clip. This gives around 30W.
T
ps.
24V supply, 8 ohm load - 1.33A, 44.8V p/p, 15.6V RMS before it starts to clip. This gives around 30W.
T
Looking forward to this as well. I have a spare TPA3118 module from when I built a pedal-based amp a year ago. It was very basic with just a single volume control and an on-off switch. Used a 19.5V, 3A laptop power supply into an 8 ohm speaker. Plenty loud enough for a bedroom practice or coffeehouse amp. I used a preamp pedal in front of it which is sorely needs. Really interested in trying it with a PedalPCB board.
I think you're right. Seems much more efficient than the Tiny Giant 20 watt amp where most designs use the case as the heat sink.
