Topping PA5 (TPA325X) : Is a modification worth it? ?

[mamocel]

The Loxjie have only asymetrical input....And and only one chip....

 

[daniboun]

Ah ok. Je suis le contraire. J'ai le Loxjie A30, mais je préfère le son des amplis TPA3255.

I think once more that is a question of taste.
I think that Infineon chips sound warmer than TPA325x chips. Spec Corp that is a famous Japanese firm is using Infineon chips in their $ 3500 best amps....
Both Merus and Tpa325X chips have a great thd+n figure but they sound totally different in term of "sound signature."

 

[Amplifier dude]

I think once more that is a question of taste.
I think that Infineon chips sound warmer than TPA325x chips. Spec Corp that is a famous Japanese firm is using Infineon chips in their $ 3500 best amps....
Both Merus and Tpa325X chips have a great thd+n figure but they sound totally different in term of "sound signature."

So is it the chip alone that determines the sound signature?

 

[mamocel]

There, all is said...
no big reputable brand uses a TPA chip.In this amp range from another world ...

 

[Amplifier dude]

I can make this DAC chip sound 20 different ways on the same board. Depending on configuration

 

[mamocel]

Personally ... on my Akm dac, I don't touch the filter, pure direct only.

 

[Amplifier dude]

Personally ... on my Akm dac, I don't touch the filter, pure direct only.

Im not talking about changing filters. And there is no pure direct mode on any DAC chip. You always need to choose 1 filter type.

 

[TNT]

Don't bother with the these op-amp rollers...

//

 

[Amplifier dude]

The best opamp is no opamp. You can also do that experiment on that EVM.

 

[mamocel]

It's an evaluation board ? How many channels ?

 

[Amplifier dude]

It's an evaluation board ? How many channels ?

Yes there’s 2x 2 channel chips. Each a different package type. 1 has the worlds best opamp after it that you can optionally add into the signal chain. Many different clocking schemes are possible, as well as power regulation schemes. And different ways to get the digital signal to the chip. And that doesn’t include the infinite ways it can be tuned in the internal firmware.

 

[daniboun]

So is it the chip alone that determines the sound signature?

You re right. All counts, specially the caps, the OP amps, and implementation that surround the chip.

 

[daniboun]

The best opamp is no opamp. You can also do that experiment on that EVM.

It is true, I remember when I bypassed the NC500MP Hypex OP amps (very simple to do by the way). It sounded fantastic BUT :
When you do so, you lower the input gain dramatically, so you need a good preamp to compensate for this....

 

[Amplifier dude]

Not just a good preamp, you need a high current gain stage with low output impedance, combined with 10v+

 

[xrk971]

I got an SMSL Merus based amp to test the sound and I don’t like it as much as TPA3255. Hard to say but it doesn’t sound as clear and the bass was not as hard hitting. But how much of this is implementation vs the chip intrinsic sound. I like other SMSL products.

 

[xrk971]

The best opamp is no opamp. You can also do that experiment on that EVM.

The best DAC is NoDAC.

 

[Amplifier dude]

The best DAC is NoDAC.

Or 512 1 bit dacs in parallel per channel. Best way to do things I’ve heard yet.

 

[xrk971]

That’s 512 DACs. I mean literally a DAC that doesn’t use any DAC IC and no FPGA either. We are working on a DAC-less DAC.

 

[redjr]

Having read the whole thread. Debates, ASR, chip model, measurements... Finally nobody here owns / has ever had a listen to this amp ?

This is the objectivists forum!

 

[Amplifier dude]

Yes I have seen that project going on for years. Has anyone achieved good results yet? Like as in comparable to this $25 USB dongle