This is a review and detailed measurements of the 3e audio 260-2-29A TPA3255 chip based stereo amplifier. It was sent to me by the company as a complete unit even though they only sell the amplifier modules.
As you see, it is a generic box which is something you can easily build yourself. I don't know what power supply is in there. Will fill in when I know. Cost is US $109 for the stereo amplifier module.
Back side of the reference design:
The differentiation here is implementation of "PFFB" which stands for post-filter feedback design. Without this, the required output filter will interact with speaker load, varying the frequency response of the amplifier. High cost amplifiers from likes of Hypex and Purifi have this but budget amplifiers usually do not. I am told there are other optimizations to extract best performance out of this class D IC.
This testing is for the stereo module. I was also sent a mono amp which I will test soon. Mono review is out now: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?reviews/
3e audio TPA3255 Stereo Amplifier Measurements
As usual we start with our dashboard:
Wow, I wasn't expect such good performance! Distortion is below threshold of hearing at nearly -120 dB. Noise performance then sets SINAD to 102 dB which easily lands the amplifier in our "Excellent" bucket:
Zooming in:
SNR is great for 16 bit content even at 5 watts and approaches state of the art at full power:
Frequency response shows the effect of PFFB:
Multitone shows that distortion in low to mid-frequencies is great but there is some degradation at upper end of hearing range:
This is reflected naturally in our 19+20 kHz test as well:
Crosstalk is better than average:
There is plenty of power on tap:
Notice the very low noise floor above competing with "big boys" of class D amplification there!
As noted, there is some weakness at higher frequencies:
There is no standby switch so I had to fully power cycle the amp to get the on/off noise:
Conclusions
I am amazed and pleased to see how much performance is extracted out of the TPA3255 class D amplifier IC here. Clearly a good designer is at work here. Noise and distortion are kept at a minimum while producing lots of power. There is some increased distortion at higher frequencies but that is a small consideration in the context of this class of amplification.
I am happy to recommend the 3e audio TPA 3255 amplification kits and products.
------------
As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.
Any donations are much appreciated using: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/how-to-support-audio-science-review.8150/
As you see, it is a generic box which is something you can easily build yourself. I don't know what power supply is in there. Will fill in when I know. Cost is US $109 for the stereo amplifier module.
Back side of the reference design:
The differentiation here is implementation of "PFFB" which stands for post-filter feedback design. Without this, the required output filter will interact with speaker load, varying the frequency response of the amplifier. High cost amplifiers from likes of Hypex and Purifi have this but budget amplifiers usually do not. I am told there are other optimizations to extract best performance out of this class D IC.
This testing is for the stereo module.
3e audio TPA3255 Stereo Amplifier Measurements
As usual we start with our dashboard:
Wow, I wasn't expect such good performance! Distortion is below threshold of hearing at nearly -120 dB. Noise performance then sets SINAD to 102 dB which easily lands the amplifier in our "Excellent" bucket:
Zooming in:
SNR is great for 16 bit content even at 5 watts and approaches state of the art at full power:
Frequency response shows the effect of PFFB:
Multitone shows that distortion in low to mid-frequencies is great but there is some degradation at upper end of hearing range:
This is reflected naturally in our 19+20 kHz test as well:
Crosstalk is better than average:
There is plenty of power on tap:
Notice the very low noise floor above competing with "big boys" of class D amplification there!
As noted, there is some weakness at higher frequencies:
There is no standby switch so I had to fully power cycle the amp to get the on/off noise:
Conclusions
I am amazed and pleased to see how much performance is extracted out of the TPA3255 class D amplifier IC here. Clearly a good designer is at work here. Noise and distortion are kept at a minimum while producing lots of power. There is some increased distortion at higher frequencies but that is a small consideration in the context of this class of amplification.
I am happy to recommend the 3e audio TPA 3255 amplification kits and products.
------------
As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.
Any donations are much appreciated using: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/how-to-support-audio-science-review.8150/
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