Hello everyone, I've been reading this forum sporadically for years now, but this is my first time posting.
Years ago I bought a Topping MX-5 for my desk setup, and while it's a good amp and I never had issues with it, I found myself with the power strip completely full.
So instead of spending 20€ for a bigger power strip, I decided to go down the path of building a USB-C only powered amp since they don't seem to exist on the market.
I also took this as an opportunity to learn more about audio signals given that I'm relatively new to electronics and pcb design.
I spent a few hundred on this project but I was surprised to see that it only uses 0.5W in standby compared to my Topping's 5W, so I guess I'm gonna break even in a few decades
It just has a couple of issues:
I put everything open source, the schematics, the hardware files, the 3d models for the case and the code.
Here is the project: https://github.com/eliachiarucci/DA15
I also created an app to apply EQ curves visually compared to the basic built-in bass and treble in the menu.
It's here: https://github.com/eliachiarucci/EQOS, there is a release just for MacOS at the moment, but it will work for Windows and Linux as well.
I would like to take some measurements for this board, but I'm not sure how to approach it.
I have a Scarlett 2i2 3rd Gen, but I'm not sure how to measure a Class-D amp properly or whether the interface has enough accuracy for meaningful measurements. Any recommendations?
Years ago I bought a Topping MX-5 for my desk setup, and while it's a good amp and I never had issues with it, I found myself with the power strip completely full.
So instead of spending 20€ for a bigger power strip, I decided to go down the path of building a USB-C only powered amp since they don't seem to exist on the market.
I also took this as an opportunity to learn more about audio signals given that I'm relatively new to electronics and pcb design.
I spent a few hundred on this project but I was surprised to see that it only uses 0.5W in standby compared to my Topping's 5W, so I guess I'm gonna break even in a few decades
It just has a couple of issues:
- It has a small pop when powering it up even if the datasheet for the amplifier says it should have a de-pop functionality. Maybe I wired something incorrectly, or maybe a small pop is still expected? In any case this is not a problem for me as my usb hub (but even my laptop) always provides power, so it won't power cycle.
- I should have wired the amp gain pin to my MCU, because I'm now stuck with a max power of around 4.4W into 4Ω and 2.2W into 2Ω per channel, and even though it's plenty enough for my Klipsch speakers, it would be nice to actually use the whole 15W of usb-c power when available.
The upside is that the volume can be always cranked all the way up without clipping, and theoretically it should stay at around 0.035–0.04% THD according to the datasheet.
I put everything open source, the schematics, the hardware files, the 3d models for the case and the code.
Here is the project: https://github.com/eliachiarucci/DA15
I also created an app to apply EQ curves visually compared to the basic built-in bass and treble in the menu.
It's here: https://github.com/eliachiarucci/EQOS, there is a release just for MacOS at the moment, but it will work for Windows and Linux as well.
I would like to take some measurements for this board, but I'm not sure how to approach it.
I have a Scarlett 2i2 3rd Gen, but I'm not sure how to measure a Class-D amp properly or whether the interface has enough accuracy for meaningful measurements. Any recommendations?
