Fake or real TDA2030 advice - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / projects

author: andybarrett1
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2018, 08:11:09 am
content: Hi AllNot sure if this is the right place to post but..... Here goes:-The enclosed pics are of my TDA2030 (ST) allegedly !Just wondering what the group consensus is, as to whether fake or real.TDA2030 are no longer made by ST, this was sold to me as new old stock. It doesn't look quite right to me.Not wider legs at top of deviceNo round indentation on front of deviceThe two indentations on side are at same levelThe metal tab is missing cut outs at top***Tab is Plated Copper ***Asking for a friends comments ?Thank you for readingBR Andy

author: BravoV
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2018, 08:23:38 am
content: Could you file or scratch the metal tab to reveal what underneath ?To my eyes it looks like aluminium rather than plated copper.

author: andybarrett1
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2018, 08:25:23 am
content: YesTab is copper (Tin plated)

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 13, 2018, 08:50:53 am
content: Used IC with fake markings. Quiet likely originally from ST. If you look at the leads, you should notice there are joints on the opposite side. That's because original leads were cut off and new leads welded on top.

author: andybarrett1
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2018, 08:54:53 am
content: Quote from: wraper on August 13, 2018, 08:50:53 amThat thought never passed my mind ?

author: mikerj
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2018, 03:52:41 pm
content: Quote from: andybarrett1 on August 13, 2018, 08:54:53 amIt's pretty common to get recycled devices like this from China. They won't have been tested so it's no guarantee that they work any better than the counterfeit parts.

author: Messtechniker
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2018, 04:45:08 pm
content: Err. New TDA 2030s are still available from reliable sources likeConrad (expensive) or Reichelt in Germany, for example.Why bother getting this dubious China stuff.

author: In Vacuo Veritas
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2018, 04:56:22 pm
content: Quote from: wraper on August 13, 2018, 08:50:53 amThe word you want is "quite". Not "quiet".

author: GigaJoe
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2018, 12:17:47 am
content: https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/tda2030a/msg1727897/#msg1727897labels "MAR" - suppose stm Morocco fabric , i would say it rather chinese crystals repackaged with stm label ...looking for "CHN" - more likely old STM, it cost significant more , not a $0.10 as "MAR"

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 14, 2018, 07:14:36 am
content: It's not even ST label, it's very different from real ST logo, there are not even ST letters on it. Also it's used IC, dodgy terminals is a giveaway. Try bending them and they are almost guaranteed to break at welding spot.

author: andybarrett1
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 17, 2018, 07:22:20 am
content: Thank you all for replies.More or less confirming what I thought .... Also some new ideasSeller is still telling me parts were from Newark (Farnell).... A statement I very much doubt !Ah well.....BR and thank you againAndy

author: bd139
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 17, 2018, 09:27:59 am
content: Recently did a repair on a car radio with TDA2030 in it. Didn't trust any vendors I found for supposed ST ones. However I found Unisonic have second sourced these so it got a utc2030 in it now. They work as good as the original parts did. And you're not likely to get recovered or fake ones because they're not a major brand so not worth cloning.

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 20, 2018, 05:16:49 am
content: It never ceases to amaze me the amount of effort some of these places go through, I mean welding new leads on recovered parts and stamping them with a fake label? They're so cheap, why not just sell them as recovered genuine parts? Then there are the counterfeit low price jellybean parts, baffles me why they bother. Or the counterfeit Dallas NVRAMs priced an order of magnitude lower than the genuine parts, they could sell them under some random brand as compatible aftermarket parts and then people wouldn't feel cheated. Must be some cultural aspect in China that I just don't grasp.