I wanted to compare different motor drivers together to see if we could maximize the torque of our motors. Here is a picture of my test rig and the results. The A4988 driver is a good starter driver. Even at peak current it did not run too hot. It peaks out at 1.7 amps however.

The DRV8825 driver can produce the most torque but it runs extremely hot at 4 amps, it would be difficult to get enough cooling to run it much past 2 amps. It is also the most noisy of the bunch.
The TMC2208 has very poor holding torque and is unsuitable for a cnc machine. It would work just fine for a pen plotter or 3d printer.
The TB6600 runs cool even at max current, but you could easily match the force output with the DRV8825 with less fuss. I’m disappointed in this one, it lacks umph.

This is all with 52mm 2A Nema17 stepper motors from AlliExpress being driven at 24v 3A power supply.

Note that my power supply was only 3A, it is possible the TB6600 driver could produce more torque in its 4A setting with a larger power supply.