caps....

[JustinS]

Hey guys,

A technical question... looking through my Farnell catalogue, all of the electrolytic caps are rated by temp, impedance and ripple.

Now temp I get - higher is better, longer life etc. etc. But impedance and ripple I'm not sure about. Is lower or higher ripple better?? Are they talking about the smoothing capabilities of a cap in a power supply - so the lower ripple is better, or what?? :? And I'm assuming here we want caps to have a low impedance(all the lower impedance ones are more expensive :grin: ) but what effects does this have...

Justin

 

[peterc]

RS also have Elna Starget caps.

http://www.rs-export.com/

Try stock code 215-5663 in the search box for a 1000u/16v cap.

This is very interesting listening to peoples experiences with diff cap models.

Peter

 

[sismofyt]

Those Elnas are my favourites. I have used them in several projects replacing very fancy polypropylene caps :shock: They've got a real neutral sound, pleasent even. I recapped a small console ('bout 600 pcs) and they difference was night and day. They also - very important - sound real nice without bias :!:

They're also VERY good as cathode bypass caps in tube amps.

I've never been a Panasonic/Nichicon fan myself... soundcat Dave, isn't it about time you took the plunge and bought a load of Elnas?

Ripple is only important if you use them in PSU apps. None of these caps should be the main filtering caps, imo. Low ESR is good in all apps :thumb:

 

[rafafredd]

[quote author="sismofyt"] None of these caps should be the main filtering caps, imo. [/quote]

Why not?

 

[Svart]

so how about phantom blocking caps? does the brand/model matter here as much as other places?

 

[tony dB]

:shock:

keep this thread going plz... super information :thumb:

 

[clintrubber]

RS also have Elna Starget caps.

http://www.rs-export.com/

Try stock code 215-5663 in the search box for a 1000u/16v cap.

This is very interesting listening to peoples experiences with diff cap models.

FWIW, I'll be building my SSL-comp with the above mentioned Elna's (signalpath). I ordered from RS and each few days one of the ordered values arrives :wink:

For comparisons we'd may need to define some standard test-conditions, or otherwise it'll remain highly subjective, not ? And then still, we'd be comparing not only the caps but the VCA-versions, etc etc as well. But if we can come to a certain test-setup I'm all ears (once my unit has been finished :roll: ).

Peter

 

[drpat]

...

 

[gyraf]

The caps has next-to-none influence on sound - at least the types that I've tried.

99.9% of the "errors" in this unit comes from the VCA's anyway..

Jakob E.

 

[drpat]

...

 

[tony dB]

drpat,

please do this and report us if you can hear/measure any differences. I'm sure a lot of the Labbers around here have similar thoughts about this...

Take care,

Tony.

 

[gyraf]

What I'm saying is that once you've bypassed the electrolytics with 100nF polyesters, there's not much difference between expensive "audio" types and run-of-the-mill standard types.

But yes, get low-esr whenever you can - they're not much more expensive than the standard types.

Jakob E.

 

[drpat]

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