Orgy of Capacitors: The Cap Thread

[onform]

Forgive me but i'm new to diy and I have a few Q on caps. how else can a 22n cap be described in uf terms. again forgive the noob..

[spritzer]

Originally Posted by onform

Forgive me but i'm new to diy and I have a few Q on caps. how else can a 22n cap be described in uf terms. again forgive the noob..

1n is 0.001u so in this case 0.022uF

[onform]

thanks Spritzer

I'm looking for a nice all round coupling cap for the interstage of the amp i'm planning to build, (0.022uf/100V); now money is an object so im not looking at silver/oil etc types. but I want something a little special what do you think????

[onform]

bump....sorry......

[Jon L]

Just saw your PM, in which you mentioned Wima MKP is the stock cap called for. Have you tried the Wima and not liked it?

If you tried Wima and wanted to change x,y,z, perhaps we can give useful recommendations, especially since I was already planning to put in some Wima MKP's soon for some "real world" sound-check.

[onform]

Jon
I have not even built the amp yet, i'm trying to tie down all the various components im going to use. The amp I am planning to build think was designed with ease and cost in mind i think, i'm assuming that these wima caps are used to fit into price constraints, not really knowing a lot I am probably way out. considering these caps are the only ones in the direct signal path I just wanted something a little special.

I will probably try the wima's first then role in some big guns..lol..sorry

seriously I have allways been on the fence with the likes of cap and resistor changes and want to have an opinion of my own, partly the reason i'm taking on my first build, so i can chop and change as i feel.

I have never plucked up the courage to start modding my em pro.

what do you think?

[FallenAngel]

You're better off simply building the Optimized Morgan Jones (EarMax Pro is based on this design).

Nice thread by the way.

[onform]

Originally Posted by FallenAngel

You're better off simply building the Optimized Morgan Jones (EarMax Pro is based on this design).

Nice thread by the way.

I'm quite happy with the em pro for the mean time. I think what is needed is a different design so I can run comparisons. plus the design I have chosen is a low V design...soha II, Last thing i want is to fry myself on my first build...

[FallenAngel]

Originally Posted by onform

I'm quite happy with the em pro for the mean time. I think what is needed is a different design so I can run comparisons. plus the design I have chosen is a low V design...soha II, Last thing i want is to fry myself on my first build...

You'll have fun with the SOHA2, I'm building the prototype, hoping to finish next week.

[onform]

Originally Posted by FallenAngel

You'll have fun with the SOHA2, I'm building the prototype, hoping to finish next week.

Well what caps you using at c1 l/r, standard wima or something else.

[Jon L]

Jantzen Superior Z-Cap



Jantzen Audio is a Danish company, and they make three grades of polypropylene capacitors: Z-Cap, Superior Z-Cap, and Silver Z-Cap. I am testing the Superior Z-Cap which, like the Silver Z-Cap, has been wound using a “special machine…so that the capasitors become a very tight reel. This minimizes the inner vibration and keeps microphonic effects as low as possible.” The ends appear sealed with some sort of resin to keep out moisture, a nice touch, and the overall look and feel are definitely a notch or two above the common polypropylene types.

There is a bit of “buzz” about Jantzen capacitors out there, and they certainly did not disappoint. Superior Z-Cap rather reminds me of Dynamicap E, which is one of my favorite polypropylene capacitors. They share a sense of evenness, balance, and coherence, which means nothing is sticking out like a sore thumb to distract you from the music. Superior-Z possesses a very smooth, flowing, mid-hall type of personality with no sense of congealing, bloat, raggedness, or bite, yet it is not lacking in detail resolution, especially when compared to something like Claritycap SA. One of its greatest attributes is the fact it’s difficult to point out things it specifically does “wrong” because it pulls off a great balancing act that serves the music.

Once again, it’s not fair to compare most polypropylene caps to expensive teflons, but the best of both breeds are more than capable of delivering the music. Since cost is always an issue, a top-grade polypropylene is certainly a viable way to go in my opinion.

[onform]

Jon how about a list, order of superiority best to not so best...Sound quality wise and a short list of attributes. You could include a price comparison maybe one value range as a guide...how about 220n..lol. Maybe even suggested uses??

Then this thread could/should become a sticky

[Jon L]

Originally Posted by onform

Jon how about a list, order of superiority best to not so best...Sound quality wise and a short list of attributes. You could include a price comparison maybe one value range as a guide...how about 220n..lol. Maybe even suggested uses??

Then this thread could/should become a sticky

That's the point. I really don't like an absolute list of "superiority" like that b/c for sombody else, it's perfectly possible for a cheap capacitor low on my list to sound "better" than my favorite caps depending on the specific position, gear, rest of system, and one's tastes. These things really should not be given a concrete score or ranking.

Speaking of which, I've got the Wima MKP 10 630V caps in there now, and heck, one could do a lot worse..

[Jon L]

WIMA MKP10 Polypropylene Capacitor



I was absolutely shocked when I received my WIMA MKP10 capacitors. They are HUGE as seen next to same-capacitance AudioCap Theta and Auricap in the picture. This German company supplies a lot of capacitors for many high-end companies, and I have seen many red-colored WIMA capacitors inside components; but I don’t remember them being this large. WIMA MKP10’s claim to fame is their “double-layer” construction:
“The construction principle of the series WIMA MKP 10 consists of a non-metallized dielectric film and an carrier film metallized on both sides acting as electrode. Thanks to the metallization on both sides, the electrical conductivity is considerably improved and the contact surface between the electrodes and the schoopage layer is doubled. This results in better contact and allows for high current and pulse loading capability.”

The reason I am even going into such detail is due to the fact its sound quality easily exceeded my jaded expectations. It sounded quite bright at first, but after settling down, it presented a nicely-detailed, airy, and sexily breathy sound. It perhaps does not have 100% of the refinement and sophistication of Dynamicap E or Jantzen Superior Z, but its slightly more forward and breathy sound is a bit more exciting and ear-grabbing. It’s not overly etched or thin-sounding, either, which you always have to watch out for in cheap metalized poly caps. I have heard some people complain WIMA lacks bass, but this was not true in my case at all, as its bass was just as good as other good poly caps. I don’t know how WIMA’s other caps sound, such as MKP4 and FKP, but the 630V MKP10 is a budget-champ!

[Jon L]

AudioCap Theta Polypropylene Film and Tin Foil Capacitor



AudioCap Theta is constructed with polypropylene film and tin foil with gold-plated OFHC leads, and it is very reasonably priced compared to AudioCap PCU, which is polypropylene film and Copper foil and priced accordingly. I have read AudioCap Thetas being described as lean and clinical in the past, and that’s exactly how they sounded in the beginning. However, after proper break-in, these things became extraordinarily rich and warm in tone, without any wooly, syrupy sloppiness. AudioCap Thetas definitely had another notch of detail and resolution in the mid-midrange compared to even the best metallized polypropylene caps, resulting in sumptuously textured and detailed voices; however, the upper-midrange and treble also retained this rich smoothness, which in fact made them sound a touch less open and sparkling compared to metalized poly caps like WIMA.

The longer I listened to AudioCap Theta, I was both more charmed and frustrated at the same time. It’s densitiy of tone and authoritative texturing in the midrange was very tasty, which only highlighted its Achilles’ heel, i.e. somewhat dark and shut-in upper highs compared to the best. Hoping for luck, I tried bypassing the AudioCap Theta with FT-1 Russian teflons 1/10th it’s value. Even though both caps were burned-in, the resulting sound was initially horrid: overly bright, grating, and just amusical.

Knowing these things take time, even with previously used caps, I ran them for some time, and like magic, everything fell into place. The combination was at once rich, textured, and warm, yet with intact high-frequency leading edge detail and sparkle. This casserole of sorts yielded very, very satisfying results, working much better than when I bypassed oil caps with small Teflon caps. I must presume that oil caps and teflon caps are simply too different to gel coherently; combining more similar film caps really hit on something wonderful here.

In fact, to check my own impressions, I put back one of my expensive Teflon references; and I honestly can’t tell you I definitely prefer the teflons. The teflons still have a smidge more see-through transparency and smoother liquidity, but the Theta/teflon combo has more weight and texture behind the notes while not giving up overall resolution and punch. This combo is a definite contender in the right system.