[uzziah]

i've removed opamp-buffers (output), bridged output caps, and replaced opamp with ad8620. the improvements are significant and very noticeable. now i'd like to replace some electrolytic caps with higher quality ones (if this indeed is a worthwile mod). wondering if i could have some suggestions on what to use. i don't think this application demands blackgates or anything that extreme. i'm leaning towards standard panasonic caps, with a bit higher capacitence than stock.

using bg's pic
http://brian.osupages.com/audio/pict.../0404mods2.jpg

i'd appreciate some suggestions on type of cap and suggested capactiences

also: when i removed the buffers i bridged pads 1-2-3 and 5-6-7. is this necessary? or should i simply have bridged 1-2 and 5-6? wondering what others have done here? i don't like using more solder than necessary

also: interesingly, i seem to have a newer version of the 0404. bg's pic doesn't completely correspond to my card. some caps on bg's card are not present on mine, and some things are in slightly different places. interesting

 

[lan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by uzziah i don't think this application demands blackgates or anything that extreme.

On the contrary I think it does. It's not really that many caps nor is it that expensive (relatively compared to the larger ones) since they're the smaller blackgates. NX-hiq baby! Or you can go Sanyo OSCON which are also hard to find. Why spend all the labor and not go "all the way".

I do not like Panasonic FC. FM is nice but there are no small values of FMs.

 

[lan]

Can you take a pic of this new version?

 

[Magsy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lan On the contrary I think it does. It's not really that many caps nor is it that expensive (relatively compared to the larger ones) since they're the smaller blackgates. NX-hiq baby! Or you can go Sanyo OSCON which are also hard to find. Why spend all the labor and not go "all the way". I do not like Panasonic FC. FM is nice but there are no small values of FMs.

So junk the green ones and replace the yellow/red/purple with similar value quality caps?

 

[lan]

That's about right.

Some only use 3.3., 5V so you can get by with lesser voltage rated caps. You can use bigger capacity if you want to.

 

[ablaze]

I did some measurements in the other thread
perhaps you could measure yours and counter-check?

 

[uzziah]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lan On the contrary I think it does. It's not really that many caps nor is it that expensive (relatively compared to the larger ones) since they're the smaller blackgates. NX-hiq baby! Or you can go Sanyo OSCON which are also hard to find. Why spend all the labor and not go "all the way". I do not like Panasonic FC. FM is nice but there are no small values of FMs.

good point. i'll take your advice to heart. as far as higher capacitence vs. same capacitence as standard caps, what do you think? i'm rather new to this so i would be unsure how much more capacitence i should get. also, where do i buy blackgates?

 

[uzziah]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lan Can you take a pic of this new version?

afraid not. no dig camera. i belive it was modedl em8852. for instance, the cap in the lower right corner of the above pic is not on my card

 

[Porksoda]

Quote:

Originally Posted by uzziah good point. i'll take your advice to heart. as far as higher capacitence vs. same capacitence as standard caps, what do you think? i'm rather new to this so i would be unsure how much more capacitence i should get. also, where do i buy blackgates?

Same value should be fine, as long as it is a high quality cap. You'll have enough trouble cramming them in as it is; no need making it harder by getting bigger caps.

 

[lan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by uzziah afraid not. no dig camera. i belive it was modedl em8852. for instance, the cap in the lower right corner of the above pic is not on my card

I always thought the 0404 had more stuff on the board than what seemed necessary so maybe they scaled back a little *shrug*

Quote:

Originally Posted by Porksoda Same value should be fine, as long as it is a high quality cap. You'll have enough trouble cramming them in as it is; no need making it harder by getting bigger caps.

Well that's the thing, you don't need 16V rated caps for some of these so you can get by 6.3V caps and higher capacitance.

Quote:

Originally Posted by uzziah as far as higher capacitence vs. same capacitence as standard caps, what do you think? i'm rather new to this so i would be unsure how much more capacitence i should get. also, where do i buy blackgates?

Well bigger isn't necessarily better especially much bigger. It's probably safe to say twice. But quality is always better than quantity. Just make sure they fit in the holes as in they go all the way through.

http://partsconnexion.com
http://www.kyoto-electro.com/index.html but they maybe out of many of them. email first.

 

[uzziah]

lan, i'm wondering if you or anyone else has replaced caps (apex and bg i think have) can comment on the sound differences

also: will i be able to through-hole the caps, or will i need to do it smd style? not a big deal, but my assumption is i'll need to it smd

and the squeeze doesn't look too bad. maybe it's just me

 

[lan]

Well which ever better caps you'll use should improve accross the board. That generally means more detail, tighter bass, smoother treble, more separation, etc. My only advice to you in doing this DIY stuff is to form your own opinions through trials. Although DIY means saving money or getting better performance cheaply, it also allows you to tweak to the sound you like. It's in your own benefit to try out the different parts like caps, opamps, etc. to see what you like where. Sure somethings are more science but other things are like trials.

The caps pictured above that are cylyndrical are all through hole.

>>>and the squeeze doesn't look too bad. maybe it's just me

The larger blackgates like FK and larger voltage Ns are just too large to fit in the holes. Just beware. Take note of the diameter's of some of the caps. Some don't fit well side by side. In those case, you can place some on the back of the card.

 

[uzziah]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lan Well which ever better caps you'll use should improve accross the board. That generally means more detail, tighter bass, smoother treble, more separation, etc. My only advice to you in doing this DIY stuff is to form your own opinions through trials. Although DIY means saving money or getting better performance cheaply, it also allows you to tweak to the sound you like. It's in your own benefit to try out the different parts like caps, opamps, etc. to see what you like where. Sure somethings are more science but other things are like trials. The caps pictured above that are cylyndrical are all through hole. >>>and the squeeze doesn't look too bad. maybe it's just me The larger blackgates like FK and larger voltage Ns are just too large to fit in the holes. Just beware. Take note of the diameter's of some of the caps. Some don't fit well side by side. In those case, you can place some on the back of the card.

that's very good advice. excellent point about trying things for myself. that's just what i'll do. thanks, lan; always appreciate your insights

 

[sleepy dan]

As far as capacitor size, I would up the values of the caps decoupling the opamps at least. Here's why:

The op-amps arre fed 12v from the PCI in via a 10 ohm resistor and 10uF decoupling caps. Together these components form a filter that removes (or at least starts to remove) crap from the supply lines above 1.6KHz. Increasing the caps to 100uF will lower this point to 160Hz, resulting in a cleaner supply. Remember to bypass them with a small film cap too.

Whatever you do, I'd agree with the above poster that ultimately you need to experiment to find what works best. Good luck!

 

[ablaze]

decoupling caps.. those would be the 4 "|" marked 1.2v green caps in the above pic? (those are actually 47uF) or are you referring to the 2 yellow 12v caps on the leftmost part of the pic?