larcenasb
100+ Head-Fier
Anyone here have experience rolling different bypass caps for the Crack's last power supply cap? With this extra time at home, I spent hours switching out and listening with the two bypass caps I have: Jantzen Superior Z-cap 0.68uF 800V & Audyn Tri-Reference 0.68uF 600V ($15 & $25, respectively...neither grossly expensive).
This obviously isn't ideal because it's not a blind test, and there's a good chunk of time between listening with each bypass cap. Also, I am a highly skeptical person and am constantly questioning things to make sure I'm not fooling myself. Yet, every time I switch to the Audyn Tri-Reference, I am confident there is a noticeable tone and quality shift for the better. Specifically, the Audyn allows for a larger and deeper soundscape, precise placement of instruments within that soundscape, and a delicately handled treble with no loss of tantalizing bite. So, I soak in the sonic pleasure...then my skepticism cuts in again. I proceed to unplug everything, take my amp downstairs to the garage, and switch the cap back to the Jantzen again. And again, the sound is comparatively closed in, the distinct placement of instruments not so apparent, and treble a bit screechy...or so I think.
At this point, I feel like I'm going nuts... On one hand, I feel nourished and enthralled by my music in a substantial way with the Audyn, but, on the other hand, I know that there's nothing easier than fooling oneself. Another reason to think it's placebo is that I adore the marketing of the Audyn caps. Audyn's description of their True Copper Cap on Hificollective's website states that there is "no contamination by strange mixture of various metals and fairy like oils (LOL)," and the Tri-Reference is very similar with its copper-foil construction. Conveniently, the Jantzen is "made from polypropylene film metalized with aluminum and zinc particles (from partsconnexion)," i.e. a stange mixture of various metals haha. So those descriptions could be swaying my thoughts. But, Jantzen does go so far as to describe what their cap's sound is like, saying it has "good detailing and soundstaging with natural tone reproduction," but that's what I hear with the Audyn, not the Jantzen. But that is likely my bias towards Audyn, and trusting their marketing more to begin with. Buttttt maybe marketing and truth are not always mutually exclusive! AHHHHHHHHHHfjodyasknfd456%$^#5njkfbnas###!!
If anyone has done similar tests or has other opinions, I'd love to read about them as I gather more info about this mystique of judging musical reproduction.
(For reference, my Bottlehead Crack specs can be found on my profile page: About > Audio-Related Tweaks.)
I hope all of you and your loved ones are staying safe and doing okay amid our physical social distancing. Cheers
This obviously isn't ideal because it's not a blind test, and there's a good chunk of time between listening with each bypass cap. Also, I am a highly skeptical person and am constantly questioning things to make sure I'm not fooling myself. Yet, every time I switch to the Audyn Tri-Reference, I am confident there is a noticeable tone and quality shift for the better. Specifically, the Audyn allows for a larger and deeper soundscape, precise placement of instruments within that soundscape, and a delicately handled treble with no loss of tantalizing bite. So, I soak in the sonic pleasure...then my skepticism cuts in again. I proceed to unplug everything, take my amp downstairs to the garage, and switch the cap back to the Jantzen again. And again, the sound is comparatively closed in, the distinct placement of instruments not so apparent, and treble a bit screechy...or so I think.
At this point, I feel like I'm going nuts... On one hand, I feel nourished and enthralled by my music in a substantial way with the Audyn, but, on the other hand, I know that there's nothing easier than fooling oneself. Another reason to think it's placebo is that I adore the marketing of the Audyn caps. Audyn's description of their True Copper Cap on Hificollective's website states that there is "no contamination by strange mixture of various metals and fairy like oils (LOL)," and the Tri-Reference is very similar with its copper-foil construction. Conveniently, the Jantzen is "made from polypropylene film metalized with aluminum and zinc particles (from partsconnexion)," i.e. a stange mixture of various metals haha. So those descriptions could be swaying my thoughts. But, Jantzen does go so far as to describe what their cap's sound is like, saying it has "good detailing and soundstaging with natural tone reproduction," but that's what I hear with the Audyn, not the Jantzen. But that is likely my bias towards Audyn, and trusting their marketing more to begin with. Buttttt maybe marketing and truth are not always mutually exclusive! AHHHHHHHHHHfjodyasknfd456%$^#5njkfbnas###!!
If anyone has done similar tests or has other opinions, I'd love to read about them as I gather more info about this mystique of judging musical reproduction.
(For reference, my Bottlehead Crack specs can be found on my profile page: About > Audio-Related Tweaks.)
I hope all of you and your loved ones are staying safe and doing okay amid our physical social distancing. Cheers