Orgy of Capacitors: The Cap Thread

[NightFlight]

What the heck are the zip ties tied to?

 

[JamieMcC]

  What the heck are the zip ties tied to?

 
One of these for each tie.
 

 

[NightFlight]

Well holee-crap.

 

[JamieMcC]

Hi guys I have hundred or so hours on the JFX 100uf 250v premium film caps now and have added some impressions on them to them at the end of the first post on my Crack build page if anyone is interested.

http://www.bottlehead.com/smf/index.php/topic,5284.msg50963.html#msg50963
 
Cheers

 

[canister]

 
This is my DIY headphone amp for my HD800 wired in balanced mode. The circuit is a single -ended triode design using one 6072A driving a 45 tube, yielding an output of about 1.5W per channel. The power supply to the filament of each 6072A and 45 is DC and independently regulated. The B+ to each channel is also independently regulated using a tube circuit consisting of 1 OC3, 1 12AX7 and 1 6AS7G. I use a metal base GZ34 as the rectifier. All transformers (amorphous core for the output) / choke are made by Tamura Corp., Japan.
 
I have used a variety of caps in this amp, consisting of 4 Mundorf M Tube Cap, one pair of Blackgate electrolytic, one pair of Audio Note silver foil (signal), 4 V-Cap TFTF Teflon (bypass) and multiple Auricap XO metalized polypropylene.
 
I am extremely happy with the sound of this amp, though all the caps have cost me quite a sizeable sum!
 

 

[JamieMcC]

   
This is my DIY headphone amp for my HD800 wired in balanced mode. The circuit is a single -ended triode design using one 6072A driving a 45 tube, yielding an output of about 1.5W per channel. The power supply to the filament of each 6072A and 45 is DC and independently regulated. The B+ to each channel is also independently regulated using a tube circuit consisting of 1 OC3, 1 12AX7 and 1 6AS7G. I use a metal base GZ34 as the rectifier. All transformers (amorphous core for the output) / choke are made by Tamura Corp., Japan.
 
I have used a variety of caps in this amp, consisting of 4 Mundorf M Tube Cap, one pair of Blackgate electrolytic, one pair of Audio Note silver foil (signal), 4 V-Cap TFTF Teflon (bypass) and multiple Auricap XO metalized polypropylene.
 
I am extremely happy with the sound of this amp, though all the caps have cost me quite a sizeable sum!

Wow that's a mighty impressive amp. Way beyond my current skill level. I have been toying with adding some bypass caps and did look at the TeflonV-Caps a while back and they are expensive to say the least! I have been looking for 2.2uf 250v and was thinking of trying a couple of those Russian teflons I would need to mount a couple of pairs in series for to reach 2.2uf. No rush for now and more likely to try the Mundorf silver gold oil to be honest.

 

[canister]

If anyone is interested in bypassing capacitors, this is an informative write up:
 
http://www.hawthorneaudio.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=3763

 

[magiccabbage]

  If anyone is interested in bypassing capacitors, this is an informative write up:
 
http://www.hawthorneaudio.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=3763

serious build there. You got anymore pics. Did it take long to make?

 

[JamieMcC]

Well I suppose it was inevitable I have had a JFX  2.2uF 250V Polypropylene Film cap that has been sitting in my parts box for a while now (I brought it at the same time as the 100uf films as it only cost £1.72) and ended up soldering it in as film bypass cap across the last electrolytic filter cap in the Crack today.

 I feel there has been a slight improvement in fluidity and presence a touch more body to vocals and also the top end has slightly more crispness to the shimmers and tinkles without importantly for me adding any brightness.

 It now opens up a can of worms with respect to trying something like a PIO or SIO or further bypassing of the current bypassing cap with a smaller Teflon.

I will let the cap burn in for a week or two in situ while I mull over which options to have fun experimenting with next.
 
 

 

[canister]

  Well I suppose it was inevitable I have had a JFX  2.2uF 250V Polypropylene Film cap that has been sitting in my parts box for a while now (I brought it at the same time as the 100uf films as it only cost £1.72) and ended up soldering it in as film bypass cap across the last electrolytic filter cap in the Crack today.

 I feel there has been a slight improvement in fluidity and presence a touch more body to vocals and also the top end has slightly more crispness to the shimmers and tinkles without importantly for me adding any brightness.

 It now opens up a can of worms with respect to trying something like a PIO or SIO or further bypassing of the current bypassing cap with a smaller Teflon.

I will let the cap burn in for a week or two in situ while I mull over which options to have fun experimenting with next.
 
 

Welcome to the fun world of DIY. Have you considered Solen caps from France? I have had great experience with their caps.
 
This is a good place to browse around for components of all kind and also get an idea of their pricing. Excellent and prompt service from this company.
 
http://www.hificollective.co.uk/

 

[canister]

  serious build there. You got anymore pics. Did it take long to make?

This pic shows the size of the amp relative to my HD800. The output tubes shown are EML 45 Mesh. In the previous picture, I was using NOS Tung-Sol 45 circa 1950s.
 
This amp weighs 24kg. It took me 7 weekends to built.....thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it!
 

 

[brunk]

 
This pic shows the size of the amp relative to my HD800. The output tubes shown are EML 45 Mesh. In the previous picture, I was using NOS Tung-Sol 45 circa 1950s.
 
This amp weighs 24kg. It took me 7 weekends to built.....thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it!
 

That amp is absolutely beautiful, props to you I am in the process of building a 4-channel LPUHP amp with internal active 4th-order crossover for my horns+supertweets that is balanced throughout the entire signal path and avoiding DSP/resampling. It's going to take a few weekends and I hope it sounds as good as this masterpiece looks!

 
P.S. since this is a capacitor thread, would you guys recommend film caps over multi-layer ceramics for an active crossover design? I am leaning towards the films, but would appreciate a second opinion.

 

[earwaxxer]

................
  P.S. since this is a capacitor thread, would you guys recommend film caps over multi-layer ceramics for an active crossover design? I am leaning towards the films, but would appreciate a second opinion.

I would use films for sure...

 

[lehmanhill]

  Do you listened Rike Audio (PIO) S-Caps yet? Thank you!

I have had the chance to play with the Rike S-Caps in both a 1 uF, DC blocking cap and a 6.8 uF tweeter crossover cap.  Frankly, they are really good, one the best caps I have auditioned, but also not at all what I expected from a PIO.  I'm a little hopeful that Jon L will be interested enough to try them.  It would be great to have a review from such a grand database as Jon's.
 
I say that they are unexpected.  Most PIO's (at least in my experience) have a lush, even colored mid-range and often lack a little detail and sparkle on top.  Now I haven't tried any of the really good and expensive caps, so my comparisons are to lesser, but still good caps.  Acting as a DC blocking cap at the input of my power amp, the Rike S-cap excels at clarity and detail.  I think they are better for clarity than the Audyn True Copper and a Mundorf ZN that I have tried.  They stand out as clearly better than a Jantzen Superior Z or an Obbligato Premium Gold.  The later caps seem veiled and thin sounding by comparison, at least in my system.
 
Another interesting difference is that the Rike S-Cap displays more dynamic range than other caps.  You seem to hear more of the quiet details, but they remain quiet, while the loud sections of music seem louder somehow.  The combination of clarity, detail, and dynamic range result in an excellent sound stage with width, depth, and focus.
 
As for balance, the bass and mid-range are there in appropriate proportion, but perhaps a bit recessed from the higher frequencies.  Also, the mid-range seems clean and clear, but not warm or lush as you might find in a K75-10 or a Jupiter HT.  In fact, I would say that the Rike has a character similar to the K71-4 Russian Polystyrene, just better than the K71.  With a system that is already warm sounding, the Rike might be a perfect choice.  I guess that makes sense as it was developed by a company that designs tube equipment. 
 
When I tried the Rike in the tweeter section of a passive crossover, I found a similar effect, clarity, focus, and dynamic range.  Choosing something warmer for the mid-bass crossover section was a really nice combination. 
 
One of the things that I really like about the Rike is that tone is very natural.  Polypropylene seems to give everything a slight plastic tone, polystyrene is fairly neutral but maybe a little harsh, and teflon, at least the Russian FT teflons, are a little slippery or oily in tone.  To me, paper in oil caps give a nice neutral and natural tone that I like very much.  The Rike is just the best of the PIO's that I've tried because it keeps its natural sound and opens up the detail in ways that most PIOs don't.
 
Overall, if you are looking for caps in the Rike price range, they are definitely worth a listen.  That is especially true if you goal is unveiled and detailed.

 

[nOtEcH]

Have read on the Internet that some people say the Duelund Cast Capacitors are the best they have ever heard. Hope someday you might consider reviewing them Jon L.

A few years back I searched for "the best caps in the world" and I ended eventually up with Duelund caps. They were the best I've ever heard.
Now a new Duelund has entered the scene.. new for me anyway and it is rated even better than the one I've got in my speakers.

The place that I found best information about the Duelund caps back then is still available and reviews have been added:
http://www.humblehomemadehifi.com/Cap.html