My Capacitor comparisons: Mundorfs, VCap, Sonicap Platinum, Auricap, etc

kris_oslo · « **Reply #380 on:** 11 Aug 2009, 03:53 pm »

Yes Jon, I will bypass the jupiters first. But the size I orderd might be wrong. EP 1832 0.015uf . Let's hope its enough...

If they tighten up the jupiters somewhat, and also give it more 'edges' and brightness I am good. The Obbligato's are a bit too edgy, makes the sound fatiguing sometimes. Probably the main fault is my AKG K 701's.

Those ClarityCap MR must be tried.... They are cheaper than mundorf sio.

K

Jon L · « **Reply #381 on:** 12 Aug 2009, 04:13 pm »

Quote from: kris_oslo on 11 Aug 2009, 03:53 pm

Yes Jon, I will bypass the jupiters first. But the size I orderd might be wrong. EP 1832 0.015uf . Let's hope its enough...

If they tighten up the jupiters somewhat, and also give it more 'edges' and brightness I am good. The Obbligato's are a bit too edgy, makes the sound fatiguing sometimes. Probably the main fault is my AKG K 701's.

Those ClarityCap MR must be tried.... They are cheaper than mundorf sio.

K

The often-quoted rule of thumb for bypass is 1/10 to 1/20 of the larger cap value, but it's really all try-and-see. IME usually, the larger the bypass cap, the more of its sound signature will come through, which can be good or bad depending on the quality of the bypass and bypassed cap.

And yeah, AKG K701 kind of sounds like Obbligato non-oil cap already. Perhaps you are headed for the Senn HD800 (just kidding)

kris_oslo · « **Reply #382 on:** 12 Aug 2009, 05:09 pm »

hehe, but I think you are onto something. My problem is the AKG K 701, you never become happy.

The jupiters are just a tad to 'fat' sounding, so a PIO cap probably is a bit too much. Mundorf SIO might be a nice 'inbetween'. But depends on the amp.

NOS dac + ClarityCap MR coupling cap + Lehmann Linear would be a great and fun combo. But the Linear is so expensive, even while using that tad old 2134 opamp.

JoshK · « **Reply #383 on:** 13 Aug 2009, 12:10 pm »

Quote from: Jon L on 12 Aug 2009, 04:13 pm

The often-quoted rule of thumb for bypass is 1/10 to 1/20 of the larger cap value, but it's really all try-and-see.

Most of what I've seen suggests the rule of thumb to be 100:1, not to be argumentative.

face · « **Reply #384 on:** 13 Aug 2009, 12:38 pm »

Quote from: JoshK on 13 Aug 2009, 12:10 pm

Quote from: Jon L on 12 Aug 2009, 04:13 pm

The often-quoted rule of thumb for bypass is 1/10 to 1/20 of the larger cap value, but it's really all try-and-see.

Most of what I've seen suggests the rule of thumb to be 100:1, not to be argumentative.

I believe that's the rule of thumb for power supplies more than speaker crossovers.

dweekie · « **Reply #385 on:** 14 Aug 2009, 01:53 am »

Quote from: face on 13 Aug 2009, 12:38 pm

Quote from: JoshK on 13 Aug 2009, 12:10 pm
Quote from: Jon L on 12 Aug 2009, 04:13 pm

The often-quoted rule of thumb for bypass is 1/10 to 1/20 of the larger cap value, but it's really all try-and-see.

Most of what I've seen suggests the rule of thumb to be 100:1, not to be argumentative.
I believe that's the rule of thumb for power supplies more than speaker crossovers.

Thumbs come in different sizes

face · « **Reply #386 on:** 14 Aug 2009, 01:58 am »

That is true too.

I was under the impression of bypassing in power supply caps was to make them "quieter". Bypassing in speaker crossovers is to change voicing.

Jon L · « **Reply #387 on:** 15 Aug 2009, 02:02 am »

Russian K75-10 Hybrid Paper and Polyethylene Terephthalate In Oil Capacitor

This Russian military capacitor is quite intriguing in its reported construction and in appearance that resembles a small grenade. Its dielectric is claimed to be a hybrid of paper and polyethylene terephthalate, which is essentially a type of mylar, saturated in oil. There is some debate as to which Russian "oil" capacitor is the best, and while K40Y is widely recognized and used, some report K75-10 is the premium oil capacitor out of the Russian military.

I can report that K75-10 sounds extremely unique, quite different from K40Y PIO and any other true PIO one cares to mention, including Vitamin Q, Jensen, and AmpOhm. It has a very saturated, colorful, textured, and detailed midrange that is thick and juicy. While PIO's are known for their natural and smooth midrange, K75 seems to add some jest, pop, and color to the proceedings, yielding an apparently more detailed and forceful presentation. Treble and bass is pretty good, especially for an oil cap, but the leading edges are not razor-sharp and precise like premium film caps. Since the midrange is so involving and palpable, the lack of equal force in treble makes it seem a bit dark overall, but as one increases the volume, this becomes less of an issue, and poorly-recorded music is much more tolerable at higher volume.

The sound is rather addicting in its presentation and can even be called delicious in what it does well, kind of reminiscent of biting into a ripe peach. The line dividing "colorful" and "colored" is thin, and while K75-10 likely leans a bit to the latter, I quite enjoy its substantial sound and prefer it to the thin, plasticky sound many other capacitors represent.

JoshK · « **Reply #388 on:** 15 Aug 2009, 02:21 am »

Interestingly, I have a whole lot of these in various sizes. I hadn't thought to try them in coupling position. They were always slated to be used in power supplies as they come in a varied of sizes including very large and very high voltage. I have some 50uf 1.5KV K75s. Those of for a big ass SET amp using GM70s or 813s.

Jon L · « **Reply #389 on:** 15 Aug 2009, 03:21 pm »

Quote from: JoshK on 15 Aug 2009, 02:21 am

Interestingly, I have a whole lot of these in various sizes. I hadn't thought to try them in coupling position. They were always slated to be used in power supplies as they come in a varied of sizes including very large and very high voltage. I have some 50uf 1.5KV K75s. Those of for a big ass SET amp using GM70s or 813s.

I do wonder what the difference among all the different K75's are. Clearly, some are meant for high-voltage PS use, but some are spec'd and sized just right for coupling.

K75-10 Green body
K75-15 High Voltage "tub"
K75-17 High Voltage "tub"
K75-24 Green body tubular
K75-28 High Voltage "tub"

jrebman · « **Reply #390 on:** 15 Aug 2009, 03:25 pm »

So what's a good source for these?

-- Jim

JoshK · « **Reply #391 on:** 15 Aug 2009, 05:43 pm »

Quote from: jrebman on 15 Aug 2009, 03:25 pm

So what's a good source for these?

-- Jim

I got mine all on epay. KWTubes was one good source. He is very cordial. Shipping took a while from there, but that is par for the course when ordering from former USSR.

jrebman · « **Reply #392 on:** 15 Aug 2009, 07:18 pm »

Thanks, Josh. I just got some tubes from Bulgaria and was shocked that they got here in less than a week, and without any express shipping.

In case anybody is interested, the ebay seller is LCI electronics. Packaging was excellent too.

-- Jim

JoshK · « **Reply #393 on:** 20 Aug 2009, 03:43 pm »

Quote from: jrebman on 15 Aug 2009, 07:18 pm

Thanks, Josh. I just got some tubes from Bulgaria and was shocked that they got here in less than a week, and without any express shipping.

In case anybody is interested, the ebay seller is LCI electronics. Packaging was excellent too.

-- Jim

I have had those experiences as well. Of course, I didn't pay attention to who was fast and who wasn't. I've ordered from most all the major russian epayers.

I've had good dealings with LCI as well. Anthony Welsh is really slow but always come through. I've good dealings with Alexer.

Jon L · « **Reply #394 on:** 23 Aug 2009, 11:19 pm »

BYPASSING WITH VCAP TEFLONS

After being charmed by the K75-10 capacitor, I did try replacing them with several others but ended up missing what K75-10 does best, i.e. rich, colorful, center-of-earth midrange, with gobs of texture, which some may interpret as extra grain. Putting the K75-10 back in, I then missed the finely-delineated upper frequencies with smooth extension other caps are blessed with.

In the past, whenever I was faced with this type of situation, bypassing often saved the day, so I tried bypassing K75-10 with VCap teflons. With many caps, bypassing with teflons often sound terribly disjointed and incoherent, but K75-10 sang beautifully with VCap teflons. This combination retained all the warmth, richness, and texture of K75-10 but imbued the upper and lower frequencies with extra clarity and definition that was sorely needed. As often is the case when high frequency harmonics are improved, the bass frequencies subjectively tightened up as well. This pair is so attractive-sounding that I believe the combo belongs in the league of the best of the breed. Of course, there is no guarantee this combo will work as well in one's particular gear/system, but if you find teflons too "clinical" and oilers not neutral enough, one can certainly do a lot worse.

poseidonsvoice · « **Reply #395 on:** 23 Aug 2009, 11:41 pm »

What value did you use for the VH Teflon cap? 1% of the base, or 10% or?

Thanks,

Anand.

Jon L · « **Reply #396 on:** 23 Aug 2009, 11:56 pm »

Quote from: poseidonsvoice on 23 Aug 2009, 11:41 pm

What value did you use for the VH Teflon cap? 1% of the base, or 10% or?

Thanks,

Anand.

Around 10%, though I wish I had smaller VCaps to try for fun..

JoshK · « **Reply #397 on:** 24 Aug 2009, 01:47 am »

Very cool Jon. Will have to give them a try.

Asic81 · « **Reply #398 on:** 24 Aug 2009, 04:51 am »

Hi Jon
Can you bypass the K75-10 with FT-1 Russian Teflon and compare with VCap
Thanks
DN

BobM · « **Reply #399 on:** 24 Aug 2009, 12:48 pm »

I have Multi Cap 1.0uF PPMFX's in my phono stage as output coupling caps. They generally sound very good, but were brought up a notch after I bypassed them with 0.1uF Russian Teflons (though I had mounting issues to contend with since the Russians are about the size of a cigar). Nothing disjointed about this combo.

But I have heard the Russian teflons bypassing some paper & oil caps and it didn't work as well.