You're missing the point, old boy. " Esoteric " is what *defines* these people as snake oil experts. We all know that the basic parameters for measurement of a capacitor are primarily its capacitance and its ESR, and secondarily, its leakage and inherent inductance. Its the nonsense such as the " back-peddling quantum electron mobility count factor " and the " sliding scalar blisticon enhancement constant " ( and no, neither of these are real ) which are the sorts of 'esoteric' measurements that I am referring to. The snake oil 'experts' talk amongst themselves in their private clubs, as though such measurements are real, and just not understood by what they consider to be the masses. Read the dictionary definition of the word again, and see that I am just using it to take the piss, not to make any *real* point ...
Sophie, haven't you been paying attention? Oxygen free wire is passe. All good audiophiles know that it makes no difference whether you use OF copper or not, since the best sound comes from bare copper oxidized on the surface by the urine of virgin ferrets that have been raised listening to Bach's Tocata and Fuge in D minor. Of course, some say that Dr. Pepper works as well. The oxide slows the conduction to allow the slower electrons to arrive in phase with the ones that would otherwise travel faster.
Leonard
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It's done on the basis of the 'audiophool religion'.
It is worth pointing out that certain ceramic dielectrics have known non-linearities and these should be avoided in audio circuits and electrolytic caps have to be used intelligently with regard to their limitations.
So isn't that just what I am saying ? I really don't know quite where you are coming from on this one Graham. You seem to be delibarately trying to twist what I have clearly been saying, and trying to make me out to look like some gullible amateur. And no, I am not joking. Are you honestly saying that you believe there are no measurable differences in ANY parameters between a mass produced tupp'ny cap, and a precision-made type specifically made for a purpose ? Do you think that the military are fools for specifying "military grade" components over bog standards ? Are the avionics industry gullible prats for specifying the highest quality components in airborne equipment ? No, of course they're not, and neither are the manufacturers of high grade audio equipment over mass producers like Sony and company.
So lets get it clear once and for all. ALL I am saying is that I believe that there ARE measurable differences between different quality examples of what are fundamentally the same animal. I believe this, because I have been told that it's so by people that I personally consider to be reputable experts in their field, and by 40 years worth of reading electronics technical publications. If a piece of equipment has been designed to produce minimum distortion with a component of a particular value and specification, then the more accurately that component approaches that specification, the closer the designer will come to his goal. It is a fact of life that designers' specifications are compromised by their companies' accounts and marketing departments, and lower grade components will be substituted to meet the demands of these people. Of course, this will make little alteration to the overall performance, and I doubt that most people would be able to hear the minuscule difference, but that doesn't mean that it isn't actually there, and couldn't be removed by putting in a component with a better specification, which is where the likes of Jensen come in.
I wouldn't dispute for one minute that changes to the interstage coupling electrolytics in a semiconductor amp, would result in any kind of improvement that anyone could hear, and I doubt that a change to the polyester or whatever interstage couplers in a valve amp would either, but here, I would concede that with the high impedances involved, accuracy of value and dielectric leakages *might* just make enough of a difference to hear in SOME circumstances, particularly to someone who has a 'musical ear' - and no, I'm not going to start getting into that one ...
Yes, there are a lot of 'audiophools' out there who are prepared to be misled by the snake oil merchants, but I really don't think that you should close your mind to the possibility that there are others out there besides yourself, who do not fall into that category. Just because you believe that you can't hear any difference so there mustn't be one, does not necessarily make it so, and by closing your mind to it, you make yourself just as bad as the others who are equally convinced the other way.
All I have stated is a belief that, like in every other walk of life, there are differences in component quality that have a measurable impact on their parameters. It's a BELIEF based on the reasons I have given. If you can show me that a standards lab or whatever, have done tests, and have published results that refute that there IS any difference, then I will happily accept that. I really don't care whether any such differences that there MAY be, result in anything that anyone believes they can hear. This is not the point at issue, and hasn't been since we all told the OP that he would be pissing in the wind by bothering to replace his caps.
No. You don't appear to be aware of what the audiophools are claiming.
Besides, only a completely incompetent beginner would use Hi and medium K ceramic dielectrics in audio signal circuits.
Precision makes no difference at all.
For audio ? Yes. COMPLETELY.
And the audiophool stuff isn't even 'MIL spec' anyway.
Their only interest is in aspects such as temperature range and long-term failure rate.
More recently, COTS ( commercial off the shelf ) products have become popular for aerospace often with *better* performance, which shows the lie about Mil spec.
Quality ? Next to none and certainly nothing audible.
I think you're misunderstanding what you've read. I know of no audio professional who believes in capacitor substitution where the orignal was adequately specified. Certainly not for reasons of audibility.
Show me a capacitor that distorts will you ? ( other than those I've mentioned already ).
Did I actually say that any capacitor per se had distortion ? The problem is that you have such a bee in your bonnet about this relatively minor point, that you are either not listening to what I am saying or deliberately misconstruing it in order to continue with this senseless lambasting.
Clearly there must be differences between different constructions of caps from different manufacturers, otherwise, there wouldn't be different types with the same value and voltage rating, and different price tags. You wouldn't for instance use a cheapo cap intended for decoupling purposes, as the timing element in an oscillator. If you wanted it to last, you wouldn't use a bog standard cheapo electrolytic in a switch mode power supply. But there's my point. Manufacturers do - not because the designer wanted them to, but because cost dictated it. This results in inferior performance of the power supply over what the designer initially intended, and ultimate failure.
You may also be getting confused over what I am treating as 'distortion'. I am including anything that not only makes a piece of equipment deviate from the ideal, but also from what the designer intended. If *any* substituted component on cost grounds causes any deviation from what the designer originally measured on his development model with the components he used and specified, then this under my definition, is distortion. It need not necessarily result in mishaping of the output waveform in any way that would normally be considered as distortion, which may or may not be audible, but could include unwanted phase shifts or gain non-linearities.
You're right. I don't spend my time measuring caps with high precision generators - it's not my job. I leave such things to people like you, and read about it later. I make judgements based on what I read, and who wrote it. That makes me neither gullible, nor any kind of 'phool' - audio or otherwise. Enough time has now been wasted on this. I have made my position quite clear in as many different ways as I know how, and since no one else has joined in with you to have a pop at me, I can only assume that they understand what I am saying, and don't disagree strongly enough to find it worth bothering. Considering some of the stuff you have come back with, I think you have a cheek snipping " rest of rant ". I associate ranting with the nonsense that goes on over on uk rec audio with this sort of thing. Perhaps you should concentrate your efforts over there, where you must feel much more at home ...
The only real thing of concern is the dielectric and whether the plates are metallised or foil ( for high current applications ) with a resultant effect on ESR.
Some winding techniques reduce parasitic inductance but this isn't an issue at audio frequencies.
Define 'cheapo cap'. You might get a shock about the prices I pay for parts for products in volume manufacture btw !
Define 'cheapo cap again ! SMPSs require low ESR caps in the output filters - it's nothing to do with being cheap or not. That's what's *needed*.
Inferior ? If parts with the correct specs are used the only concern between makes in this application is usually lifetime.
Phase shifts are related to the *value* of a capacitor. All have a tolerance on them regardless of price.
WTF is a 'gain non-linearity' in your book btw ? Why would a capacitor cause it ?
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