previous: Jason I'm new to the amp building. But I'... -- 9/15/2004 10:42 PM

Re: mylar vs. polypropylene caps, carbon vs metal film

10/1/2004 10:30 PM

Brutus

Re: mylar vs. polypropylene caps, carbon vs metal film I have a confession to make. I used to be a polypropylene bigot. But I have since learned a few things.     In general poypropylene caps are brighter and more detailed sounding than mylar. This can be good or bad depending on the amp. I've recapped many commercial amps that sounded better with polypropylene and a few that sounded worse.     I recently discovered what I consider the ultimate capping strategy for me so far. In the preamp stage I use polyprops to get the detailed and transient response you need for a good sounding amp. Then in the phase inverter and final amp stages I use either mylar or Paper/Oil caps to kill off some of the brightness created by the polyprops. Works great. Nice and warm sounding with still lot's of detail.     Many respondants to your question will undoubtedly point to the successful use of Mallory 150's mylars. I like then too, but the polprop with later Paper/Oil strategy works the best for me.     Resistors are an easier topic. Carbon film to my ears sound grainy. So do metal oxide. Carbon Comp resistors sound nice and warm while Metal Film (i.e., not be confused with Metal Oxide) sound nice and quiet but slightly brighter than carbon composition.     In the end my vote is for Metal Film resistors for the simple fact that they are very stable over time. Carbon Comp resistors may have a slightly better sound but they tend to drift upwards in value over time as they age and sometimes are noticeably noisier (primarily in the form of hiss when the amp is not being played). Metal Film resistors can withstand extreme heat and time variances without changing their values. Certainly a good quality if you plan on having your homemade amp around for a long time.       Brutus

 

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Snapcase This link doesn't work:http... -- 10/10/2004 9:19 PM