250-500pf coupling caps: Best sounding

[JJman]

What are the better sounding 250-500pf coupling caps to use in a tone stack? Material types as well as brands. Is it too subjective? Is there a consensus?

Are ceramic disc as good as any other?

[Rosewood]

Silver mica is the go to for most, me included.

[JubileeMan 2555]

Obviously there are many opinions on the subject, so never take anything as "the golden rule"

But recently I have found lots of discussion regarding this subject and its interesting to note that a lot of tone-heads are using ceramic disk caps FOR their more grainy quality. They are grainier, but they are also more open sounding in certain circuits compared to silver mica.

There are internal shots of Dumbles using CHEAP ceramic disk caps for al pf values. Just buy a dozen at radio shack and test them for leakage and keep the ones that are good:)

its good to possibly, if you go with ceramic, to look for NPO or COG temperature rating so that the internal temperature changes of an amp won't throw them off wack... but again, dumble didn't care.

A poster here who makes PHENOMINAL sounding Dumble cloneish type amps named Glaswerks uses whatever Xicon, Mallory, Sprague ceramic disks Mouser Electronics have in stock.

Does this mean you have to? No, but its probably a good idea for you to get a little selection of different brands and materials and swap them out to hear the difference yourself.

[glaswerks]

A poster here who makes PHENOMINAL sounding Dumble cloneish type amps named Glaswerks uses whatever Xicon, Mallory, Sprague ceramic disks Mouser Electronics have in stock.


Well actually I am not quite that cavalier. I have narrowed my section of disc ceramics to a small group of parts from select manufacturers. In the case of ceramics I use Panasonics except for one value that is only available from Mallory.

And FWIW, silver micas are too brittle for my amps.

Gary

[JubileeMan 2555]

Well actually I am not quite that cavalier. I have narrowed my section of disc ceramics to a small group of parts from select manufacturers. In the case of ceramics I use Panasonics except for one value that is only available from Mallory.

And FWIW, silver micas are too brittle for my amps.

Gary

Well... I have to ask. What value do you ONLY use Mallory for? :)

[glaswerks]

500pf

[HCStraub]

Many people believe polystyrene capacitors are the best sounding, clean capacitors. I believe TopHat (or Bruno...can't remember) uses them in many of their top amplifiers. They are harder to find and a little pricier.

[John Phillips]

Many people believe polystyrene capacitors are the best sounding, clean capacitors. I believe TopHat (or Bruno...can't remember) uses them in many of their top amplifiers. They are harder to find and a little pricier.They seem to have a higher failure rate than the other types in my experience... don't like them.

I also think it's important to remember that this is NOT hi-fi, and the same rules don't apply. Too many buzz concepts have been imported from hi-fi/audiophile practice into guitar amp mythology without really thinking about what they really do or why they are desirable for hi-fi, IMO. Hi-fi is about removing distortion... guitar amplification is about creating a pleasingly rich tone. Not the same thing at all, and I wouldn't pick any component or method because it was 'cleaner' without listening to whether it sounded better as well, which is not at all a certainty. Coloration and harmonic distortion is why a cleanly tube-amplified guitar sounds a lot better than a DI'd one.

What type of caps do I prefer? The ones that came in the amp originally :). If I have to replace any I use the same type, because that way you keep the tone. Quite often you come across amps which have been 'improved' with 'better' caps, and I'm not sure I've ever heard one that didn't sound better with the original type put back...

[scottl]

Let's not leave out those PS caps..... ;)

Well actually I am not quite that cavalier. I have narrowed my section of disc ceramics to a small group of parts from select manufacturers. In the case of ceramics I use Panasonics except for one value that is only available from Mallory.

And FWIW, silver micas are too brittle for my amps.

Gary

[glaswerks]

Let's not leave out those PS caps..... ;)

I was thinking of having Sprague due a run in red and white candy stripes... tis the season

[HCStraub]

I also think it's important to remember that this is NOT hi-fi, and the same rules don't apply. Too many buzz concepts have been imported from hi-fi/audiophile practice into guitar amp mythology without really thinking about what they really do or why they are desirable for hi-fi, IMO. Hi-fi is about removing distortion... guitar amplification is about creating a pleasingly rich tone. Not the same thing at all, and I wouldn't pick any component or method because it was 'cleaner' without listening to whether it sounded better as well, which is not at all a certainty. Coloration and harmonic distortion is why a cleanly tube-amplified guitar sounds a lot better than a DI'd one..

I personally don't use them, I stick with silver mica. They work well, don't seem to cause any issues and I am getting the tone I want.
I don't do much repair work anymore, when I did, I tried to use a part similar to what was in the amp if it was available.
As for Audio parts, I do like the auricaps, not because they are expensive/audio, just because I like the results in the amp. They seem to take harsh overtones out.....at least in my designs. Because of the cost, I don't use them very often.

[BK-Amps]

Best sounding depends entirely on what you are looking for. Cheap radio shack caps suck no matter what you like. Ceramics are grainy. Can be good or bad. Mica are smooth sounding. Sometimes too smooth. Film caps like the wima 470pf and 220pf caps some manufacturers use don't sound organic enough for me. Ever wonder why the Bogner XTC clean sounds like crap? Remove the 220p film cap and replace it with a 250p ceramic. Voila. -It aint easy, you need to remove the board.

BK

[TheAmpNerd]

The important think is learning how to adjusts an amp harmonics,
distortion, and compression to an artists tastes.

And most musicians when they say they want a clean amp
don't....