Cap shoot out

tsingle999

tsingle999

New member
Swapped a well broken in vcap teflon 0.1 Coupling cap from my sex amp into the sr-45 where i had a well broken in 0.1 russian teflon cap. Silky smooth, less shout with the vcap. Big price difference though...who will give me the 0.1 cu teflon caps for xmas????!?!
 
Yes, v-cap lust! Deadly indeed! I have not been bitten by such a beast yet. I hope not to, but its dangerous straying too far from home!
 
Tom,

I bought a used pair of CuTF .1 caps for a good price and with 300 hours on them already -- those will be going in my SR-45s after I have some time to listen to it as it is -- with Russian teflon coupling cap.

Also think about a Clarity MR for the PF cap, but it's huge at those values.

Thanks for sharing the experience.

-- Jim
 
Wow thats lucky! They should sound great! I hate to tell this story but i scored a used pair of 2.0 uf teflon caps and used them as parafeed caps in my sex amp. One fell off in a move a year ago and i have yet to find it:( i fear its lost! Vcap lust - the loves and losses...
 
Wow it is sounding really good!!! Better bass! My system is a lot louder now too. The squeezebox on 80 is as loud as about 95 with the russian caps in...
 
CuTF used.... sounds like a real smart move. Hummm..... Don!t tell Greg about this though! He's already pretty much up to his ears!
 
A-HA!  I had only imagined that there would be a strong audible difference but never got to try it.  V-Caps are out of my range.  Maybe if my lottery ticket wins.

tsingle999 said:
Swapped a well broken in V-Cap Teflon 0.1 Coupling cap from my sex amp into the sr-45 where i had a well broken in 0.1 Russian Teflon cap. Silky smooth, less shout with the V-Cap. Big price difference though...who will give me the 0.1 cu Teflon caps for xmas????!?!
Click to expand...
 
tsingle999 said:
I know I had always imagined that there wouldn't be much of a difference. I was really surprised!
Click to expand...

Just what I didn't want to hear!
Actually, it's good to hear that the bass is better.
 
Ya i feel bad about it cuz they r so expensive. But im also mad i didnt switch two years ago!
Jim have u tried the clarity mr caps? They are expensive but they come in the 12 uf value i need. I have tied  together a pair of auricaps in the amp currently to get 12 uf. One could tie 4 3uf aura teflon caps together for each amp. Of course the expense of building another chassis to house them wouldnt be worth it...
Any other suggestions for the 12 uf parafeed caps?
 
Tom,

I've not tried the MR caps yet, but I have a pair of .47 uF ones for my Eros output caps, and another pair of 1.0 uF caps for parafeed in my s.e.x. 2.1.  As for the sr-45, I was probably going to start by following John Scanlon's lead and go with something like 6.8 uF to start -- I tend to go towards the lower end on PF caps to keep the bass a bit more defined, but we'll see.  First I'm just going to listen to the sr-45s as Doc sent them to me, then I can think about swapping a few components and then maybe some EMLs or other tubes.

I had used the tftf caps in another amp I had and with that particular amp I felt they were just a bit too squeaky clean and changed to the mundorf silver/gold/oil caps and they were perfect in that amp -- but that was a pentode, not a DHT, so different animal altogether.

Of course I am impatient to try the cutfs, but it will have to wait for me to get the system setup, and I don't even have the speakers yet. :-)

-- Jim
 
Hey Jim; I can give you a report about the V-caps as Paul Birkeland built my system using them exclusively in the signal path from phonostage to linestage to 2A3 amp. CuTF, and TFTF. I do not find them to be 'clinical' in any way.... they sound extended in frequency and wonderful when playing at very low levels. The soundstage is wide and deep even that those levels and just gets louder as the volume is increased.... the stage remaining the same at all levels.  For more on this, go here:  http://www.v-cap.com/hank-murrow.php

Cheers, Hank
 
Hank, Not doubting that at all -- my only experience with them so far was in this one pentode amp -- and I'm guessing there are no pentodes in your system.  Also, they weren't harsh or clinical, just a bit too much squeaky clean with the top end of the el84s and the ribbon tweeters I had at the time.

-- Jim
 
It makes sense that the Teflons would sound very clean compared to good oilers. That is probably one of the big reasons, second to the cost, that I dont have any in my equipment. I'm more intrigued and seduced by the Duelunds, in the mega bux category. All I know is, I love the sound of my Mundorf silver/oils coupling caps in my Quickie. I'm not touching them. I think they are a very good value.
 
Eric,

Yup, it's really all a matter of what works for your system and your ears -- the vcaps are amazing, someday I hope to try some duelunds, and the mundorf sios are about the best deal in caps going, but the silver/gold/oils are really fine as well, and if you want a slightly dryer sound, the silver/golds are also a fine choice.

The only downside to the sio caps is that they really should not be used for coupling caps if you plan to use eml tubes in your amp.

My hope is that the cutfs will have all of the goodness of the tftf but with a bit of that "copper glow".

-- Jim
 
The V-Caps are great caps.  Once they're broken in, which takes a loooooong time.  The first couple hundred hours they can sound really good and really bad and back and forth.  Once they're broken in they're super smooth, dynamic and neutral.  Excellent detail from top to bottom.  The teflon ones that is. I haven't heard the copper ones but I've heard they're even better.

The Clarity MR caps are very similar but perhaps a touch more resolving than the teflon V-caps.  The MRs can sometimes be a bit ruthlessly revealing while breaking in and also take a long time to do so.

Both will show some of their greatness immediately after installing them.  I instantly heard an improvement over the Erse, Solen, Jantzen, and Kimber Kaps I'd used before as well as the very good Sonicap and Clarity Cap ESA. 

Yes, they're damn expensive but they do bring the goods.
 
Dear Jim;  Yes, my system is all parallel-feed, all MagneQuest iron, nickel, and cobalt; all triode, and all V-caps in the signal path, and the signal path is all-Bottlehead Customs. Eight years of parts collecting, one superb builder(Paul Birkeland), and the expertise of the entire BH crew. I am a very lucky music lover! Kudos to PJ, PB, Dan, & Queen Eileen. Going up to VSAC three times really paid off for me. Clark and Molly Blumenstein are the icing on my BH cake!

Cheers, Hank
 

Attachments

Hank that was a really nice write up and that 2a3 amp is about the coolest piece of gear i have ever seen! Wish i could get to hear it someday - we need vsac!
Thanks for the mr cap comments. I might refinance my house to get all the caps / tubes i need...
 
Hank,

When I'm done, my system will have a lot in common with yours -- a couple of custom BH pieces, lots of nickel and of course the Orcas and sub.

-- Jim
 
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