Rike caps

M

Mike class A

New member
Has anyone tried Rike S caps PIO?  Thinking about trying .1uf/600vdc and 3.3uf/600vdc or 3.9uf/600vdc....  So far I have tried 3 12at7 and 2 2a3 tubes
Mullard 12at7 was a huge jump but gold lion genalex Ecc81 was slightly better...
The sovtek 2a3 were upgraded to EH 2a3 gold and noticed they were also made in Russia with base
Looking like porcelain .... Sounds almost the same????  Have 100 hrs on sovtek  and 25 hrs
on EH. So need few more hrs.... Curious about JJ???

This kit is really impressive.... I'm  using it on single 88 SPL full range driver which are being updated to 93-97 SPL when they hit the market ... OPPO 32 bit DVD CD player
 
Very nice caps!  I used them as interstage coupling capacitors in a pair of Golden Tube Audio SE40's. (6L6GC based parallel single ended).  The typical mod caps have been Russian K40Y9's or MBM's.  The Rike S were a bit smoother than the K40's, ( the K40's were a little brighter in the treble), but very similar in sonic signature....very dynamic, vocals to die for, great soundstage, delightful timbre and imaging.

I also have a pair coming in 3.9uf for output caps in a preamp.  I like them much better than the Mundorf metalized polypropylene in oil.  Less etched, less bright.  The Rike are about the same price in lower values, less than Mundorf SIO in higher values.

Not cheap...The mod kit, for the GTA SE40, runs about $150.  This kit includes about 12 PIO caps, 8-10 Panasonic electrolytics and a variety of resistors, both Russian and OS US.  The 2 Rike S, (0.22uF 630v), were about $100 including shipping from the UK. 

Bear in mind, this was not my equipment.  (I am the moderator for the GTA Yahoo group and do mods/repairs on GTA equipment. I have K40's KGB and CDE in my SE40's.)  I burned them in using music signal and a Hagerman FryBaby for 100 hours before installing. Then burned them in circuit for another 24 hours. Then listened for a couple of days.

Cheers,
Geary
 
Thx Geary
What sound characteristics would the 3.3 VS 3.9 on the spectrum?
It's bright with 3.9uf using Alu drivers? Doing 12at7 really opened it up.
What's weird few subsonic notes played on amp vs digital sub gives me nervous
Twitch... Thought the 2a3 would not produce that power at that low of freq. or even amplify??
I run levels at 60% in 18by20 room.... Like it so much building left right to mono
as center for movies....
 
Mike,
I doubt that you would hear much difference, bass or treble between 3.3uF and 3.9uF.  The lower bass cutoff on both would be below speaker FR and audibility.  Aluminum cones sound bright unless they are highly damped then...dull.  I am not a fan of metal cones for this reason. To me, the trade off is faux detail due to the brightness, while sacrificing timbre and fullness, especially in the midrange.  To counter this you need to push as much "warmth" to the speakers as you can.  Maybe copper foil in oil for the caps?  You might even try one or two carbon film resistors, (Kiwame, large size but nice warmth), in the signal path.  Start with 1 per channel.  May help, but IMO, hard to overcome the inherent sonic signature of metal cones.

Cheers,
Geary
 
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