your favorite electrolytics

[pula58]

O.K. folks, I am taking a poll...what are your favorite brand of electrlytic caps (500V)...and most importantly: why?

Many thanks,


Paul

[rdjones]

Recently, F&T. This might change at any time.

They are priced fair, made in Europe and are black (the axials).
They are stocked at the dealer that I can get them from the quickest (usually next day).

I'm not aware of a local stocking dealer, but that would be nice if the local electronics parts house would stock more of the parts and brands I use.

reddog

[diagrammatiks]

bhc aerovox.

best specs.

last forever.

pretty.

[Trout]

bhc aerovox.

best specs.

last forever.

pretty.

Are there any dealers in the USA that actually stock them?

[NickC]

I've used Nichicon and F&T. Sound-wise, been happy with both. I haven't been using either of them long enough to vouch for longevity, only time will tell that.

[Structo]

I have used mainly F & T's since they are readily available, a good size and are reasonably priced.

[Cliff Schecht]

I can vouch for Nichicon. I use their 400/450V tiny electrolytics all of the time in my builds to bypass in areas that normal sized caps won't reach. My 22uF 400V Nichicon e-caps are about as round as a quarter and maybe a half an inch tall; I can squeeze them in anywhere in a preamp.

Many of the power supply designers that I know (most with 25+ years experience) have pointed me towards Nichicon caps. I've learned to listen when guys like this talk and I've never had one of their caps fail on me in the 10+ years that I've been using them.

[diagrammatiks]

bhc aerovox.

best specs.

last forever.

pretty.

Are there any dealers in the USA that actually stock them?

mouser has all of them.

[BTF]

I've had good luck with Nichicon and Illinois. There must be thousands of amps chugging merrily along with these. They're proletarian compared to the pricier models, but I've yet to have a defective one in any of my amps or preamps.

[Cliff Schecht]

Oh yeah Illinois Caps get a bad rap for some reason or another but I'm yet to have one of them fail on me either. Xicon's have blown up in my face in the past (axials that were overvoltaged) whereas both IC and Nichicons have taken overvoltaging as if it was nothing. Not prolonged exposure mind you but some caps explode when you stress them even momentarily, others don't. Also Sprague Atoms seem to be very tolerant of stress IME. To me this is a sign that these caps are all spec'ed with some margin in mind (unlike some Xicon stuff!).

[coolidge]

EPCOS 450V rated 10,000 hours, low ESR, made in Germany, compare to F&T ratings.

[DBEngineering]

I have been using Illinois and F&T for a few years now without a problem. I recently build a couple 18 -20 watt amps with Ruby cap and am growing to trust them. The quality seems on par with anything else I have used and they are readily available from my local electronics distributor. They are smaller in size than Illinois or F&T.

[Bob Simpson]

I like F&T's and Tech Caps. ( although some values are hard to find in Tech Caps )

I used to be a Sprague Atom guy, but they have been priced
out of my first tier of caps.

Bob Simpson

[Roe]

LCRs
sozo super
BC 450v 10, 22, 33, 47uf
TAD audio caps

[Structo]

I think the Illinois caps got a bad rap because Gerald Weber has bad mouthed them forever, so people read his books or watch his videos and form an opinion from that.
I really haven't seen any evidence to show they are any worse than any other lower priced electrolytic.