best electrolitic cap

[selloutrr]

sprague, f&t, jj/telsa, illionios, what do think? why?

[skyboltone]

sprague, f&t, jj/telsa, illionios, what do think? why?

I'm trying to use all Nichicon these days. I don't know why. The axials have long lead times but they show good spec on paper and they are small.

Xicon and Sprague Atoms are the only caps I've ever used that blew up in a circuit. Can one draw conclusions from this? I don't think so. Just my experience. Unfortunately I've got quite a bunch of Xicon 450V caps in the drawer.

[Richie]

the sprague they make today are my least favorite,and have quit using them. I've got too many bad ones,and for the price they shouldn't be like that. The BC componet[philips] caps are also good for the bypass etc..
Also look at the Tech caps..a guy on ebay sells them JEA capacitors..
I've been using those mostly. Good price on quanities. The F&T caps JJ,Illinois etc.. are all pretty good too, and have no problem using those.
There are many brands and types to choose from that aren't on the list.

[Alexo]

I use F&T, but, frankly, it's guesswork until I've A/B'd different brands of the same value, while keeping all other things equal.

I'll do that as soon as I find a way to momentarily freeze the passage of time, or maybe once I learn how to live without sleep. ...or maybe once the internet goes down and I don't spend so much time on messageboards.

EDIT: It seems we can't delete posts. For the record, I probably would have deleted this one. Cheers.

[selloutrr]

I feel a little better to hear i'm not the only one who has received a bad sprague, still dissapointing though, I thought they were the cat's meow of electrolitics... live and learn I guess.

[VacuumVoodoo]

Try these for size:
http://www.sicsafco.com/pdf/prorelsic-125.pdf

lifetime 20.000hrs at 105degC working temp increasing to 100.000hrs at 70degC. Qualified for extreme conditions, put these in your amp an don't worry about it ever needing a cap job. If you look at mechanical stress data it'll give you a hint where these are used.

A bargain at 20-50$ a pop for a virtually immortal cap. There's a catch: minimum order quantity 50pcs. Group buy?

[selloutrr]

it's a neat thought but they don't have a cap above 450 Volts. If i was to recap a fender Bandmaster before labor with those caps it would cost at least $220 if not topping $550 based on your prices. for 5 high voltage caps, 5 25v caps, and a 50volt cap. seems a bit out of reach of most players. do they come with a life time warranty? it's cool they say they are great but it's a lot of $ to risk if they turn out to be a dissapointment. Not to mention the easy money that they take out of a techs pocket in recap labor. Is an hour of labor every ten years worth spending an extra $165-485 upfront? possibly from a bontique amp company selling point? yes? but i can promise your paying $1000 or more for those caps!

[VacuumVoodoo]

You need more than 450V rated caps?

These are available up to 630V:
http://www.sicsafco.com/pdf/sical-co42-sical.pdf

Perhaps I should have used this smiley:

I posted this information to show that there are other brands than what amp builders are generally familiar with. As for Atoms, I have banned them from my designs because there are no specs available, no lifetime data etc.

For tube amp use these axials from Epcos are more than adequate, rated 450V but specified for use at 500V and up to 550V surge
http://www.epcos.com/inf/20/30/db/aec_07/B43699.pdf

On sic-safco caps: I have designed them into telemetry equipment for use in drill holes on oil rigs. So far I haven't had a customer request them in his amp but one of these days..who knows

[David Root]

I liked and used Black Gate WKZ and VK electrolytics, but they are close to unobtainium these days. With good iron, an amazing power supply.

My current amp has F&T axials, first time I tried them, after I saw that Dave Allen recommended them.

[Allynmey]

I use F&T and the Tech caps from JEA like Richie said. I still use Mallory TC75's and TC78's for the 20uF/450 caps for the Wrecks.

[marshmellow]

I also use F&T and JJ capacitors. But compare for example the life time of the F&T with some Epcos electrolytics .

Thanks for the tip VacuumVoodoo, I will give them a try. I know somebody working there designing caps, but I never really thought about using them myself...

[Tonegeek]

I recapped my Twin in 1988 with Illinois caps. I think I also used a Sprague for the bias cap. Amp is still going strong today. I also have a Bassman head with Illinois caps that are at least 5 years old. Not sure you can draw any conclulsions from this, but I am going to be using Illinois again with no worries. I have also used F&T in the past. I have 20 months on my Dclone loaded with Xicons. It gets used almost daily. Can't seem to get reliable tubes for it, but the caps are fine.