Capacitor types???

[drz400]

Do you guys hear a difference between a Mallory 150, Sprague 225P and other Metal Film caps?

Some people bash Mallory 150's but I kind of like them when you are looking for a clear tone, the 715P's Polypro sound sweet to me sometimes too sweet but nice in one or two spots I dont hear much difference between 225P, Wima FKP and Mallory 150's. I'm liking ceramic small caps more than Silver Mica funny enough, they seem to have more edge.

What does Dumble actually use?

[dehughes]

Do you guys hear a difference between a Mallory 150, Sprague 225P and other Metal Film caps?

Some people bash Mallory 150's but I kind of like them when you are looking for a clear tone, the 715P's Polypro sound sweet to me sometimes too sweet but nice in one or two spots I dont hear much difference between 225P, Wima FKP and Mallory 150's. I'm liking ceramic small caps more than Silver Mica funny enough, they seem to have more edge.

What does Dumble actually use?

Man, it is ALL about using the right cap in the right context. For my AC30 build, I REALLY like the Sozo Vintage Mustards (I'm sure the Mustard + caps would be even cooler...). In "Fendery" stuff I lean more toward the ODs, but in Marshally and Voxy stuff I like Mallory 150s and the like. After using Sozos though, I'm not going back to Mallorys....

As for ceramic versus silver mica, again, that depends on the circuit. I used small and large value polystyrenes, small value silver mica and ceramic caps, and larger value Sozos in this AC30 build....and each needs to be where it is. A lot of finding this out is just trial and error....lots of work, but worth it in the end.

[rfgordon]

I find that changing one or two caps can be extremely subtle--maybe too llittle to really tell sometimes. As stated, it's all about context. The earlier in the signal chain a compnent appears, the more dramatic a change will be, since smaller signals are more easily changed that big ones. I tend to like Mallory caps, while the Mojo caps and Sozo caps are really nice, and I use them sometimes. I like the Mojo caps for my jazz amps. I like the NOS polystyrene 560 pF in the tone stack--very smooth. For my bluesy amps I don't really like the Orange Drops. MPP are nice for a big clean tone, but I tend to prefer yellows.

Now if I were building a circuit as visual art, I might go with the Sozos, since their yellow is very nice. Reidon metal film resistors are a very pretty blue, the Rikens are blue with the stripes and those gorgeous gold leads, while the Kiwame Japanese carbon films have that agressive red. Oh, girlfriend, pimp my circuit!

[drz400]

But now when we are talking "Orange Drops" we could be talking 715 or 225 which are very different one is Polyester film the other Polypro

At Digikey there are a shitload of Panasonics that look nice and I think I've seen some in Dumbles, F series, ECQ, M series which are all metalized polyester which I believe is also Sozo, Mallory 150's, Wima MKS, 225P.

For the life of me I'm not sure if I buy the Sozo voodo, it look slike a Mallory 150 to me, anyone have actual data that says/shows why they are different? Me thinks a lot of these caps are comming from the far east and are not very different from each other, I know some changes went down at Mallory but I'm not sure to what exact extent

[UR12]

But now when we are talking "Orange Drops" we could be talking 715 or 225 which are very different one is Polyester film the other Polypro

I don't know about the Dumbles but when I talk about ODs I like the Mallory PVC series that is all but extinct and the Sprague 6PS series. Both are pretty much identicle coming out of the same factory. They are polyester. I wouldn't think of using anything else in a Trainwreck style amp. I love the 150s in Marshalls as the seem to capture the Marshall sound a little better. The 715 series ODs were developed for fast switching power suplies and seem a little ice pickey to me. I haven't tries the 225 or the 716.

Just my 2 cents

[Bob-I]

Do you guys hear a difference between a Mallory 150, Sprague 225P and other Metal Film caps?

In a word YES, but you need to recap all the coupling and tone caps of the difference won't be heard.

Some people bash Mallory 150's but I kind of like them when you are looking for a clear tone

The word I use is DRY.

the 715P's Polypro sound sweet to me sometimes too sweet but nice in one or two spots I dont hear much difference between 225P, Wima FKP and Mallory 150's.

I agree, these are pretty close.

I'm liking ceramic small caps more than Silver Mica funny enough, they seem to have more edge.

TO my ears Silver mica sound like there's a veil over the speakers muffling the sound. Ceramics open the sound up, the cheeper the better. Just buy a bunch so you can test for DC leakage and replace the bad one's.

What does Dumble actually use?

Dumble uses PS series Orange Drops. I've found that between the PS series and the 715's the smoothness is pretty dramatic. My favorite today is the Xicon MPP's, the little maroon chicklet sized caps. They're the smoothest for this style amp and the small size helps out.

Just as important is resistor selection, especally on the plate load resistors. For the Fender type amps carbon comp are a must, but for a Dumble a quality metal film is far better. The metal films give a smoothness to the highs that carbon comp, carbon film and cheep metal film's just can't. Today my favorite is the Vishay Dale RN65 series.

Of course this is all JMO.

[unklmickey]

anybody interested in Steve Bench's research on caps?

http://members.aol.com/sbench102/caps.html

[David Root]

I had seen that piece by Steve Bench before, but I reviewed it again just now. Linearity may or may not be all that relevant in tone caps, I think it would depend on what you are trying to accomplish.

Having said that, I have used the SOZOs in a "mini-plexi" with one SE EL34, and it rocks. I think the Mallory 150s would work well too, but the SOZOs don't cost that much more so I tried them.
I am finishing up a 6G16 brown Vibroverb circuit, using 6G11-A brown Vibrolux voltages, constructed in a deluxe reverb knockoff chassis (a bit cramped!) and all main signal path tonecaps are 60s-70s NOS paper in oil, Spragues and Aerovox mostly with some Vitamin Qs. pF values are NOS Aerovox "domino" silver micas. Here most people would use Mallory 150s and CDE brown blob silver micas. I would have a year ago.
I think the metal cased hermetically sealed PIOs sound wonderful, very articulate yet smooth, and there is no doubt in my mind that the domino silver micas are much better than the brown blobs. They cost a bit more but they're worth it.
Possibly muddying the water here is my use of Black Gate PS caps instead of Sprague Atoms, but that could be a separate post in itself.
Whether PIOs and dominos would do the same in a higher gain 4-stage preamp circuit vs SOZOs/M-150s and ceramic/brown blob silver micas, I don't know, but they sure do in brown Fender type circuits! Interestingly, both these PIOs and the dominos are much bigger than their modern replacements, and we all know about size mojo, right, guys?