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Has anyone got any reason to question the longterm reliability of a Mundorf Supreme, Supreme Silver, or Supreme Silver/Gold cap installed in a tube amplifier or preamp? I would be interested to hear from those out there who do have longterm experience, e.g., at least a year or more of continuous use.
Follow Ups:
I used them in a foreplay preamp for 2 yrs , then salvaged them and used them in a E-FP III preamp for 1 1/2 years. another I used in an AH! Tjoeb cdp and salvaged them to use in a Peter Daniel premium gold dac . I've had no troble with any of them . They are being used as coupling caps in all applications . As Tom said they sound amazing .
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Tin-eared audiofool and obsessed landscape fotografer.
http://community.webshots.com/user/jeffreybehr
nt
...of my ASL Explorer 805 poweramps. This position has about 800VDC plus the AC signal Voltage on it. One opened after a month or 2; Madisound quickly replaced it. The 2nd amp's cap shorted soon afterward, almost taking the OPT with it. Madisound then quickly refunded my original purchase price for the 2. (Madisound treated me VERY well in this process.)I then installed 1500VDC-rated auricaps, which are still running after more than a year.
If your Voltages are more than, say, 700DC, I would NOT use the Silver/Oil. However, it is a VERY-good-sounding cap in situations with less than that across it.
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Tin-eared audiofool and obsessed landscape fotografer.
http://community.webshots.com/user/jeffreybehr
There is scuttlebutt that some (a few? one? who knows?) Mundorf's became unreliable after longterm use at much lower voltages, more like 200 to 400V. Nevertheless, I am growing more and more convinced to try them at the output of the phono stage in my Atma-spere MP1 preamp, where the B+ is 250V with an actual 130V at the output node. The concern is, as you know, that failure of a coupling or bypass cap can be catastrophic. It seems odd to have to worry about putting 400V or even 700V across a cap that is rated for much higher voltage. I just had two NOS Infinicaps (taken from my spare never used parts box) go bad within minutes of installation as bypass caps, despite the fact that they both tested OK on my LCR meter prior to installation. One took out my B+ supply; the other took out my B- supply. In the process, I discovered that two Audio Note copper PIOs in my parts box were also so leaky as to preclude their use. One thing about REL MIT RTX and PPFX-s, none has ever failed on me.
The RTX is a VERY nice-sounding cap; why not use them? Just want to use something different?
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Tin-eared audiofool and obsessed landscape fotografer.
http://community.webshots.com/user/jeffreybehr
You wrote, "The RTX is a VERY nice-sounding cap; why not use them? Just want to use something different?"I agree that the RTX is a fine capacitor, and for many years they were my top choice, until I began to experiment with Teflon caps, which I now greatly prefer. My dilemma is that 1uF teflon caps (either REL or Vcap) are prohibitively expensive (since my phono is fully balanced, I need two per channel or a total of 4 @ ca $200 each!), and MIT RTXs in 400V rating are too large to fit in my preamp where they need to go. (I actually bought 4 of them from M Percy and had to return them for that reason.) I could use the smaller 200V RTXs, but that would be a bit dodgy, since B+ is 250V, altho only 130V appears at the plates of my phono output, as previously noted. Therefore, I started thinking about Mundorf Supremes, the Silver version. If you or anyone else has any direct experience comparing RTX to Mundorf, I would love to hear about it. One thing about RTX (and teflon too) is that they take a LONG time to break in, and they sound a bit "plastic"-y until properly cooked.
I am or have used both in coupling cap positions in various diy tube equipment and would purchase in this order:1. Cardas GR - musical, most natural, greatest detail (I know, this choice wasn't part of the discussion, but my favorite)
2. Mundorf SIO - musical and better balance than the RTX, but not the detail and transparency of the Cardas
3. RTX - thinner than the above choices, good detailI like all 3, but rate in this order moving toward no capacitor impact on sonics as the goal.
While I have great respect for the Cardas line of audio products, their ICs have never been my ultimate cup of tea, due to the fact that in my system they seem to homogenize the sound, in the sense that I hear a pleasant coloration and a smidgeon of dullness at the frequency extremes. Would you (or Jeffrey) say that the Golden Ratio caps recapitulate the qualities of their ICs (for better or worse) or are they more neutral than the ICs, I hope?Up to this thread, I never knew that Cardas even had a line of capacitors. I googled them and identified several vendors, but nowhere does anyone say whether these are metallized polypropylene or polypropylene film and foil types. (Instead, the Cardas sight and the vendors tend to rhapsodize over the "golden ratio" winding technique.) Does anyone know whether they're metallized vs F&F? Further, it seems they are available with Litz wire leads or with solid core tinned copper leads. Which type have you guys been listening to?
keeping it short and sweet -- i think the cardas cables are a bit lusher and smooth than other popular cables. the cardas capacitors are much more extended. i tried many expensive caps in a line level xover, and the cardas were a wonderful combination of resolution and musicality. moreover, they measured exactly what their vaules were stamped on them. cardas doesn;t make them, i believe a company called rti does. they are more than worth the money, either with tinned or litz leads. i highly recommend them.
I agree with jeffreybehr's description about the Cardas cap sound, don't know anything about Cardas IC's. No dullness at frequency extremes that I can detect, I think they are very extended and clean.I have tried both types of leads and haven't noticed a difference in the caps. I buy the single tinned when available because they are easier to work with and can cost a little less.
IIRC, the GR caps are metallized-'propylenes plus some Teflon dielectric added, maybe in the Golden Ratio, for whatever good that does.I find them to be very clean and detailed while also smooth (= NOT edgy or grainy), and tonally neutral and 2nd only to the SoniCap Platinum. I've used them as couplers in poweramps and in speaker systems; mine are always the solid-core leads because I like the idea and sound of solid-core (v. stranded) conductors.
Here are 4 pairs in my ASL Hurricanes along with SoniCap Platinums in the 2st position.
If you want to know more about them, I suggest you call Jeffrey Glowacki of Sonic Craft at 940/689-9800; he knows more about caps than anyone I know.
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Tin-eared audiofool and obsessed landscape fotografer.
http://community.webshots.com/user/jeffreybehr
nt
...I know not.
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Tin-eared audiofool and obsessed landscape fotografer.
http://community.webshots.com/user/jeffreybehr
I've been using the Silver in Oil's as coupling caps in 300b mono blocks for about three years. They still sound amazing.
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