Cap Voodoo!

Re: Cap Voodoo!

Cap materials having different tone hasn't been proven false.

That depends on what you mean by false. I found this comparison of frequency plots of different dielectrics for common guitar capacitors.

The data and sound clips above show clearly that for tone capacitors of close measured capacitance value there is no difference in tone. For example, compare the clips and plots for the “Monolithic X7R 0.022uF – 0.0204” and the “Vishay 225P Orange Drop 0.022uF – 0.0204”. (You can click on the colored box in the legend and the line will be highlighed briefly.) These two capacitors, of the same measured value (0.0204uF) but different dielectrics have indistinguishable plot lines, differing in frequency at the 0dB crossing by about 0.3%. This difference is below the rated accuracy of our measurement equipment and is statistically insignificant.
 
Re: Cap Voodoo!

I am really glad to see that you can have fun bantering with us, keeping it light, without getting pushed out of shape and getting rude.

Nice show.
 
Re: Cap Voodoo!

Even if dielectrics supposedly make no difference, I still like to avoid ceramic disc caps for guitar. My primary reasons are because their tolerances tend to be pretty lousy, and also because they can be inconsistent at different frequencies and temperatures. I tend to use Orange Drops because they're dependable, available, and generally inexpensive.
 
Re: Cap Voodoo!

That depends on what you mean by false. I found this comparison of frequency plots of different dielectrics for common guitar capacitors.

Oh drat. I actually have read that study before. I think the percieved differences are stuff that you can notice in person but that doesn't really get picked up by recording or analytical equipment.
 
Re: Cap Voodoo!

I am really glad to see that you can have fun bantering with us, keeping it light, without getting pushed out of shape and getting rude.

Nice show.

Thanks. I'm getting better at not getting all triggered.
 
Re: Cap Voodoo!

Oh drat. I actually have read that study before. I think the percieved differences are stuff that you can notice in person but that doesn't really get picked up by recording or analytical equipment.

You can't really fool a spectrum analyzer; it's more likely that your PIO cap drifted and it's no longer .022.
 
Re: Cap Voodoo!

It appears that the variation in frequency response is due to the values of the capacitors and not any other factor. From the sound clips, you will notice that you can hear NO difference between the capacitors, except for the most extreme tolerance variations.

From the posted article.
 
Re: Cap Voodoo!

I've tried several values of mylar and ceramic and none of them sounded vintage.
 
Re: Cap Voodoo!

My Super Distortion and Floyd Rose equipped Kramer has a paper in oil cap and it doesn't sound vintage.
 
Re: Cap Voodoo!

I've tried several values of mylar and ceramic and none of them sounded vintage.

Which ones sounded "vintage"?

The paper in oil!

I believe it's been well established that dielectric type has zero bearing on the frequency plot of a capacitor in a guitar. The only way those caps could sound different would be for their values to also be different. If you had a way to measure your PIO cap, you'd be able to figure out exactly why it sounds "vintage".
 
Re: Cap Voodoo!

Because a study found the caps to yield different frequencies and then arbitrarily said it's all because of the variance of the nanofarads?
 
Re: Cap Voodoo!

In the end, arguing over if caps affect tone is like arguing whether or not the color of a brush's bristles affects the color of the paint. It doesn't matter, and if the artist that painted the painting thinks it does and that affectes his/her end product, then it does. If the bristles don't have the same effect to another artist, then the color of the bristles is meaningless. Same as with tonewood.
 
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