How to Pick Replacement Electrolytic Capacitors - Workbench Wednesdays

[@element14presents]

Don't forget you can watch the extended selection sequence and download a PDF of the chart on the element14 Community: bit.ly/3gZVUJt

[@mariofilippi3539]

I'm recapping a 1960's Channel Master transistor radio with several 6V capacitors: 200 uf, 30 uf and 5 uf. Your video was an excellent guide on how to replace them. Thank you.

[@bald_engineer]

Glad it helped! It'd be great if you shared pictures of it on the element14 community. (Link in the description.) I'd love to see it!

[@jazzbonewest]

Finally someone who knows what he's talking about and can talk in common language. Thank you.

[@macdaddyns]

Excellent tutorial James! You provided more background and detail than my 1986 Electronics Engineering classes did. Thanks

[@ModMokkaMatti]

Thank you for for touching on information (e.g. component service hour rating/temperature relationship, etc.) more so than what I've seen discussed elsewhere (primarily in KZbin videos), that further adds to my understanding of the selection process. As a neophyte who has had an interest in electronics since my youth, but feels a bit nervous/overwhelmed about getting neck deep into major repair projects, this has been helpful! I've got a couple of 1960s Magnavox phono/stereos (my late parents' '65 Astro Sonic Imperial console, and my '69 "portable"/tabletop all-in-one) that are in need of additional service in particular, so I'm attempting to prep myself as much as possible in advance of either taking on the task myself at some point, or entrusting the work to an experienced technician. Whichever route I opt to take, I'll know more than I previously did!

[@nerfnerfification]

A superb video 5 stars - gets into the subject immediately and talks about it with minimum asides - well done!!

[@JacobMaynard]

This is a great video! We need more about component replacement and equivalents!

[@TheHareidGamer]

Was just thinking of recapping one of my amplifiers, great video!

[@MrFixiit]

very nice tutorial thanks for shareing.

[@Thecando]

That was such a great presentation that it didn’t feel like it was one. I just subscribed :)

[@jrkorman]

Awesome keeping that M100 alive. Used to have one but the screen completely gave out (about 1/2 the pixels wouldn't work) and I gave it up for parts. Still got about 20 years of life out of it!

[@techadmirer6475]

i got a ton of notes from this vidio thanks a bunch for it and the great details.

[@runepedersenDK]

Very useful information from a very reliable source - highly appreciated!

[@WetPig]

Great content, you are definitely doing something right with these videos. Continue to do them.

[@ELECTROxigeno76.]

Súper exelent vídeo, tks Master, 🎩♿

[@iyup2964]

Отличное видео, спасибо! Коротко и ясно － спасибо огромное. Для начинающих － особенно полезно и ничего лишнего!

[@GeeWillikersMan]

Where was this video 3 weeks ago?! Just finished recapping all my rackmount guitar gear.

[@RealityAudits]

you are incredible. Any tips on handheld CB from 1971? Worked brand new out of box for 6 seconds now will not modulate. Never been opened, still had original batteries in it!

[@SeanBZA]

Another consideration is availability, you might see the perfect cap, perfect price, but you need to order a large number or pay shipping, so it might not work out properly, or it might take a while to arrive. As well you can pretty much always go up in value slightly, and often will have to, seeing as capacitors seem to be becoming available in 10, 22, 47 as steps, with only the odd larger values like 820uF being around. Thus replacing a 680uF you probably will be using 1000uf, as the 470uF probably will not work out well. Also in power applications if possible use bigger capacitors, especially in a SMPS, as the larger case sizes almost always have both lower ESR and can dissipate heating better, though with PC power supplies you are often stuck with needing tall skinny capacitors, so go for the longest that fits for the same reason. For that leave 2-3mm of space under the capacitor to allow for airflow, so it can run a tiny bit cooler, and you can see when the seal is leaking. Last PC power supply I got rid of all the 6V3 caps, went with 16V instead, same diameter, same pitch but a lot longer, and lower ESR, so they will last longer. Also they were 820uF, found some decent Rubycon that were 1200uF, so longer life, plus used the "spare" unused holes to put in another one per rail as well. Not for capacitance, but to reduce ESR.

[@youkofoxy]

In series inductance also should be take into account, especially in critical filtering applications, so short leads are better than longer ones. also, using capacitor in parallel may be better than series (less ESR and ESL) to archive desired value.

[@The.Home.Cinema.Engineer]

where exactly did you buy those caps? is there a cap kit that can be bought for replacing old caps in vintage audio?

[@1ring2rule3pigs]

Is there one of these videos for vintage speaker caps? I could sure use some help help identifying and buying replacements. 🙂👍

[@bald_engineer]

The same information applies.

[@ClericChris]

Who else thought the Back to the Future reference was going to be a bad Flux Capacitor joke. I braced myself for impact.

[@bald_engineer]

I worked for a capacitor company for almost a decade. I'm totally burned out on "flux capacitor" jokes.

[@Othman_Abdullah]

thanks

[@cleovonabram]

This is amazing, thank you so much

[@rtel123]

curious. A home audio device had a electrolytic cap fail after only 8 years. (bulging on top) Looked in my junk drawer for a replacement. 1000uf, 10v. Found one that was 30+ years old. It was about 3 times as large, but easy to install. Measures and works perfectly. Did the first one fail because they tried to squeeze it into a smaller case?

[@bald_engineer]

Electrolytics have gotten smaller over time because the foil etching process, aluminum purity, and electrolytes has improved over time. It failed because either it was at the end of its operational life, the design was bad, or the cap wasn't manufactured well. Billions of capacitors made each year. Not all of them work flawlessly.

[@KlondikeMike]

Winner winner chicken dinner! I like the Newark interface as well. Unfortunately, web site support is severely lacking when something goes wrong.

[@turboslag]

Back when I did my electronics education in the 70's here in the UK, the issues with electroleaktic crapacitors were never raised. Even ESR was never discussed. Caps were selected on value and voltage, and sometimes dimensions. I cannot recall any other factors in parts catalogues or manufacturers data sheets. Maybe these issues weren't known of then, or not as well known about. Blanket cap changes were definitely not a thing and treating caps as the prime suspect when fault finding was not done. It's also surprising that I find many caps 50 plus years old are still fully servicable in vintage equipment. Maybe it's that as size has reduced substantially from the 80's onwards, especially 90's to now that they have become a scourge? It's certainly the first thing I look for now when fault finding.

[@alessandrolima4266]

Fantastic!

[@ILikeStyx]

I've got 50-ish year old speakers and a 40 year old turntable which I'm quite certain should be recapped eventually.

[@Fezzler61]

Where is the link to the live stream of the full Model 100 recap job?

[@bald_engineer]

Link to the show notes, with those links , are in the pinned comment.

[@larrybud]

I used to sell those things at Radio Shack in the late 80s!

[@herbward5240]

Ahh Shoei capacitors . A regular problem in many Nakamichi cassette decks.

[@The_Absurdistt]

Can't find the link to the live strem removal of the caps. Can anyone help? Cheers.

[@bald_engineer]

The first link in the description takes you to a notes page. The first comment on that page has two links to streams.

[@tjules7]

I took my NAD 7400 receiver for repair, but the guy is having a hard time finding transitors/capacitors repalcement. Can you suggest a place where to buy those components?

[@bald_engineer]

Without knowing what the parts are, the best suggestion would be start with a distributor like Newark to find modern replacements. Otherwise, you'll have to look around on the grey market for (hopefully) new-old stock.

[@bald_engineer]

Also, if you have a list of tough to find part numbers, the element14 Community is a great place to post that list (in the Ask The Experts forum).

[@tjules7]

@@bald_engineer Thank you sir. I will look into it.

[@foxman362]

1:15 Where can find one those clear cases like that?

[@bald_engineer]

They are cases by Stanley. A friend gave me his after he upgraded to something else.

[@badbadboy36420]

Hi, could someone please help me find the right replacement capacitor? This is what is printed on the old one ( ZHN (M)105°C 25V 1000 uf CD288H L.E.S.R ) ?

[@bald_engineer]

If you follow the link in the pinned comment, you can ask your question on the element14 Community. There you can post a picture of the capacitor. You are more likely to find someone that can help there.

[@rudy5360]

Is it okay to replace a regular capacitor with a low esr one?

[@danielmantione]

Normally yes, unless the circuit depends on the resistance. This is rare.

[@rudy5360]

@@danielmantione thank you 😃

[@marsrocket]

Why a voltage only slightly higher than the original? Why not 2 or 3 times as much (e.g. 50V instead of 12V)?

[@Gengh13]

Because they are physically bigger, if there is enough space around and the lead spacing is similar you can use a higher voltage cap.

[@gummy1204]

@@Gengh13 Real talk right there. I ran into this problem whilst recapping my keithley meters because I failed to measure pitch. Now I'm stuck waiting 6 months for the correct part to come in. Do yourself a favour. Measure twice order once :)

[@DaveMcAnulty]

There is also the (belief? rumor|? theory?) that a cap with a voltage rating too high will not properly "re-form" if it is never run at that higher voltage.

[@TheDefpom]

It’s always a crapacitor, I video repairs on test equipment from the 60’s 70’s 80’s and 90s I always replace all of the caps, but surprisingly the older gear sometimes still test within spec! They made things well then.

[@frederickbowdler8169]

@@TheDefpom I agree most modern capacitors are poor quality.I am thinking of manufacturing my own !!!!

[@thomasandrews9355]

I restore vintage Macs. I go by datasheet of the original one. If it's general purpose I'll use whatever I have, low esr or general purpose. Low esr generally I will match against the original

[@wedoshotz6645]

When replacing the smaller electrolytics, say 3.3uF or smaller, you can also use film caps provided the size will allow it. It doesn't matter if the originals were bi-polar or not.

[@patkelley8293]

I got my cap kit from Console5. They have packs for just about every game system and 8 bit computers ect. Good prices.

[@bald_engineer]

Concidently, they did not have Model 100 capacitor packs in stock a couple of weeks ago .......

[@Knaeckebrotsaege]

sounds like an ad comment tbh, especially from a zero-content account. plus i wouldn't trust premade cap kits to contain good quality caps anyway. chances are high you'll get the cheapest trash from noname chinese brands (chengx changx chongx ebay specials etc) they can get their hands on at the time, or junk like jamicon, capxon etc

[@KlondikeMike]

@@Knaeckebrotsaege You can trust my cap kits.

[@coisasnatv]

Your forgot to cover the shelf life for aluminum electrolytic capacitors, that is about *2 years* (info available on the component datasheet). So, if you have a box full of 2 years old aluminum electrolytic capacitors, they have expired already.

[@josephlalock8378]

you need to take temperature into account. the shelf life is determined at maximum rated temperature. so if you have a 1000 hour 105c cap. then that is the minimum shelf life of that cap at 105c. for every 10c you reduce the temp, you add substantial life to it. maybe you should read the datasheet again

[@coisasnatv]

@@josephlalock8378 At room temperature (20 e 25 °C) they last *2 years* (panasonic, nichicon, etc). Vishay say: "They can be stored in dry rooms at temperature ranging from -40 °C to +40 °C (preferably between 0 °C and +25 °C) for up to three years without any restriction." Maybe YOU should read some datasheets. IEEE Explorer has some documents sharing the exact same data.

[@josepeixoto3384]

@@coisasnatv does that mean that some of my amplifiers, all without turning them on for 10 or 15 years, are all bad now? why not,then? thanks

[@coisasnatv]

@@josepeixoto3384 They all bad and might run out of specs, this means they will not sound the same as when they were new. Aluminum e-caps are wet, after all these years they are all dry.

[@Electronzap]

They should have socketed capacitors as soon as they realized they have a limited lifetime.

[@charlessmith833]

I just replaced 6 electrolytic caps (nothing big or special) in my old Heathkit (solid state) audio generator. The B+ is only 44 volts. Final bill including tax and shipping was $44.44. I checked Jameco, Newark and DigiKey before purchasing from Mouser. The prices of new caps are outrageous. I should have paid about a third of that amount. The bad part is that I don't trust any of the manufacturers anymore because of Chinese interference in manufacturing. Parts are not as available as they used to be. Everything has gone micro-miniature now and the mfgrs aren't keeping up with the older type stuff. That makes it hard for us old timers.

[@windward2818]

You forgot to talk about rule #1. Which is; do not trust the manufacturer data sheets. Use the data sheets to select the best possible candidate(s) and then bench test the capacitors to confirm they meet your requirements before installing. Unfortunately, to fully test capacitors on the bench requires relatively expensive equipment, for example plotting impedance over frequency. Like looking at the impedance at 120Hz (which is a popular data sheet specification value for ESR), to compare to the data sheet value, but also to look at what the device is doing over frequency. There are many different work flows for analyzing discrete components on the bench, many include extending the measured results for use in a circuit simulation model.

[@101pcgamer]

You can't trust data about any Product. From Manufacturer. Lol

[@dank1837]

Why wouldn’t you replace with tantalum’s? I mean then you are going to have to replace the caps over and over and hope they don’t leak. Tantalum’s are much better and just burn up instead of leaking.

[@bald_engineer]

Cost, availability, voltage ratings. They cost orders of magnitude more than wet-electrolytics. Good quality through-hole tantalums are going away. They're also less accepting of surge voltages. Their impedance profile is vastly different. Can you use them? Sure, but it takes a lot of more circuit knowledge to how to replace them. It's not just a straight voltage/cap swap. The middle ground, and my preference, is Aluminum Polymers, which I mentioned in the video.

[@thomaskallmyr]

❤😂❤ESCARGENCY ❤😂❤

[@windward2818]

Your little SMT adaptor board for older component replacement looks cool, but it is not just parallel capacitors on a PCB, the parasitic inductances could lead to nasty surprises. However, if analyzed on the bench you could actually produce an "equivalent capacitor" super capacitor of better performance out to high frequencies using the PCB interplane capacitance, ceramic capacitors and finally Aluminum Electrolytic capacitors. You could combine these different preforming devices to produce a very impressive capacitor over frequency. But, the design and testing would be time consuming and expensive.

[@1240reddy]

what is CP802 on Samsung TV Un46fh6030f power supply board

[@Jkauppa]

just dont sell any breaking elements

[@Jkauppa]

designed to be replaced, now

[@coldfinger459sub0]

I liked the BAC conversion. I just learned something