2. amps-preamps
  3. 151295-1640

Recapping

I’ve read electrolytic capacitors wear out and need replacing from time to time, but after how many years?

I recapped my speaker crossovers after 27 years, but they still worked - they just sounded better afterwards

My NAIM 5i just stopped working after 10 years..

But I ask - why didn’t my 20 year old Denon stop working with the same problem or even my 30 year old Yamaha receiver that I passed onto my friend. Both are STILL working great!

My Luxman L530 class a/b amp still worked when I sold it after 11 years

So is it the circuit design (high current design) that causes the caps in the NAIM to wear out so quickly?

Does the loud "discharge" thump when initially turned on (specific to NAIM Gear) cause premature wear

Should I not have left the amp turned on 24/7 ? (which I only did for about half of those 10 years)

Is it related to the parts that NAIM uses?

Would having better quality capacitors (like Mundorf) last longer?

Seems strange that much cheaper amps and receivers have a longer lifespan

It would be nice to understand why this occurs with "some amps"

Thanks for any feedback - Steve


williewonka
Post removed 
erik_squires
16,063 posts
 
The electrolytics are what wears out, and the 1980's are a lot worse than the 2000 era caps.

High temp caps wear less quickly

imhififan's avatar
imhififan
2,187 posts
 
Life of electrolytic capacitor, temperature is the No.1 factor, follow by applied voltage, and the applied ripple current load . 

https://en.cosel.co.jp/technical/qanda/a0026.html
mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,570 posts
 
im, that is only aluminum electrolytics in power supplies. It does relate cap life to heat but in a very non specific way. Recapping the power supply of a hot amp (class A or tube) after 20 years is probably a safe bet. Easy to do. This does explain why small receivers might last longer. They do not get so hot. 
williewonka OP
3,075 posts
 
If, as it appears to be the case, heat plays a role, then surely it is better to turn gear off when not in use?

e.g. Naim recommends leaving their gear powered on....
- Could this be simply to make it more convenient to their customers because they do not want them to have to wait for the gear to "Warm Up" before it sounds it’s best ?
- Or is there less "stress" on internal components (e.g. Caps) when left on 24/7?

I cite my Denon and Yamaha receivers again - they have lasted a long time
- is it due to powering them down?

I have always assumed that higher quality(i.e. having a higher price point) gear uses higher quality components, e.g. as one poster above states WRT Bryston gear.
- But do some quality caps that sonically perform better, actually fail sooner, compared to the "run of the mill" capacitors used in more budget oriented gear.

Could it be that, "mass produced" Caps, that might not perform quite as good as more specialised products, are subject to more stringent QC because higher failure rates in mass produced products are less acceptable?
- e.g. higher quality caps in Mass Market products might result in high return rates - not good
- mass produced caps might last longer and the lower quality sound is seldom noticed

I cite several posts on this forum, where people have replaced a myriad of components to achieve higher quality sound

I used to work for a company that produced circuit boards for the mass market and their QC was of the highest order. Component failures were analyzed by teams of experienced professionals that recreated the many scenarios under which components failed. Once determined they then tried different components until the most reliable solution was found.

But in the world of audiophilia, sound quality is paramount and the smaller companies do not have the resources to undergo such a stringent QC approach.

Do Audiophiles "accept" the fact that their gear might not be as long lived as more commercial products?

Many Thanks
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