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Capacitor log Mundorf Silver in Oil

I wished I could find a log with information on caps. I have found many saying tremendous improvement etc. but not a detailed account of what the changes have been. I have had the same speakers for many years so am very familiar with them. (25+ years) The speakers are a set of Klipsch Lascala's. They have Alnico magnets in the mids and ceramic woofers and tweeters. The front end is Linn LP12 and Linn pre amp and amp. The speaker wire is 12 gauge and new wire.

I LOVE these speakers around 1 year ago they started to sound like garbage. As many have said they are VERY sensitive to the components before them. They are also showing what I think is the effect of worn out caps.

There are many out here on these boards I know of that are using the Klipsch (heritage) with cheaper Japanese electronics because the speakers are cheap! (for what they can do) One thing I would recommend is give these speakers the best quality musical sources you can afford. There is a LOT to get out of these speakers. My other speakers are Linn speakers at around 4k new with Linn tri-wire (I think about 1k for that) and the Klipsch DESTROY them in my mind. If you like "live feel" there is nothing like them. In fact it shocks me how little speakers have improved in 30 years (or 60 years in the Khorns instance)

In fact I question Linn's theory (that they have proved many times) that the source is the most important in the Hi-Fi chain. Linn's theory is top notch source with lessor rest of gear including speakers trumps expensive speakers with lessor source. I think is right if all things are equal but Klipsch heritage are NOT equal! They make a sound and feel that most either LOVE or hate. (I am in the LOVE camp and other speakers are boring to me)

So here goes and I hope this helps guys looking at caps in the future. Keep in mind Klipsch (heritage Khorns Belle's and Lascala's especially) are likely to show the effects of crossover changes more then most.

1 The caps are 30 years old and
2 the speakers being horn driven make changes 10x times more apparent.

Someone once told me find speakers and components you like THEN start to tweak if needed. Don't tweak something you not in love with. Makes sense to me.

So sound
Record is Let it Be (Beatles)
The voices are hard almost sounds like a worn out stylus.
Treble is very hard. I Me Mine has hard sounding guitars. Symbals sound awful. Everything has a digital vs. analog comparison x50! Paul's voice not as bad as John's and George's. Voices will crack.

different lp
Trumpets sound awful. Tambourine terrible. Bass is not great seems shy (compared to normal) but the bad caps draw soooooo much attention to the broken up mid range and hard highs that are not bright if anything it seems the highs are not working up to snuff. I have went many times to speaker to make sure tweeters are even working.

All in all they sound like crap except these Klipsch have such fantastic dynamics that even when not right they are exciting!

Makes me wonder about the people who do not like them if they are hearing worn out caps and cheap electronics? Then I can see why they do not like them! If I did not know better from 25+ years of ownership that would make sense.

For the new crossover I have chosen Mundorf Silver in Oil from what I have read and can afford. I want a warm not overly detailed sound as Klipsch already has lots of detail and does not need to be "livened up" they need lush smooth sounding caps. Hope I have made the right choice?

When the crossover is in I will do a initial impression on same lp's. Right now it goes from really bad (on what may be worn vinyl) to not as bad but NOT great on great vinyl. (I know the quality of the vinyl because tested on other speakers Linn)

The new caps are Mundorf Silver in Oil and new copper foil inductors are coming. I will at the same time be rewiring the speakers to 12 guage from the lamp cord that PWK put in. PWK was a master at getting very good sound often with crap by today's standards components.

The choice of speakers would be a toss up now depending on what I am listening to. Klipsch vastly more dynamic but if the breaking up of the sound becomes to much to effect enjoyment the Linn would be a better choice on that Lp. If I could I would switch a button back and forth between speakers depending on song and how bad the break-up sound was bothering me.

volleyguy
undertow
1,033 posts
 
Volleyguy
Actually I was again not defending them, just sharing an interesting tid bit I was given on sonicaps... Believe me, I don't use them in the end either so that was not really my point.. Plus to be honest, sonicaps don't mix well with other caps, use all sonicaps seems the only way to make them perform their best, also sonicap platinums are really good as like a small bypass cap, so they can mix.
volleyguy OP
789 posts
 
Thanks Undertow

Where I am having a tough time is dividing up the 13uf for the midrange neither Mundorf of Duelund makes a 13uf so it has to be divided. Duelund does make a 3uf and both make a 10uf. I feel Duelund is the sound I like but Supreme does very little to mess it up and is very inexpensive. This is a tough one. Thought about 3uf Duelund and 10uf Supreme but is that enough Duelund. Any other combo does not work out to 13 uf. Duelund does make both but again this is costly! I have thought about 6.8 Duelund and 6.0 Mundorf. I do not know how I can change this cheaply??? if wrong?
volleyguy OP
789 posts
 
I have went through all the combo's again and still come back to same pairing. Duelund/Supreme. I find it hard to understand how one Duelund makes things so great but the second does not improve things at all.

What Tempo has said to me rings so true is mixing caps. This NEVER dawned on me. I thought it only to be a cost thing.

The Duelund brings things to "life" and the Supreme makes it smooth full and musical.

Duelund/Duelund tilts the sound like SIO/Supreme.

The only thing I may change it the order.
Duelund/Supreme
maybe to
Supreme/SIO
Duelund/Duelund (unless break in calms things down)
undertow
1,033 posts
 
Volleyguy
You are looking for a tuff call on that one.. I have in klipsch horns used exactly a 6.8 and 6.2 stacked of the same brand and ended up with much better result than splitting them up with 2 different brands or using one of lets say 11 uF and 2 uF to get the same end value... If you are buying a duelund that large and costly, well yes you are going into a "Peace of mind" issue that can not be solved even if it does sound great.. Plus the midrange is going to be even more critical in my opinion over the tweeter.. however you have knocked down the edge of that speaker already with the mundorf/duelund combo.. I hate to say it, but money wise, and performance wise, I would not stick anything on your mid horn but a stack of the mundorf only, meaning a 6.2 and a 6.8 and you will probably hear no more than a 5% difference for way less money than a duelund combo... Leave it on the tweeter, but also you don't need either of these caps on your Woofer, it should be parallel and have much less effect, but if its cost effective and you can get a mundorf supreme as a direct size replacement on your woofer go for it, BUT you woofer will benefit 10 TIMES more with replacing just the inductor on it with a Alpha Core 12 gauge copper ribbon inductor.. The cap has way less effect in this case, but even a solen cap for 2 dollars can sound great with the big inductor feeding your woofer.
volleyguy OP
789 posts
 
Thanks Undertow
Yes I too think the midrange even more critical than tweeter. In the tweeter of course the caps are in series and the midrange would be in parallel.

I may go next to the inductor.
You find that to make that much difference? I was looking at an Alpha Core 12 guage you mentioned a Mundorf 12 guage or maybe a Duelund.

I am confused with the Supreme on the woofer? We have a 2.5mghz inductor and no cap on the woofer?

Are you saying a better inductor made the highs sound better and Alpha core was better than original?
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