Excellent review of CAPACITORS Must read

Given that my linestage uses the V-caps and my Audionote monoblocs use their silver caps, I should be in agreement with the ratings.

But, even if we could all agree on what constitutes "best" sonic results, which parts best achieve that result would depend entirely on particular design and implementation. I've heard the result of people pulling caps chosen by a particular designer and replacing them with supposedly superior Blackgates; it was not good.

This review does provide some support for the notion that parts are not just parts and the choice of particular parts make a difference. It also shows that in the particular design of linestage, certain specific parts were preferred by the reviewer. But this experience can hardly be generalized further.

However, what is useful if other designers and DIY folk chime in so that a whole body of experience can be evaluated. For this reason, I think this "review" is an interesting start.

Larry, I couldn't agree more. Capacitors can't be evaluated in a vacuum. This review is definitely a positive contribution to the community. I didn't mean to suggest otherwise. The author had a task at hand. He outlined it clearly and added the usual caveats.

My gripe isn't with the review per se. My issue is with expensive components in general. I'd like to see more reviews deal with cost-to-performance ratios. I know this wasn't his objective, but I think the majority of audiophiles want this kind of information - even if it's subjective and opinionated. Tech specs will never be able to describe detail, spaciousness, transparency or soundstage. We will always rely on other people's perceptions to make our decisions. Very few people have the means to do the AB comparisons.

I also want to add that capacitors are something of a dark art. It's hard to understand them even when you have good information. This is true with most audio components, but it's particularly difficult when you're trying to identify the sound characteristics of a component so far upstream. The test conditions are critically important. The same person has to do the testing with the same system. This is why I wish he had evaluated the OIMP V-caps. It would have been incredibly useful to the larger audio community.

-Mark

I must apologize for not submitting this post sooner, but I spoke to my friend in regards to this thread Sunday, and the fact that his name does not appear in this article was his choosing. He is a really busy person, and simply did not want the headaches associated with dealing with others suffering audiophilia nervosa.

On a personal level, he is definitely not the "mad scientist" type; but one always attracted by the road less traveled. Often, he'll complain that whatever his most recent obsession was (and looked terrific on paper) didn't turn out the way he hoped. That being said, I consistently tell him to view these experiences as positive ones, where his perspective has been broadened, as well as the depth of his knowledge and experience.

Well put, Joe.

I've been reading those reviews several times over recently, driving myself crazy. I've talked to some very smart people and all agree swapping out caps is far, far more system dependent than switching interconnects or even tube rolling.

My preamp uses the Mundorf Supreme Caps -- and a very large size, well above the max for the V-Cap. So does simply jumping up to the Mundorf Supreme Gold mean an improvement? Possibly.

John, I encourage you to talk to Jeff at Sonic Craft. He's a wealth of knowledge when it comes to capacitors and circuit design. You won't be disappointed.

http://www.soniccraft.com/