Like several others in this forum, following Don Sachs's lead, I replaced the el cheapo caps in my Cornwall IV with V-cap ODAM, and the resistors with Path Audio. Big improvement in sound quality, but at a pretty big expense.
A previous discussion included a statement about crossover components.
The commentator stated something to the effect that some very high end speakers really cheaped out on the capacitors and resistors in their crossovers, and hinted that replacing them with high quality components might improve the sound quality of the speakers. My question is "Have you ever replaced the caps and resistors in your speakers crossovers, and to your ears did that result in better sound quality?" Also, what brands of caps and resistors do you consider to be "the best", and why?
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My Coincident Total Eclipse II speakers have one tweeter capacitor (Very simple 1st order crossover). There are no resistors. The stock capacitor is Solens. The sound quality in stock form is very, ,very good. Replacing the respectable Solens capacitor with the Duelund CAST copper foil capacitor was an undeniable sonic upgrade across the entire spectrum. It is one of the most rewarding and cost effective modifications I've experienced. An expensive capacitor that was more than worth every penny paid. High quality crossover capacitors definitely make a positive impact. Charles |
I’ve done this for both speaker crossovers and tube electronics. My favorite caps tend to be one of the following depending on what I am trying to accomplish:
This webpage is a goldmine, basically providing references to the sonic characteristics of a multitude of capacitors: |
@blisshifi I used that reference also. I second your recommendation.
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I hav3 been upgrading Xovers for over 15 years ,having owned a audio store and having techs work for me ,I discovered with electronics ,as well as speakers on average only 25% actually goes into the product the rest R&D overhead and markup .. sadly you see many using Solen capacitors or far worse ,and ceramic resistors ,cheap inductors and speaker terminals gold plated cheap brass which is 3 x less conductive then Gold Copper which = 3 x more resistance and noise st least start there the WBT next gen are only $40 each , and if you have whst I call fake bywire setup 4 terminals many just are internally connected then you get the crappy straps ,always buy or make quality jumpers i,you can hear the difference go to Humble homemade hifi capacitor test for starters judt to see quality . Duelund are the Bentley of the bunch. Path audio resistors, or Mundorfs Ultra resistors with a heat sink ,inductors I like Jantzen open coil Big for woofers and mids Waxedpaper Copper foil inductors very close to Duelund inductors. |
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