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Sonicap polarity? or non polar?


Bubo

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Just looked in the bag, and no polarity marking on the sonicaps.

 

Can't find a data sheet either.

 

AA Crossover shows polarity.

 

Are the Sonicaps non-polar???

 

RSVP I'm eager to solder.

 

Thanks,

 

Update: If all you are looking for is the answer, the Sonicaps are non polar.....

Edited by Bubo
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film capacitors which are wound have an inside to the winding and an outside just like a coil of wire does. And just like a coil of wire you want the signal to enter into the centre of the winding not the outside. Any capacitor or inductor for that matter will sound better when connected in this way. You can tell which way is which (if the capacitors are not marked) by listening to them in each direction and it will be easy to tell which way is the correct way. I you can't hear any difference one way or the other for what ever reason you are on your own.

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film capacitors which are wound have an inside to the winding and an outside just like a coil of wire does. And just like a coil of wire you want the signal to enter into the centre of the winding not the outside. Any capacitor or inductor for that matter will sound better when connected in this way. You can tell which way is which (if the capacitors are not marked) by listening to them in each direction and it will be easy to tell which way is the correct way. I you can't hear any difference one way or the other for what ever reason you are on your own.

Anything on a Digital Multi meter that would give me a clue? or a simple test rig?

 

I would hate to start going back and forth on the crossover, not sure I could remember which is better unless the other was terrible.

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film capacitors which are wound have an inside to the winding and an outside just like a coil of wire does. And just like a coil of wire you want the signal to enter into the centre of the winding not the outside. Any capacitor or inductor for that matter will sound better when connected in this way. You can tell which way is which (if the capacitors are not marked) by listening to them in each direction and it will be easy to tell which way is the correct way. I you can't hear any difference one way or the other for what ever reason you are on your own.

Anything on a Digital Multi meter that would give me a clue? or a simple test rig?

 

I would hate to start going back and forth on the crossover, not sure I could remember which is better unless the other was terrible.

 

The Sonicaps are not polarized.  No capacitor used in a crossover could be polarized. All signals in the crossover are AC.  Polarized capacitors are used in DC circuits.

 

Bob Crites

Edited by BEC
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I'm now smart enough to understand the question!  Yay me!

 

To further my education, where do you see the polarity indicated on the caps?  (I still don't quite understand schematics)

 

(I'm trying to post the AA schematic directly in a .jpg, but no luck figuring that out yet.)

 

 

https://community.klipsch.com/index.php?app=core&module=attach&section=attach&attach_rel_module=post&attach_id=88071

Edited by wvu80
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film capacitors which are wound have an inside to the winding and an outside just like a coil of wire does. And just like a coil of wire you want the signal to enter into the centre of the winding not the outside. Any capacitor or inductor for that matter will sound better when connected in this way. You can tell which way is which (if the capacitors are not marked) by listening to them in each direction and it will be easy to tell which way is the correct way. I you can't hear any difference one way or the other for what ever reason you are on your own.

Anything on a Digital Multi meter that would give me a clue? or a simple test rig?

 

I would hate to start going back and forth on the crossover, not sure I could remember which is better unless the other was terrible.

 

The Sonicaps are not polarized.  No capacitor used in a crossover could be polarized. All signals in the crossover are AC.  Polarized capacitors are used in DC circuits.

 

Bob Crites

 

 

 

I can see that I still have a ways to go before I know what the right question is.

 

Bob, I'm your customer, appreciate the info on a Sunday night, I trust their won't be an up-charge for emergency service. :)

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Jeff Glowacki from Sonicraft told me we should have the outside foil towards the lowest imp source.  If the cap is shunted to Neg, then it would be pointed to Neg.  

 

You would orient the outer foil to the input of the crossover.

 

edit: Looking at the Sonicap so you can read the writing the outer foil is the lead to the right.  (whoops... that was a different cap... not the Sonicap.  I'm not sure about the Sonicap). 

 

I don't claim to know the science of it... my understanding is the purpose is for possible better noise rejection.  Would this matter or help in some cases?  Don't know... do what you want

:)

Edited by muel
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film capacitors which are wound have an inside to the winding and an outside just like a coil of wire does. And just like a coil of wire you want the signal to enter into the centre of the winding not the outside. Any capacitor or inductor for that matter will sound better when connected in this way. You can tell which way is which (if the capacitors are not marked) by listening to them in each direction and it will be easy to tell which way is the correct way. I you can't hear any difference one way or the other for what ever reason you are on your own.

Anything on a Digital Multi meter that would give me a clue? or a simple test rig?

 

I would hate to start going back and forth on the crossover, not sure I could remember which is better unless the other was terrible.

Well when you have a metal can on the cap as in a motor run cap you can determine which leg is which. Otherwise you need to listen to the cap to tell. You could ask the maker if they identify the two ends as some do but they may not. Yes you can use it either way and the cap will work the problem is it will sound different. If you want to believe that it makes no difference that is fine. If you listen to a cap both ways and you can't tell the difference then it really doesn't not matter does it? It is very simple to do a trial and see for yourself. If that is too much trouble then as before it does not really matter. Yes it is a pita but them's the breaks. Look on the bright side if you just install them willy nilly you have a 50% chance of getting it right.

Edited by moray james
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film capacitors which are wound have an inside to the winding and an outside just like a coil of wire does. And just like a coil of wire you want the signal to enter into the centre of the winding not the outside. Any capacitor or inductor for that matter will sound better when connected in this way. You can tell which way is which (if the capacitors are not marked) by listening to them in each direction and it will be easy to tell which way is the correct way. I you can't hear any difference one way or the other for what ever reason you are on your own.

Anything on a Digital Multi meter that would give me a clue? or a simple test rig?

 

I would hate to start going back and forth on the crossover, not sure I could remember which is better unless the other was terrible.

 

Well when you have a metal can on the cap as in a motor run cap you can determine which leg is which. Otherwise you need to listen to the cap to tell. You could ask the maker if they identify the two ends as some do but they may not. Yes you can use it either way and the cap will work the problem is it will sound different. If you want to believe that it makes no difference that is fine. If you listen to a cap both ways and you can't tell the difference then it really doesn't not matter does it? It is very simple to do a trial and see for yourself. If that is too much trouble then as before it does not really matter. Yes it is a pita but them's the breaks. Look on the bright side if you just install them willy nilly you have a 50% chance of getting it right.

 

Carlson has some good videos, esp for the antique radio guys.

 

Like my French girfriend of years gone by, every word she said sounded interesting, I even understood some of it....

 

This is how to find the good side of NP caps video

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnR_DLd1PDI

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Guest thesloth
Well when you have a metal can on the cap as in a motor run cap you can determine which leg is which. Otherwise you need to listen to the cap to tell. You could ask the maker if they identify the two ends as some do but they may not. Yes you can use it either way and the cap will work the problem is it will sound different. If you want to believe that it makes no difference that is fine. If you listen to a cap both ways and you can't tell the difference then it really doesn't not matter does it? It is very simple to do a trial and see for yourself. If that is too much trouble then as before it does not really matter. Yes it is a pita but them's the breaks. Look on the bright side if you just install them willy nilly you have a 50% chance of getting it right.

 

Please stop giving false information, it only confuses the person trying to get a real answer, which he did from Bob Crites.

 

 

So again, those caps are bipolar, you can hook them up either way.

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Well when you have a metal can on the cap as in a motor run cap you can determine which leg is which. Otherwise you need to listen to the cap to tell. You could ask the maker if they identify the two ends as some do but they may not. Yes you can use it either way and the cap will work the problem is it will sound different. If you want to believe that it makes no difference that is fine. If you listen to a cap both ways and you can't tell the difference then it really doesn't not matter does it? It is very simple to do a trial and see for yourself. If that is too much trouble then as before it does not really matter. Yes it is a pita but them's the breaks. Look on the bright side if you just install them willy nilly you have a 50% chance of getting it right.

 

Please stop giving false information, it only confuses the person trying to get a real answer, which he did from Bob Crites.

 

 

So again, those caps are bipolar, you can hook them up either way.

 

 

Before my first post, I tested the cap on my DMM both ways and concluded it was non-polar.

 

The schematics for the AA show polarity for the caps

 

Other than that I don't know enough about circuits to infer.

 

Given, if non polar would work either direction.

 

As to performance of an NP cap, is it identical in both directions, not sure.

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Well when you have a metal can on the cap as in a motor run cap you can determine which leg is which. Otherwise you need to listen to the cap to tell. You could ask the maker if they identify the two ends as some do but they may not. Yes you can use it either way and the cap will work the problem is it will sound different. If you want to believe that it makes no difference that is fine. If you listen to a cap both ways and you can't tell the difference then it really doesn't not matter does it? It is very simple to do a trial and see for yourself. If that is too much trouble then as before it does not really matter. Yes it is a pita but them's the breaks. Look on the bright side if you just install them willy nilly you have a 50% chance of getting it right.

 

Please stop giving false information, it only confuses the person trying to get a real answer, which he did from Bob Crites.

 

 

So again, those caps are bipolar, you can hook them up either way.

I did say it would work installed in either direction I also said that it would sound different one way or the other. If you don't care that's fine with me what you do or believe is your business. If you don't like my posts don't read them.

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Crites site on rebuilding AA's....

 

http://www.critesspeakers.com/rebuilding_a_set_of_type_aa.html

 

Scroll down to this part....

 

Doesn't matter at all which wire goes to which lead.  This is a crossover.  It handles only AC signals.  Therefore there cannot be any polarity for the capacitors.

 

Jim,

 

Thanks, this is the only text I didn't click on.

 

They should color it red for dummies :)

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Finished recapping the first speaker, new squawker gasket perfect fit, and oiled the cabinet, also added wheels to cabinet.

 

Do caps really break in? Been playing for 4 hours, no huge difference in mono compared to the other speaker, but no smoke either.......

 

The original caps were within 10% of spec, not bad for 35 years old.

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