Crossover Upgrade for RF-5

[Deang]

On ‎3‎/‎25‎/‎2018 at 10:10 PM, Loudly Does It said:

Deang did say on an earlier post not to worry about "film type" vs. metallized polypropylene.  There all the same.  

That's not what I said. I said the schematic says "film", but that all of the capacitors in that network are metallized. "Film" is generic, but doesn't tell you if the cap is metallized or film and foil.

 

You will not be able to put the new capacitors in the original positions - you will have to be creative.

 

You can also easily damage the boards, or coils, while trying to desolder/remove the old capacitors and resistors. You can also damage your new parts if you have minimal soldering experience.

 

 

[Loudly Does It]

5 hours ago, Deang said:

That's not what I said. I said the schematic says "film", but that all of the capacitors in that network are metallized. "Film" is generic, but doesn't tell you if the cap is metallized or film and foil.

 

You will not be able to put the new capacitors in the original positions - you will have to be creative.

 

You can also easily damage the boards, or coils, while trying to desolder/remove the old capacitors and resistors. You can also damage your new parts if you have minimal soldering experience.

 

 

Sorry for the confusion.  So then I need to use the Metalized Polypropylene Crossover Capacitors then?  I can get them on Parts-Express with the same uF and tolerance except for one.  The crossover schematic calls for 5.6, but only 5.5 is available.  Should I search elsewhere for them instead or thats close enough?  What about the RC-7/  You recommend changing the caps on that one too?  I did read here where it was suggested the caps be different, but wasn't understanding why.    Thanks for your time. 

[Deang]

There is no real difference between 5.5 and 5.6 - it's insignificant.

 

Yes, you should do the RC-7. Do the RF-5's first -- if it goes badly -- you might want to consider sending the RC-7 to me.

[Loudly Does It]

1 hour ago, Deang said:

There is no real difference between 5.5 and 5.6 - it's insignificant.

 

Yes, you should do the RC-7. Do the RF-5's first -- if it goes badly -- you might want to consider sending the RC-7 to me.

Now you have me a little scared.  I might just try one RF-5 first just in case.  I'm a general contractor and I do a fair amount finishing carpentry so I'm used to detail and precise measurements but yes I don't do a lot of soldering.  I figure I need to make sure I don't get any hot solder on the circuit or touch the capacitor with a hot soldering tool.  What else do I need to be careful of?  If its excessively hot can it damage the capacitor when I'm trying to make the connection?  Thanks again. 

[Deang]

I once had a guy talk me into a RF-7 kit. He claimed that he used to work for NASA, and did a lot of surface mount work, and soldering new parts onto a PCB would be easy for him. He then started hitting me with a lot of questions, and tied me up in email for three days, expecting me to write a tutorial for him. By the end of the week, he had lifted the foil on the PCB, because he had been using a 140 watt soldering gun to do PCB work. After destroying the board, he wanted me to replace it -- since I had sold him “the kit", and “gave instructions”. I guess he forgot that he had told me that he could solder the space shuttle together. After that experience, I decided no more "kits", and no more supporting DIY efforts -- because many who think they can, actually can't.

 

With respect - I can tell from your posts that you probably shouldn't be doing this work!

[Loudly Does It]

1 hour ago, Deang said:

I once had a guy talk me into a RF-7 kit. He claimed that he used to work for NASA, and did a lot of surface mount work, and soldering new parts onto a PCB would be easy for him. He then started hitting me with a lot of questions, and tied me up in email for three days, expecting me to write a tutorial for him. By the end of the week, he had lifted the foil on the PCB, because he had been using a 140 watt soldering gun to do PCB work. After destroying the board, he wanted me to replace it -- since I had sold him “the kit", and “gave instructions”. I guess he forgot that he had told me that he could solder the space shuttle together. After that experience, I decided no more "kits", and no more supporting DIY efforts -- because many who think they can, actually can't.

 

With respect - I can tell from your posts that you probably shouldn't be doing this work!

No offense taken.  I know doing one thing doesn't necessarily mean it will 100% translate into another task like the  NASA guy.  I know I'm not a crossover expert.  I love my speakers and I love this hobby but by no means am I an expert.   I started doing some research and saw some youtube videos that made it seem as if it were a pretty simple swap, so I wanted to make sure that I had the rights parts first though.  Although you're quite humble you are the crossover expert around this forum, so maybe I won't go forward with the cap swap. 

[Deang]

I just think you should practice on something disposable before you work on your own. Parts Express has some dirt cheap PCBs, already loaded with parts, where you could practice desoldering and soldering.