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Hovland Musicaps in La Scalas with type AA xover


UncleRobb

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I made a pair of four 3.3uF/100V Musicaps bundled together to give me 13uF each. After I removed the caps from the xover, I discovered that these are labeled "SPRAGUE, 14.0-150 DC, I2IPI460OR5S2," and they indeed measure 14uF. Damn, I could have had 14uF with two 7uF caps in parallel and saved some money too!

Soundwise, the bass now seems dryer and less bumpy (don't ask me why), we (Alice and I) don't notice any change of the midrange, which is as sweet as before, but the treble is less harsh without sacrifying detail.

The new caps only have 10 or 20 hours usage and I suspect that they may improve further. Somehow I expected a larger change. Perhaps the original (motor run?) caps are not that bad.

Any opinions? And what is the "correct" value for the cap in the highpass filter for midrange and treble: 13 or 14uF?

Thanks, Robert

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Rob,

I suspect you didn't look through the many posts here in the forums about the 13 uF cap. I lot of guys have tried changing it and have found the same thing you have. It dosn't make a lot of difference!

All caps have a tollerance to their value. Some are as bad as +-20% (Jensen paper in oil caps for example). If they are +-10%, a 13 uF cap could be anything from 11.7 uF and 14.3 uF. The Hovland MusiCap is +-5%. This means 7uF + 7 uF would fall between 13.3 and 14.7 uF. Since the 13 uF cap is in a first order slope, it is not a critical value to begin with.

And I will say it again, there is NO BURN IN over time with a crossover network. The changes you hear over time is you getting used to the new sound!

Aint I a real party pooper! 11.gif

Al K.

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Hello Rob,

I modified my X-over on my Klipsch KG5.5 using Hovland caps. A new pcb had to be created to house the large caps, resistors and coils.

The instruments come from stage locations that seem more accurately positioned. The mids have superior timbre, texture, clarity and musical naturalness. Highs are more natural and clear.

I have upgraded speaker wires and interconnects and the X-over mod gives me better performance and value for my money. I hope this helps.

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