Realistic Minimus: Replace or Upgrade Caps?

A

Anonoymah

New Member
Hi, I have a pair of 1981 Realistic Minimus-11 speakers that aren't sounding so great anymore. They still have the original capacitors, and I read that electrotlytic caps don't last over 20 years, so it's way past time to replace them.

My question is, do I replace them with identical caps, or do I upgrade? I've read that film caps don't need to be replaced, but I have read both that they improve the sound and that they can ruin the sound if the speakers were designed for electrolytic caps. And, is there a particular brand that's better? I want them to sound as good as possible, but I don't want to throw money away on more expensive caps that sound just like the cheaper ones and won't last any longer.

Cap specs: "NRC bi-polar 2.2 nf 5V Japan"

I'm new at this and have no idea what I'm doing! So I very much appreciate any advise.
 
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I'm in the same boat with a pair of Sony SS-M150X speakers I'm redoing. Mine have 2.7uF 50V caps, original tweeters were shot & I'm trying to make a decision on crossover frequency, build my own X-over, buy one, re-cap, etc. Online searches kept bringing me here, so I've joined and have really gotten an education on many things from many who seem very knowledgable.

As far as playing with caps, pour yourself a tall drink, get comfortable & start here:

http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=490600&highlight=recapping

:jawdrop:
 
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Anonoymah said:
Hi, I have a pair of 1981 Realistic Minimus-11 speakers that aren't sounding so great anymore. They still have the original capacitors, and I read that electrotlytic caps don't last over 20 years, so it's way past time to replace them.

My question is, do I replace them with identical caps, or do I upgrade? I've read that film caps don't need to be replaced, but I have read both that they improve the sound and that they can ruin the sound if the speakers were designed for electrolytic caps. And, is there a particular brand that's better? I want them to sound as good as possible, but I don't want to throw money away on more expensive caps that sound just like the cheaper ones and won't last any longer.

Cap specs: "NRC bi-polar 2.2 nf 5V Japan"

I'm new at this and have no idea what I'm doing! So I very much appreciate any advise.
Click to expand...

A film cap would no doubt be superior, but those ratings are way too low.
It should be a 2.2uf at 50 volts
 
Hi, Glen. I'll take another look inside my speaker and make sure I didn't transcribe it wrong. I took a photo, but it's blurry.
 
Thanks for the link, Fiream. I've got myself a nice glass of milk and I'm settling down to check it out. It looks more like receiver caps than speaker caps, but I'll check it out, anyway, it probably does talk about speakers later on.

I tried to edit my other reply to describe the caps but I think it didn't take. They're white, maybe half an inch long and a little less in diameter than a dime. I took a look at Radio Shack and everything they have is much, much smaller. I wonder if they really are as low-powered as I read.
 
Anonoymah said:
Hi, Glen. I'll take another look inside my speaker and make sure I didn't transcribe it wrong. I took a photo, but it's blurry.
Click to expand...

Take another peak at it, it might be MF. The crossover cap for that series
is generally anywhere between 2.2 and 4.7uf or MFD.
 
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You were right, Glen! The U had a tail on both sides and was fine print and in italics, so my brain interpreted it as an N! It is indeed 2.2 uf.
 
Anonoymah said:
You were right, Glen! The U had a tail on both sides and was fine print and in italics, so my brain interpreted it as an N! It is indeed 2.2 uf.
Click to expand...

Ok, now that you've confirmed the value here's my recommendation.
Go with something like a "Dayton Audio" poly cap. You can get them
at places such as Parts Express for under 3 bucks a piece, and will be
superior to the original. The rating will be 2.2 uf at 250 Volt. Yes, its
OK to go higher on the voltage than the original.
 
+1 on the Daytons. Metallized polyprop. is cheaper than separate film-and-foil and works fine. The 10% tolerance ones will be cheaper than the 5% ones.

These are designed for audio as opposed to the Radio Shack stuff (surprised you even found a cap anymore at RS!). It will cost you a couple bucks but your speakers should sound a lot better. I don't think replacing NPE's with film is going to make a hill of beans on this speaker. BUT, if you want to stay with NPE's, Parts Express has those also, in a special grade for crossovers, and they cost mere pennies.
 
toxcrusadr said:
+1 on the Daytons. Metallized polyprop. is cheaper than separate film-and-foil and works fine. The 10% tolerance ones will be cheaper than the 5% ones.

These are designed for audio as opposed to the Radio Shack stuff (surprised you even found a cap anymore at RS!). It will cost you a couple bucks but your speakers should sound a lot better. I don't think replacing NPE's with film is going to make a hill of beans on this speaker. BUT, if you want to stay with NPE's, Parts Express has those also, in a special grade for crossovers, and they cost mere pennies.
Click to expand...

The price on the PMPC series are 2.64 each, which have a 1% tolerance.
The high dollar caps (10 bucks and up) are just a waste of money.
 
PE reorganized the way they show crossover caps. Harder to figure out what you're looking at. I had complaints about the old way, and I have different ones about the new way. Just whiney I guess! :D
 
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