Anyone Use Nichicon UKA Series Caps?

[Geek]

Heya,

I've been using Elna Silmic-II or Nichicon MUSE KZ for my designs, but not long ago Digikey began expanding the Nichicon line considerably and are now carrying the UKA. They're rated for 105C. compared to 85C. for all the other audio caps.

Now I'm coming up to a restock for audio caps and if someone has input on the sonics of the UKA, I may just switch over if they're comparable on the detail of a Silmic or MUSE, simply because tubes + 105C. = a better match

*edit*
I have seen the shootouts and reviews here, but they're rather dated and don't include the latest offerings.

Cheers!

 

[Hyperion]

I understand the KA's are very good, have a look for posts/threads by AK member 'patfont' he has done a lot of work on electrolytic capacitor comparison.

 

[Geek]

Thanks!

Looks like the question was asked, but still no review: http://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/nichicon-has-been-reading-this-forum.402003/

Cheers!

 

[Geek]

Whelp, I have a McIntosh C33 in for repair with a blown phono stage. Due to size constraints, I have the choice of UKA or UFG caps. I'll try the UKA and report back!

 

[bryans12v]

I have used KA's in a couple different units with good results, primarily in power supplies or anywhere where the 105c is needed. Ive found them to be a little stale in signal paths but maybe I didn't give them enough time.. For the most part Im still using Silmic II'S elsewhere.

 

[dlucy]

I don't have enough experience yet and I may not have good enough ears to tell firsthand, but I can share some of the advice I've found from AK'ers like markthefixer here:

In the signal path, the most-critical capacitor parameter or attribute is leakage. The lower the leakage, the less impact to the audio signal the capacitor will have. When looking at just the Nichicon brand, the KA series has the lowest leakage value (0.002 for the entire series, so C * V * 0.002), then there are numerous series from Nichicon that have a nearly-as-good leakage value of 0.010 (KA, KW, FW, HE, HW, RS, RZ, VK, VR) and then the other series with 0.030 (BY, PJ, PM, PS, PW). I don't fully understand the reasoning behind "lower leakage means less impact on the signal", but when I research the various datasheets and compare the figures (big spreadsheet of, say, all the 100 uF 35 VDC caps' leakage values), it becomes clear that the KL series is significantly lower than even the best "audio grade" caps, so I'm following the advice on this one. I choose KL series caps for signal path needs when I can find a matching or usable capacitance and voltage and I HE, KW, FW, or HW when I can't.

For power supply filters the most-important value is the ripple current (higher is better). MTF is often recommending the series PW for this use (and non-signal-path uses). When I resort my big spreadsheet of Nichicon caps (in this instance 2200 uF 50 VDC ones) by ripple current, the PW ones are near the top, accompanied by HW, HE, and BY. So, I typically look for all the caps that fit a particular capacitance and voltage need, then sort by ripple current... and usually get PW or HW as the "winner". When there isn't a PW or HW big enough, I use the same approach on the snap-in series-es.​

As I said, I'm not saying "this is the way you should do it", but rather illustrating how I use some of the advice here on AK to find my own solutions.

 

[Geek]

Thanks for the replies!

....In the signal path, the most-critical capacitor parameter or attribute is leakage....

Hrm, I regularly stock some Nichicon KL I use in timing and delay circuits. I should see if this is true in an A/B test.

I have used KA's in a couple different units with good results, primarily in power supplies or anywhere where the 105c is needed. Ive found them to be a little stale in signal paths but maybe I didn't give them enough time.. For the most part Im still using Silmic II'S elsewhere.

I'm a real fan of the Silmic's in signal lines. PSU's I try and stick to Panasonic FC, FM, United KZN or KYB, Nichicon HE, PW, CS or GU - never tried an audio coupler in a PSU before.

I've found all caps, signal line or PSU need 50-200 hours to break in (Silmics open up in 80-100). Caps are pretty boring right outta the box ;-)

Cheers!

 

[Mat86]

Super old thread but had the same question. Been using both UKA and UKW over the past few years, depending on size, availability, or temp rating, but head to head....which is preferred?

dlucy's post quote mentioned leakage being the most important in the signal path, but head to head....UKA and UKW are identical. The only thing I see setting them apart is UKW having a better ripple rating and UKA a higher temp rating. In their datasheet marketing, UKW is "High Sound Quality," for Audio, and described as "Realization of a harmonious balance of sound quality, made possible by the development of new electrolyte;" while UKA is "High Grade," for Audio, and described as "Selected materials to create superior acoustic sound."

Which is preferred in actual use? Specs aren't telling me much, and they are the same price, too.

 

[onanysunday]

UKW>UFW, but I honestly can't tell a difference between UKW and UKA soundwise and I use them both all the time interchangeably. As you mentioned, the difference is that UKA is 105 degree rated while UKW may have a higher ripple current rating. I use UKA when working on tube equipment where caps are next to a hot tube (for instance). Besides these two specs which differ, I'd say they're more alike than different honestly. Nichicon's descriptions are a bit vague/ cryptic in how they try to explain it. I don't think it matters as much as when you compare either one of them to something like UES Muse BP for instance which I'd prefer in actual use over either one of them.

 

[dlucy]

UKL is the lower leakage line, not anything else in the UKx lines.

 

[Geek]

Sound of caps I found is topology dependent. Got a high NFB circuit? Not much difference between series of the same brand. Straight gain amp found in middle stages or in ultra low level phono preamps? Can be lots of difference!
Basically the earlier the stage, the more different the sound.

 

[rudolfo]

Follow-up on the UKA series. I only used it once on a recorder but not enough long listening and comparing it. It wanna use it on my 300B amp which is a 10,000uf.
Besides I'm having a hard time finding an authentic KZ series, I think I wanna try the UKA too. Any follow-ups would be great.
Thanks,
R

 

[rudolfo]

Follow-up on the UKA series. I only used it once on a recorder but not enough long listening and comparing it. It wanna use it on my 300B amp which is a 10,000uf.
Besides I'm having a hard time finding an authentic KZ series, I think I wanna try the UKA too. Any follow-ups would be great.
Thanks,
R

Bump.. Anyone?

 

[Refugee]

The available Nichicons for audio I see out there now are LKG, UKA, LKS, UFW. The rest are hard to get.
The LKG has three tiers - the last two letters in the part number denote the tier -
AK - good
BK - better
CK - best
according to Nichicon.

 

[analogwisdom]

There are 4 "audio grade" Nichicon series that are not currently EOL... My post from a few weeks ago:

(for now) Nichicon still makes the following audio grade caps:

UFW (85°C "Standard, For Audio Equipment")

UKW (85°C "Standard, For Audio Equipment, Higher Grade")

UKT (105°C "For General Audio Equipment, Wide Temperature Range")

UKA (105°C "For High Grade Audio Equipment, Wide Temperature Range")

I've used all of these and they're just fine.

Disclaimer: I don't claim to hear differences in caps. I use Nichicon because I like the way they look (shiny!) and they're affordable.

Chemi-Con makes "Melodio" series audio electrolytics, but they're only sold to OEMs. I emailed Chemi-Con and asked about obtaining them as a hobbyist. The gentleman that replied claimed they were working on getting them to distributors (Mouser and Digikey), but that was nearly a year ago. Sad, I'd like to try them.