I’d like to upgrade the caps in my ML amp and understand the Cornell Dubilier caps are the highest quality, above the United Chemicon. The original filter caps are 50,000uf/125v and there is a direct Cornell replacement; however, there’s also a 76,000uf/100v Cornell cap available and I understand this larger capacitance will improve bass. My concern is the voltage rating of this cap is 100v, instead of 125v, but I’m told that the amps’ normal operating voltage is 93v; I am concerned about the lower voltage rating (am I cutting it too close) and am wondering if I really need to be?
What is the better, ideal choice: 50,000uf/125v or 76,000uf/100v?
Any and all advice much appreciated.
I realize this is an old post. However, I need some direction/advice. I have an old Levinson No. 336 amp that has a "dead" or non functioning channel. I swapped in a working amp and both channels have sound, so I know the 336 is compromised. It could be as minor as a fuse or something ominous.
History:
The 336 had its caps replaced 2x by Levinson under warranty for a known issue with those caps (bad batch I'm told). Reading the notes on this post, I'd like to swap in CDE caps. However, I spoke to a tech this week (9/27/17) at a Levinson authorized repair shop who said Levinson advises United Chemicon and they are "very good" caps. He said CDE only makes caps in batches and you have to order them ahead of time and you must buy a few sets of them - NOT just one set. That makes CDE even more expensive. I haven't called CDE yet to confirm that. This is why a seller on eBay who was selling a remaining set of CDE's, probably had a few sets and he was now selling his last set. (@$700 sold). The tech said not to change anything on the caps - keep them in stock configuration.
I'm going to call CDE Monday, 10/2/17 to see if:
A) I am compelled to purchase a few sets B) Can I change the voltage to improve sound. C) Price of same
The amp is almost 19 years old and needs to be recapped. It sounded dry, etched, sibilant, brassy and lifeless and the bass was just off before the channel died. I just got fatigued listening to it. I took great care of it - unplugged it often from wall. It has a dedicated 20 amp line.
** The tech nearly jumped when I mentioned an upgrade to a 30 amp power cable (with 30A service) to further improve performance. He said the cable, which is not detachable, is $1k. He advised to forget about it. I can confirm that upgrading the wall power to just a dedicated 20A line, from a shared 15A line, revealed: Incredible dynamics, more volume, more forward midrange (like a Class A Levinson), increased soundstage width and depth, tighter and more detailed bass, quieter background, and just more life than I had ever experienced. Any guidance is appreciated. Thanks guys.
- Rick
