Capacitors Question

[SRCRS]

So I'm a newbie at all this wiring stuff. I am putting new pickups and pots in my P Bass (Fender '62s and 500k pots)and I was wondering if there is a certian capacitor I should get for my tone pot or are they pretty much universal? Its a 500k audio taper pot. Also, if the prongs on the capacitor are too long to fit well in the body cavity can I snip them, or is that a bad idea for some reason? To go along with this are there any manufacturers or brands that stand above the rest?

 

[iiipopes]

Before you look at capacitors, look at the pots. If you're using a '62 reissue P-bass pickup, it was designed to work with 250 Kohm audio taper CTS pots.

Then from there...some folks like more brightness, and use 500kohm pots. Others like a modified taper, and will bridge the 500kohm pot with a 1meg resistor to bring down the overall value to @330Kohm with a modified taper.

The most common mod to the control circuit is to use a 250kohm linear taper pot as the tone control pot for a finer degree of adjustment.

Then after all that you finally get to capacitors: the current standard for a bass is a .047, and some folks have golden ears that claim to tell the difference between ceramic and other types, I prefer to save my $$ and get one from Radio Shack, although on occasion, if they are on sale, I'll use a Sprague Orange drop. Others here on the forum will have their personal favorites. I also like a .033 instead of a .047 to get more mids; Leo started out with a .1 in the circuit to get more bass. Others use a .068 for more of a dub tone.

Your mileage will vary.

Bottom line: if you want true vintage tone, use 250 Kohm CTS pots and a .047 tone capacitor.

Oh - and installation - by all means, when you bend the leads a half turn around the pot lugs and solder, then clip the remaining lead ends so they don't short something out.

 

[Snaxster]

https://www.google.com/search?q=guitar+tone+pot+capacitor

 

[khutch]

The leads on a capacitor can be trimmed to fit, this will cause no problems. Any major brand of "film" capacitor will work just fine. There is an urban legend that Sprague orange drop capacitors are superior to all others and they certainly tend to be priced like they are. But I work for a major electronics manufacturer and in products that must work first time, every time, all the time we use other brands, like Murata, Nichicon, Vishay, Kemet, to name a few. Bass tone caps are generally 0.047 uF which is the same as 47 nF, but some folks prefer other values. Plastic film caps will typically have suitable voltage ratings and low tolerances so you can buy them without much thought.

Ceramic capacitors come in a bewildering variety of types.This has lead to another urban legend: ceramic caps are no good for tone control use. The truth is that some are extremely well suited to tone control use, others are not, so they must be purchased with care. If you want to use a ceramic cap I can tell you what to look for.

Ken

 

[SRCRS]

thanks iiipopes for the info!! especially about the leads. and thanks for the link snaxster! i checked out the first article so far, it explained a lot for me.

iiipopes, i do like a brighter sound which is why i decide to go with the 500k pots i posted a thread about that a few weeks ago. nobody who posted objected to doing this, but thanks for the info about the fender '62s being made for the 250k pots, which i guess makes sense since they are supposed to deliver that vintage tone. When you say "bend the leads a half turn around the pot lugs and solder" what exactly do you mean by a "half turn?" just kind of hook the leads on the lug a little bit?

 

[SRCRS]

Khutch, im checking out guitarelectronics.com and the are polypropylene, metal, and ceramic caps. i take it that the "film" capacitor you refer to is polypropylene? is there really any audible difference between using these different materials? or is the value of the cap all that's important?

 

[Bassamatic]

The lowest cost ceramic caps are fine - they were used from the very early days, but as an engineer I go just a little better to the little green polypropylene ones.

Yes, there are higher grade materials, but this is only needed for super high-end apps such as recording studio gear, and you can't hear the difference anyway. The biggest reasons for using the metal film caps is accuracy and stability over temperature, which are important in matching tuned filters but not an issue inside a bass.

 

[SRCRS]

thanks bassamatic!

 

[khutch]

A "film" cap is one that uses a thin layer of plastic that is coated on both sides with metal. They go by a variety of names like plastic film, metal film, and often just by the name of the plastic that is used, polypropylene in the example you mention. If you are trying to build a 0.0001% distortion audio amplifier the differences between the various kinds of capacitors is critical. I mean no one can hear the difference even then but anyone with the right equipment can and will measure the difference. I would not use ceramic caps at all for that kind of work if for no other reason than audiophiles would not accept them, no matter how they measure. In a bass guitar where the perception of distortion ranges from meaningless to desirable any of the caps that guitarelectronics.com sells would be fine. Even though the orange drops are expensive, hey it is a small vice so get them if you want them. I would not personally get the vintage paper/oil caps though. They degrade over time and I would rather have a modern reliable cap.

Ken

 

[SRCRS]

Hey khutch thanks for the info about the vintage oil/paper caps! i was checking them out. i'll avoid them. i prefer durability.

In terms of values for the caps, im guessing that mainly when choosing between the .01, .015, .022, .047, .068 and all the others we're talking mostly about a subjective choice correct? I noticed on bestbassgear.com the only cap they sell is a orange drop .047

 

[markjo]

I think a .022 mylar cap would work fine.


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