Electrolytic caps replacement in CD player

[Breezio]

Dear all,

I am reading that os-cons are a good replacement for electrolytes in the digital section of CD players. So I am thinking of upgrading my AMC CD9 with new caps.

When I look at the schematic attached I can count around 30 electrolytic caps which could be a candidate (I am excluding the analog audio path after the DAC and the LCD controller).

Although the cost is not prohibitive (around $30), that seems a bit too much.
I just want to make sure I do the changes where it makes sense.

Can you give me some guidance?

Thanks

Fabrizio

 

[Breezio]

Here's the schemeatic

 

[Osvaldo de Banfield]

Why do you need to replace them? Are they leaky?

 

[Breezio]

Oh no, just trying to improve audio performance

 

[Osvaldo de Banfield]

And what kind of warranty do you have that replacing the caps sound will be better, and no worse than the actual units? Also, are you sure not to do some mistake, like broken a PCB track or metalized hole and ruin the thing definitivelly?

 

[Breezio]

Well, regarding the final result, possibly an improvement, I am open to hear additional suggestions. I just read positive comments regarding the use of os-cons in the supply decoupling for digital sections.


As for the actual replacement work, I think I am experienced enough not to make gross errors.


Saludos

 

[diyiggy]

There is no universal caps model & brand which can guaranty a better result. Most of the time you can do worse or just different (so not better). I have still 80s CD players playing good yet. No need to replace the caps... Leave it but if you see leakage or very bumped caps (on top)...then swap with the same caps model & brand if yu want to stay safe with your monney.



For 30 bucks a better investment can be a Raspeberry Pi DAC hat...,and stay indeed with your still working CD player IMHO.

 

[Osvaldo de Banfield]

+1.

 

[Bill_P]

OS-Cons have very low ESR, sometimes low enough to make integrated circuit three-terminal regulators oscillate. A scope can verify that the Os-Cons are not causing oscillation if you really want to use them. Os-Cons do have high leakage current which is not an issue for supply decoupling but it may disqualify them for signal coupling.

 

[diyiggy]

Sure, but can be an issue for Power Supply decoupling as well, believe me. A good example is for instance the SEPC range which will waste most of the time the sound and equilibrium of the tonal balance if you use it at PS main and/or loads decoupling. You really have to know what you are doing and the scope alone is not a good enough guaranty. Looking at ESR & ESL is not sufficient.

Oscon caps were famous long time ago with their SP model... which could give sometimes an improvement and most of the time a worst result (mat sound but often dirty in the mid-highs). Nowadays their polymer dielectric is different and their sound signature have changed. You will have less problems (I mean with blind swapping without measurement) with the SEP range... but no one in the universe can guaranty it will sound better... and even less just at looking at a shematic. At least it is my loooooong experience having played with tons of CD players in the past.

Better for few bucks a brandnew sigmadelta dac chip than this old former one and a newer crystall as well.

a Digi one pro hat is cheap, a IanCanada ESS dac chip hat like the ES9028 ESS model cost around the same price and will give both to the op less hassle and a real sound improvement.

 

[phase]

I use mostly standard, low-loss caps in the digital sections, less and less of the polymer types.
Probably are what’s in there already!

 

[DF96]

Electrolytics doing bypassing in the digital section, and so presumably themselves 'bypassed' by film caps, may need reasonably high ESR in order to damp any resonances. 'Upgrading' these caps may actually downgrade the bypassing.