"Tropical Fish" capacitors needed...

[cd]

You are pretty cyncial if you ask me.

Ha ha you haven't been doing the DIY FX thing long, have you?

[tungngruv]

I am a newbie also, and all I've ever gotten from this site is free professional help at all hours of the day and night.  182201, don't take offense. There are very smart and helpfull people here. I know, they help me almost daily.

[Hal]

I have the time to do it....good idea!

only problem is, I dont have the initial investment capital...

[182201]

You are pretty cyncial if you ask me.

Ha ha you haven't been doing the DIY FX thing long, have you?

Not so long that it is not fun anymore.    

[cd]

You are pretty cyncial if you ask me.

Ha ha you haven't been doing the DIY FX thing long, have you?

Not so long that it is not fun anymore.    

You obviously haven't been doing it very long if you're underestimating RG Keen's contribution to this community - quite frankly, none of this would even REMOTELY exist without him.

[lovekraft0]

I have the time to do it....good idea!...
only problem is, I dont have the initial investment capital...

So, ummmm..., what do you think it'll cost to get you started?  :lol:  :lol:  :lol:

[lightningfingers]

he's not cynical, he's a GENIUS :twisted:

I have a whole bunch of orange drop caps in the typical, "tropical fish" values, and a whole bunch of idiot friends who'll buy them. SO does anyone know how the stripes on the cap relate to the value? I have a small fortune on my hands here :lol:

[cd]

SO does anyone know how the stripes on the cap relate to the value? I have a small fortune on my hands here :lol:

It's just like the resistor color code, except the multipier is in PF.

[lightningfingers]

thanks dude :mrgreen:

[182201]

:roll:

[R.G.]

Just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean they aren't really out to get me. For example, see:

http://diystompboxes.com/sboxforum/viewtopic.php?t=25892

For the record - no criticism of you or your question was implied.  We just see a lot of people being taken advantage of.

[Peter Snowberg]

Welcome 182201.

Here are a couple of my observations...

- I've taken apart a couple of "tropical fish" caps and found nice quality foil & mylar units that I would place into the "higher ESL" style construction. A good substitute would be the cheap Xicon "greenies" available from RadioShack and http://www.circuitspecialists.com among others.

- Spending years and thousands upon thousands of hours selflessly helping thousands upon thousands of people to build effects can lead to a cynical take on things.  I would say I'm highly cynical but with terminal optimism.

- Tropical fish caps do look cool.

- Capacitance and voltage rating are only two parameters to look at caps by. Some cap materials have hysteresis in their response. Tantalums and low voltage ceramics are the worst in this department. Swapping cap material can make a big difference in amps.... but the effect is usually MUCH smaller at lower voltages. I think the construction technique can make just as large a contribution to the "sonic signature" of a part, if not more. The big difference in film caps seems to me to be high ESL vs. low ESL construction. Other than that.... most film caps of different materials are going to sound identical.

- Use what you want and have fun with it. The most important result from building a circuit is how YOU feel about it, regardless if that comes from appearance, tone, or a combination. We're all here to have fun.


======================

Hey CD, mellow out a little please. We all start somewhere.

I don't want to diminish in any way his amazing level of contribution, but believe it or not, this stuff would all be going on without R.G. and Geofex. The form and flow might be a little different, but it would all still be here none the less. Now, am I proud to be part of a forum where R.G. posts? You bet!!!! :mrgreen: I have the same level of respect for quite a few other contributors here. This is one amazing community. We are all more than the sum of our individual contributions.

[182201]

You are pretty cyncial if you ask me.

Ha ha you haven't been doing the DIY FX thing long, have you?

Haha?

WOW you have done it longer tham me, so I guess I suck then right and am not entitled to any opinion or views.  :roll:

HAHA you are a newcomer HAAAAAAHAAAAA  
HAAA You do NOT have a 3,000 boutique amp or cool guitar  :shock:
HAAA  I know more licks than you  :lol:

---hey watch me kick this 5 graders ass!! I know more than him. HAAA :roll:

[Nasse]

Just spoiled a nice old tropical fish cap on Sunday, was breadboarding some stupid circuit that did not work. The leads seem not like bending. Maybe I should put my little suppy of these oldies aside, after few years I could sell them, or I could make some fake vintage circuits  :twisted:

But finding nice and cheap caps is not always easy, caps seem to keep their value and the price seems to go up.

It is good to remember that when I bought those caps 20-30 years ago, they were just called as "polyester caps"

[Torchy]

Haha?

WOW you have done it longer tham me, so I guess I suck then right and am not entitled to any opinion or views.  :roll:

HAHA you are a newcomer HAAAAAAHAAAAA  
HAAA You do NOT have a 3,000 boutique amp or cool guitar  :shock:
HAAA  I know more licks than you  :lol:

---hey watch me kick this 5 graders ass!! I know more than him. HAAA :roll:

Erm, I think you need to stand back and read the other posts on this forum before you make comments like that. And maybe post BEFORE the alcohol (or whatever) kicks in ... ... that most definitely, absolutely is NOT the attitude on this forum. Stick around and you'll see.

Peace out.

[182201]

Stick around and you'll see.

Forget it.

Too much drama here for anyone new (knew?) I'll leave the modding to "the experts" who, without them, there would be no forum and no modding of any kind right.

Sorry, I tried to expand my do-it-yourself attitude into pedals.

[lightningfingers]

:roll:

[MartyMart]

182201, I'm so sorry that you have taken offence here, I've been modding/building pedals for about a year or so and reading up on the electronics that I started to study years ago, before I dropped out of college to join a band.
So I'm quite new to this Forum ( 6 months )  and have found everyone to be very, very helpful and willing to share their knowledge, which is usually infinately better than mine !
I find it very satisfying when i can post an answer and help someone else in return, albeit less technical than some guys, hopefully practical and explained in "Laymans" terms.
The "Jibing" and "Jokes"  are just that !  there's no hidden agenda and no reason to get mad with the people here, its a great little community and i'm really pleased to be a part of it, I hope you can be too ?
Best Regards,
Marty.

[Gus]

I have cut them apart no big deal.  One thing you should know if you use old TFCs is that all the ones I have measured had higher leakage currents than newer PET caps.  I believe the coating used in the past was more hydroscopic(holds water, dirt finger oil etc).

You also have to be carefull bending the leads at the lead to body connection.  

Leakage can cause problems with pops and upsetting High Z parts of the circuit.

[Hal]

wow numbers - he was kidding.  OBVIOUSLY you're new here (post count) so he was trying to relate the two...whatever, im not gunna try to explain.  when you post something as blut as "you're cynacle," you should expect a reply like that.  

Just chill, build effects, and be happy.