Anyone used Modcaps when building an amp?

Nah, oil filled polyester. Bipolar caps. Not electrolytics...they just look like electros.

No experience actually using those, but they would certainly seem to fit the bill for amp building.

What style sozos you looking for? Partsconnexion has the blue molded and mustards in stock.
 
I've been digging around the Amplified Parts website and they have some SoZo caps. They're in the US so shipping might be a bear for you, though.
 
Yeah I use Antique Electronics a fair bit - tubesandmore.com - and they're the same business as Amplified Parts. They show Sozos but when you put them in your basket when it comes to check out it says "back order".

But I have discovered that it seems you can buy rebranded Sozos as Synergy Royal caps. So I bought some from Valve Storm. Valve Storm is an interesting, small online store which seems to be spin-off from Metroamps. They sell the same top-quality plexi parts that George at Metroamps used to sell. Their steel plexi chassis are the best I've found.

In all of this I've been doing a lot of research into the benefits of various types of caps and I am very tempted to built another amp with Mallory 150s to see if I can hear the difference. One issue I have now that people are buying my amps is that they expect to see Sozos in them! In the past I have sworn that I can hear the difference with Sozos over Mallorys but some of the comparisons I have seen online have me doubting myself. It would be great if Mallorys 150s sounded every bit as good because they are a LOT cheaper!
 
Hi Hamish! Have you ever looked at Mojotone? They carry some Sozo and some others. I don't know who MOD is using for production, but several makes are possibly produced using the same tooling for different brands.

Here is Mojotone's Sozo offering
www.mojotone.com

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Mojotone offers premium guitar and amplifier parts, speaker cabinets, kits, and accessories for musicians and builders worldwide. Explore vintage-inspired gear crafted with exceptional quality and expertise.
www.mojotone.com www.mojotone.com

Edit: and I almost forgot about ...

tubedepot.com

Capacitors • DIY Central | Tube Depot

We are an authorized distributor for many of the leading industry capacitor manufacturers. If you need a part to repair your amp we probably have it!
tubedepot.com tubedepot.com

Capacitors

Guitar Amplifier Capacitors
www.amprepairparts.com
 
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I'm sure that there's gotta be some differences in regards to construction between different film caps...probably some differences in capacitive performance as well.

That being said...I dunno. Caps can get stupid. Clearly different dielectrics impact performance, and I'm not the sort to scoff at using hi-fi components in a build.

BUT...I can't imagine that a polyester Mallory and a polyester Sozo would be all that different, given the same measured capacitance value.

I could be wrong. Film caps do have some variability between manufacturers. It also depends on what exactly you're asking the cap to do in the circuit.

But, take all that for what it's worth. That is; the musings of a guy who doesn't really have a super firm grasp on the details of how different caps perform in circuit. That is; probably next to nothing.
 
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Hey Fig - yeah Mojo and Antique are my first ports of call, followed by Tube Depot! I have used all three many times. I have in fact ordered some of those caps from Mojo - they're some older stock but that's fine. Tube Depot are completely out of stock of Sozo. A lot of these places list Sozo then when you try to buy them they tell you they're out of stock. I get my chassis and tag boards for my tweedy builds from Mojo as they are usually pretty good quality. For Marshall styles it's Valve Storm.

Sozos are/were originally made by a guy in Florida - as far as I am aware they've never been made by Mallory. The thing about Sozos has been the physical size - they are similarly sized and proportioned to the caps they emulate and they say that this has an effect on the sound. Of course I am highly skeptical about this but - they do sound good. And they look great in an amp. Mallorys are fine but quite a bit smaller so won't usually be confused for a Sozo. They're also a helluva lot cheaper so I will be building another amp with them soon!

I was originally super skeptical about all this capacitor sound difference thing until I swapped out all of the Mallory 150s in an amp I had built for Sozos on a whim. It seemed to clear the amp up and it sounded more responsive. Of course it may have been entirely my mood that day but I really liked the amp a lot better after that. And I have never liked orange drops. They are bright sounding but most of all they're ugly and can be huge! And we all know that the best sounding amps look the coolest inside.
 
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I recall reading some things about how Synergy caps are what Sozo was years ago before it was sold. I used the Synergy caps in my most recent build and have nothing bad to say, though don't get my started on the awful Mojotone 18 Watt TMB layout.

I've used the yellow sozos on the previous 3 builds (1987, 5E3, and 5F1) and have nothing bad to say either.

Truth be told if you wanted to spend more money on amp parts, skip the expensive coupling caps and go for NOS preamp tubes. Much more worthwhile investment. I've fitted almost all of my builds with NOS tubes with the exception of a vibroverb build. If you want a good reputable dealer that doesn't upcharge or try to screw you let me know.

-Ian
 
You're probably right! I used to use as many NOS preamp tubes as i could and sometimes they did definitely sound better. But they're so expensive now... I can't see the point of NOS power tubes because they will wear out and what do you replace them with? Yes some good NOS tubes will last for years but there are no guarantees and it can get super expensive.

I mostly use JJ tubes because they sound good and are affordable. I figure that if I can get my amps to sound good with JJs then anything better is a bonus. :cool: And I can get my amps to sound good with JJs.
 
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HamishR said:
You're probably right! I used to use as many NOS preamp tubes as i could and sometimes they did definitely sound better. But they're so expensive now... I can't see the point of NOS power tubes because they will wear out and what do you replace them with? Yes some good NOS tubes will last for years but there are no guarantees and it can get super expensive.

I mostly use JJ tubes because they sound good and are affordable. I figure that if I can get my amps to sound good with JJs then anything better is a bonus. :cool: And I can get my amps to sound good with JJs.
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You can get really good NOS or ANOS 6v6gt pairs for under $50 and those tubes will last a really really long time. Honestly if you buy from a reputable dealer it becomes worth it. If the tubes are truly NOS tested they should last longer than you'll be able to play guitar. I've got a nice pair of Ken Rads from the late 40s in my Tweed Deluxe that sound awesome and only cost $43? I think a matched pair of JJs are 35?

The difference is noticeable with preamp tubes but again the degree of improvement is maybe 10-20% better? I've taken great pride in all of my amps because I built them and want them to sound as awesome as possible. When I was playing an Orange Rockerverb I didnt cafe at all what tubes were in there.
 
Because of tons of noise issues I ended up relying on the Triwatt design for their 18 watt amps. I moved all of the grid stoppers (68k on both channels, 470k off the volume pot on the TMB side) to the tube sockets using strip boards, I switched over to a true cathode follower and added shielded wire to the master volume and gain connections. I also added a switchable cathode bypass cap on V2A but that really doesn't do much.

I'm planning on removing the master volume this week because it still oscillates too much and I don't need a master volume. I think I'll probably put a big cathode bypass cap for the power tubes as well, something like 1000 uF. Supposedly that helps tighten up the amp. I was surprised how saturated an amp it is, way more gain than a 1987.

Also I've played around with 3 different sets is EL84s: Sylvania Black plates, Late 50s Amperex D getter, and Polam/Telams. Definitely like the 2 cheaper pairs more than the Amperex. I'd definitely recommend those 2 pairs. Sylvanias were roughly 45 or 50 and the Polams were around 60.

If you have any other questions let me know. I'd be happy to help.
 
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