Sourcing Compact Red Metal Film Caps

[Ginsly]

Stompbox Parts has em, and I planned on giving those a shot. They're all 5mm spacing but not sure how much the actual size varies. No idea what brand.

Looks like the ECQ series was discontinued a while ago, which is a shame. Super compact even at high values.

I love box caps but I thought it would be nice to have an assortment of these too. Trying to find the most economical way to grab a few dozen of several values.

Those who use em - what do you like for compact 5mm reds and where do you source them from? Is SBP my best bet?

 

[Betty Wont]

I buy Panasonic ECQ on ebay. You can still find 100 lots for $10-$20. I'm particularly fond of the 1uf in this series.

 

[Ginsly]

I buy Panasonic ECQ on ebay. You can still find 100 lots for $10-$20. I'm particularly fond of the 1uf in this series.

Thx Betty! I didn't know if there was something comparable currently in production, but seems like ya can't go wrong with the ECQ. I'll give eBay another look!

 

[Betty Wont]

Thx Betty! I didn't know if there was something comparable currently in production, but seems like ya can't go wrong with the ECQ. I'll give eBay another look!

They were the standard when I first started building in the 90s. Great for noobs because you can't accidentally melt them like box caps. I'm still nostalgic for them and use them in my personal and legacy builds. I don't know of anything new that have their form factor.

 

[pettert]

I bought lots of red ones from LCSC , search for polyester capacitor and then filter them with P=5.0mm plus 100V and under, and your search results will be glowing red like the east

The East Is Red (song) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Bonus, the manufacturers are called stuff like Joey, Kyet, Knscha, Weidy etc

 

[Ginsly]

I guess the real question is... do these red metallized polyester caps have any benefit over something like a Kemet R82 box cap - which is generally smaller and cheaper than most of the "reds" I've found?

 

[pettert]

I guess the real question is... do these red metallized polyester caps have any benefit over something like a Kemet R82 box cap - which is generally smaller and cheaper than most of the "reds" I've found?

I've never noticed anything, I just like that they're not as sensitive to soldering iron mishaps.

 

[Ginsly]

I don't know of anything new that have their form factor.

Seems like the Topmays Small Bear carries are about the same, but I saw a post of yours saying that they're chunkier than the ECQ at high values especially... hmm. That ain't great.

@pettert I was able to find some values in smaller reds at LCSC, but I haven't ordered directly from China since the BS started... They seem to be missing some higher nF values I need but I may have just missed them. Have you noticed any perceivable difference between any of those bizarrely-named brands they carry?

 

[Brett]

do these red metallized polyester caps have any benefit over something like a Kemet R82 box cap

Is there a particular reason you're seeking out these ECQ-style caps over something like the Wima MKS2 or Kemet box film caps?

I used to use the ECQ caps when I first started building but have since switched almost exclusively to the box film. I don't find there to be much difference in terms of performance. The only real benefit I could see there being to using these "old school" caps is if a board is laid out specifically using ECQ footprints where a box film may not fit as intended. Otherwise, I've found box film to actually be superior because when they're installed properly, they don't bend back and forth as easily when you're handling the board.

I've noticed you like to hyper-analyze a lot of stuff to learn as much as possible, it's commendable, but I don't think you're going to notice any difference between these caps and box film caps sound/performance wise.

 

[pricklyrobot]

WIMA MKS2 have recently been discontinued, FYI…

https://www.mouser.com/PCN/Wima_WIMA_Letter_MYLAR_PET_PEN_27_02_2025.pdf

 

[Ginsly]

Is there a particular reason you're seeking out these ECQ-style caps over something like the Wima MKS2 or Kemet box film caps?

Great question! Answer is pretty mundane. I have like 7 or 8 values of ECQ caps (or similar reds), and I figure I might as well have a slightly better selection of them in case I want to use that type exclusively in a build or two. Not terribly important, and when it comes down to it they're not better, smaller, or cheaper than box caps. Might not be worth it to flesh out my small stock of red metal films, as I'm very happy with Kemet R82s.

I've noticed you like to hyper-analyze a lot of stuff to learn as much as possible

I mean... isn't that what we're all doing here to different extents..? But yes, you're certainly right - this stuff gets confusing, especially the minutia of part sourcing. I've learned a lot here by asking what I figure are pretty reasonable questions. I've mostly found what I like (and can afford!), but once in a while a situation like this pops up.

 

[pettert]

Seems like the Topmays Small Bear carries are about the same, but I saw a post of yours saying that they're chunkier than the ECQ at high values especially... hmm. That ain't great.

@pettert I was able to find some values in smaller reds at LCSC, but I haven't ordered directly from China since the BS started... They seem to be missing some higher nF values I need but I may have just missed them. Have you noticed any perceivable difference between any of those bizarrely-named brands they carry?

No perceivable difference, and build quality was excellent.

Doesn't feel like Aliexpress/Temu orders which can have slightly off markings, or too thin legs, slightly off color, or some or other less than perfect quality property.

I feel like if you can't build the component fully to spec and expectations visually that might reveal the attitude towards quality defects otherwise, too. In other words, so far so good, and many of the companies say they have passed this and that ISO certification

Some random picks, all 5mm pitch:
WEIDY 470nF https://www.lcsc.com/product-detail/C22378673.html
KNSCHA 680nF https://www.lcsc.com/product-detail/C47917078.html
KYET 1uF https://www.lcsc.com/product-detail/C390070.html
JOEY 2.2uF https://www.lcsc.com/product-detail/C18295918.html

I reacted to the printing on JOEYs caps being a bit so-so, they don't have ISO-certification that many others have, but they're called JOEY so I had to buy some anyway.

The whole csv as text of my recent refill of my red cap inventory, I figured the part number can be handy since searching on LCSC isn't alway that easy

Gofile - Cloud Storage Made Simple

Secure, fast and free cloud storage solution. Upload and share files instantly.

gofile.io

I sort of hate sourcing, but spending some of my energy with it makes the quality time at the soldering station better.

Some other Company names that amused me in the thin film capacitor section, that didn't match your request:
Kingsonic, Dersonic, Jimson, Walson, JURCC.

 

[rossbalch]

Once thing I've done is add SPECIFIC components to my DipTrace library, I have an added LCSC part number so if I ever want something to be assembled I already have a BOM with the proper part numbers ready to go. It also shortcuts my component sourcing as I know I can search for the specific number of LCSC.

 

[Ginsly]

@pettert Awesome! Very helpful, and those are actually quite cheap from LCSC. Might give em a shot. I’ll have to search some threads and see what else is worthwhile there- I’ve seen em mentioned several times.

Have you ordered from them recently? Wondering what the shipping/tariff situation might be…

 

[pettert]

@pettert Awesome! Very helpful, and those are actually quite cheap from LCSC. Might give em a shot. I’ll have to search some threads and see what else is worthwhile there- I’ve seen em mentioned several times.

Have you ordered from them recently? Wondering what the shipping/tariff situation might be…

Yeah, but I'm in the EU, they've sorted out how to declare that properly , which meant just VAT (25%) no punitive customs fee.

I ordered from them a month ago, got here in less than a week.

 

[rossbalch]

@pettert Awesome! Very helpful, and those are actually quite cheap from LCSC. Might give em a shot. I’ll have to search some threads and see what else is worthwhile there- I’ve seen em mentioned several times.

Have you ordered from them recently? Wondering what the shipping/tariff situation might be…

I'm in New Zealand so also can't comment on the Tariff situation, but can say, they have literally everything you need, and it's well packed. The only thing is occasionally they can take a while to actually ship, but once it ships it's pretty quick. The upside is, if you think you've forgotten something, or you want some additional things, until the package actually ships, you can combine orders together into the same shipment which avoids the "oopsy daisy" small order tax you would get at Tayda or Mouser due to needing a whole separate shipment.