Anyone know anything about these PIO capacitors?

[Mike_J]

Sometimes ago I purchased Astron CPO4A1 .02mF @ 400VDC PIO capacitors. They looked like they were well made but are probably pretty old. Is anyone familiar with these caps and whether they are worth trying in an amp? Don't want to waste a lot of time on them if they are known to leak DC due to age.

[shooter]

If you want to improve your solder skills, use 'em.
If you're risk averse, use new ones

[sluckey]

Those hermetically sealed caps are very reliable. I have some in my projects. The military and FAA were big users of those style caps, not necessarily Astron brand. West Cap was another manufacturer.

[Mike_J]

Those hermetically sealed caps are very reliable. I have some in my projects. The military and FAA were big users of those style caps, not necessarily Astron brand. West Cap was another manufacturer.

Have you found spots in the amps or types of amps it is best to use them in? For right now I am thinking the 5f6a Bassman I am working on.

[sluckey]

I didn't put much thought into it. A cap is a cap in my mind. I had a project that required three .47µF @ 400V. I had three that I had been holding on to for 40 years, so I grabbed them and put them in. Look good on that board, don't 'cha think?   

They were used for plate couplers. Here's the schematic...

     http://sluckeyamps.com/warbler/Warbler.pdf

[Mike_J]

I didn't put much thought into it. A cap is a cap in my mind. I had a project that required three .47µF @ 400V. I had three that I had been holding on to for 40 years, so I grabbed them and put them in. Look good on that board, don't 'cha think?   

They were used for plate couplers. Here's the schematic...

     http://sluckeyamps.com/warbler/Warbler.pdf

Many things I have never seen in an amplifier. The first has to be the saturable reactor transformer. Pretty sure our George Jetson mobiles would have had a few of those if they ever got around to building them like I was certain at one time would have happened by now. My guess is the transformer came with the Hammond parts. Also haven't seen a 10K plate resistor, 56K dropping resistor or a .47 coupling cap in any of my builds to date. Have you thought of combining the Warbler with a stand alone reverb unit? Could add an active effect unit to add back any highs you lose. Would need to use a revibe unit for any amp that didn't have a passive effects loop.


What I did for amps that didn't have reverb or vibrato and have a passive effects loop is cobbled together a stack with a G Sharp unit and an active effects unit in it. Works okay. Bought the G Sharp cheap on the internet so I don't have much money in it. The vibrato is not as strong as the Warblers but is better than none.

[Mike_J]

I didn't put much thought into it. A cap is a cap in my mind. I had a project that required three .47µF @ 400V. I had three that I had been holding on to for 40 years, so I grabbed them and put them in. Look good on that board, don't 'cha think?   

They were used for plate couplers. Here's the schematic...

     http://sluckeyamps.com/warbler/Warbler.pdf

The Daytripper vibrato sounds spot on to me and yes your board looks great. Hoping mine looks half as good when I finish the 5f6a project. I am thinking about running the heater wires flush to the chassis above (on the 4/5 pin side) the tube sockets. Need to use something to hold them firmly in place against the corner of the chassis but that is a later problem. Noticed you did your heater wires the way Fender did them on the Warbler but other builds I have seen you do have the heater wires very neatly against the chassis. I am using a 1/2" standoff for the board and am concerned the heater wires may sag down too close to the board if they are done the standard Fender way. Plus the look would be better putting them flush against the corner of the chassis.

[Mike_J]

I didn't put much thought into it. A cap is a cap in my mind. I had a project that required three .47µF @ 400V. I had three that I had been holding on to for 40 years, so I grabbed them and put them in. Look good on that board, don't 'cha think?   

They were used for plate couplers. Here's the schematic...

     http://sluckeyamps.com/warbler/Warbler.pdf

There is a huge advantage to Xicon caps in that they don't take a lot of room. If caps pretty much are the same to you it makes a whole lot of sense to use them. I am going to start my rebuild of my 5f6a Bassman using only Xicon's and will try to record how they sound with my fancy new Blue microphone that plugs right into my laptop. Only problem is it picks up all the noise in the room that you don't even know is there until it is recorded. Has a variety of settings that I will need to experiment with. Branching out into this new technology is a little frightening.