2. tech-talk
  3. 173116-7535

DIY Replacing Components in Crossovers

I have a couple pair of old speakers that I'm thinking about tinkering around with by replacing existing capacitors and/or resistors with different brands just to get a taste of how different higher quality parts affect the speaker's sound. I don't have any interest in redesigning the crossover networks, only to replace existing parts with better quality parts with the same values to see what kind of results I get. Soldering and the mechanics of replacing the parts isn't an issue for me but I just don't have much experience with the sonics of individual parts. Have any of you done this before? What has worked for you? All things being equal, do you hear much difference replacing crossover parts with better quality components? Any stories to tell? Thanks for looking.

 

arch2
erik_squires
15,805 posts
 

Hey, I have a good suggestion.  Find the caps in series with the tweeter and replace them with something else.  A good brand to start with is Mundorf MKP.  Very affordable and they break in funny. :)  Do the same for the mids. 

 

Do not replace caps in parallel with drivers.

 

arch2 OP
308 posts
 

Thanks Erik. Does Mundorf have a particular sound to them? Curious about "not to replace caps in parallel with the drivers." Is that less bang for the buck doing that?

grannyring's avatar
grannyring
6,438 posts
 

Some say they don’t matter or matter as much. I find they really do and are in fact in the signal path. If one doubts that, then remove the parallel cap and listen 🤓. Yes, you can save money here and not get the very best. If it’s an electrolytic, then replace as it may have dried out over time.

 

Don’t forget resistors.  Some nice $5-$7 Mills MRAs will be a very nice sonic improvement for relatively little money.  

erik_squires
15,805 posts
 

Thanks Erik. Does Mundorf have a particular sound to them?

 

In the affordable kind, I like them a lot more than Solens, very warm, maybe too warm, and like I said, they break in funny so you'll get to hear the sound of caps breaking in.

 

The issue with parallel caps is that you need to measure the ESR and compensate.  For that you need something like a Parts Express / Dayton DATS which is worth having around. :)

Technically you still need it in series, but it's a little less critical.

More to discover