Serge Auckland wrote:

As to the counterfeit components, as far as I
know this only affected the "boutique" brands which for marketing reasons
would consider fitting "designer" capacitors.

WRONG.

It affected the really cheap Chinese 'no name' brands and was AFAIK restricted
to low-ESR types intended for use with switching power supplies. It also
apparently only affects the larger capacitance values, although this may simply
be a consequence of the applications in which the larger values are typically
used (power supply).

See badcaps.net for example.

Graham

Laurence Payne wrote:

The batch of bad capacitors that affected a generation of computer
motherboards certainly weren't "boutique" items. Did that
manufacturer also sell into the designer market?

There were lots of cheap 'no name' brands (as I call them) affected.

They were all low-ESR caps designed for switchmode power supplies.

Badcaps.net gives a partial list of brands affected IIRC. You're unlikely to have
ever heard of any of them unless you spend a lot of time looking at PC
motherboards.

Graham

Serge Auckland wrote:

"Laurence Payne" NOSPAMlpayne1ATdsl.pipex.com wrote

The batch of bad capacitors that affected a generation of computer
motherboards certainly weren't "boutique" items. Did that
manufacturer also sell into the designer market?

That's true, I had one! However, the capacitors failed in such an obvious
way visually (the tops burst and the contents spewed out) that it should be
easy to spot.

Unfortunately they don't always fail in an obvious way. I had an ABIT mobo that
gradually failed. Visually it looks perfect.

Graham

Keith G wrote:

"Adagio" wrote

My current stereo (not deserving of the term hi-fi!)system is now
over 15 years old and was a pretty cheap package then. I should like
to upgrade preferably in phases. Initially I plan to replace the
amplifier and speakers. My budget is around gbp 1000.

The room is approx 5x4 metres.
I need minimum 4 line inputs (no phono) of which at least 1 tape loop.
Headphone out
1 speaker pair
Remote control would not be used if there were one.

Any suggestions from the obviously knowledgable poster in this group
most welcome, preferably supported by reasoned argument.

Listen to what Serge says - he knows what he's doing....

.....and then go to my 'For Sale' page:

http://www.apah69.dsl.pipex.com/item...emsforsale.htm

....where you will see several items 'now on eBay' including a 'perfect
spec for you' pre/power amp combo (with no remote) and speakers that go
with them like cheese and pickle!!

(The auctions doesn't actually happen until 9:00 pm tomorrow night -
drop me a line *Presto* if you are seriously interested..!! ;-)

BEWARE !

Keith G's listening preferences are a bit - let me be kind - say 'personal'. I'd
get a 'money back guarantee' in case you don't like them if I were you.

Graham

Adagio wrote:

My current stereo (not deserving of the term hi-fi!)system is now
over 15 years old and was a pretty cheap package then. I should like
to upgrade preferably in phases. Initially I plan to replace the
amplifier and speakers. My budget is around gbp 1000.

The room is approx 5x4 metres.
I need minimum 4 line inputs (no phono) of which at least 1 tape loop.
Headphone out
1 speaker pair
Remote control would not be used if there were one.

Any suggestions from the obviously knowledgable poster in this group
most welcome, preferably supported by reasoned argument.

£1000 is a reasonable budget for amp + speakers alone and should provide a very
respectable listening experience.

Here are a few thoughts.

Solid state (not valve) amplifiers today are relatively easy to make (and make
really quite good) and none of the major brands traditionaly associated with
audio are likely to disappoint. It would be quite difficult to make a truly bad
choice with your budget. Do NOT under any circumstances look at secondhand
amplification. It'll be of a previous era of design that doesn't perform as well
and will require expensive maintenance.

You haven't specified any desired wattage etc but I'll assume your requirements
are 'typical'. Max spend on the amp - £300 tops ! In practice £200 or less
(sometimes a lot less) can get you a very good amplifier. Don't listen to the
clots who'll tell you that there are big sonic differences between amplifiers in
this price range.

Loudspeakers are the area where money really makes the difference.

Because personal preference enters the equation so much here, there's no simple
advice but this is where you need to do listening tests and make your own
choice.


Graham

Serge Auckland wrote:

With a budget of £1000 (or indeed with any budget) I would buy used.

Truly bad advice IMHO.

Graham

Serge Auckland wrote:

I were buying for myself, I would go for something traditionally British
like Rogers, Harbeth, Spendor, KEF and B&W.

B&W apart, I associate a 'woolly' sound with all of those. That was common with
antique UK loudspeakers.

Graham

In article , Eeyore
wrote:


I have not heard of any instances of it affecting audio equipment.
Because the affected caps were high frequency low-ESR types designed for
switching power supplies, I'd expect audio not to be much affected.

FWIW 20+ years ago when I was in the biz we did once get a batch of faulty
PSU smoothing caps. These mostly worked OK, but some had significant
leakage resistances, so would soon overheat and fail. I caught this within
a few days, but some sets went out! Managed to get almost all back from the
dealers, but a few were sold and one caused a problem by exploding in use.
Made a mess of an 'antique table' which we then paid compensation for.

So there is always a risk of such problems. But if the supplier is a good
one, and you check what is made, the problems are quite rare. The reality
is that no mass-produced product can be made with absolutely zero chance of
occasional failures. Some components will seem fine on even extended tests,
but then fail prematurely. Some component makers may be careful, but still
slip up at times.

Slainte,

Jim

--
Electronics http://www.st-and.ac.uk/~www_pa/Scot...o/electron.htm
Audio Misc http://www.audiomisc.co.uk/index.html
Armstrong Audio http://www.audiomisc.co.uk/Armstrong/armstrong.html

In article , Eeyore
wrote:


Laurence Payne wrote:

The batch of bad capacitors that affected a generation of computer
motherboards certainly weren't "boutique" items. Did that
manufacturer also sell into the designer market?

There were lots of cheap 'no name' brands (as I call them) affected.

They were all low-ESR caps designed for switchmode power supplies.

Badcaps.net gives a partial list of brands affected IIRC. You're
unlikely to have ever heard of any of them unless you spend a lot of
time looking at PC motherboards.

Part of the problem is also equipment makers who simply buy the cheapest
components and drive them at the edge of their spec. But you can also be
fooled if components are counterfeit and so pretend to be by a more
reputable maker.

Slainte,

Jim

--
Electronics http://www.st-and.ac.uk/~www_pa/Scot...o/electron.htm
Audio Misc http://www.audiomisc.co.uk/index.html
Armstrong Audio http://www.audiomisc.co.uk/Armstrong/armstrong.html

In article , Eeyore
wrote:


Solid state (not valve) amplifiers today are relatively easy to make
(and make really quite good) and none of the major brands traditionaly
associated with audio are likely to disappoint. It would be quite
difficult to make a truly bad choice with your budget. Do NOT under any
circumstances look at secondhand amplification. It'll be of a previous
era of design that doesn't perform as well and will require expensive
maintenance.

Rather a strange sweeping assertion to dismiss secondhand in that absolute
manner.

I'd say by all means look at secondhand - whilst being aware that if the
unit is older than, say, c10 years it might be in need of attention. But
unless you have a specific requirement that an older amp can't meet, than
an old amplifier might provide results which are indistinguishable in your
normal use from modern ones of similar ratings.

Slainte,

Jim

--
Electronics http://www.st-and.ac.uk/~www_pa/Scot...o/electron.htm
Audio Misc http://www.audiomisc.co.uk/index.html
Armstrong Audio http://www.audiomisc.co.uk/Armstrong/armstrong.html