Gibson Caps

Dax · Post by **Dax** » Sun Mar 06, 2005 8:54 pm

Anyone changed Caps in a Les Paul or SG to a Sozo or such? My SG has two .02 Caps in it. Just curious.

Billy Batz · Post by **Billy Batz** » Sun Mar 06, 2005 9:09 pm

Anyone Ive ever heard of thats changed out the stock electronics in any Gibson to any decent brand, be it Orange Drops, Mallorys, Sozos, auricaps or Hovlands, has never had anything but good things to say about it. I agree completely. Same goes with pots. I use CTS.

Flames1950 · Post by **Flames1950** » Sun Mar 06, 2005 10:25 pm

Dax, as much as I dislike the "hi-fi" response of the Orange Drops in a Marshall, I found I liked them better than SoZos on a guitar. SoZos were OK, don't get me wrong, but the Drops seemed to have that little extra high end. The Mallories are OK too, but seem darker on the high end, maybe better for a Strat but that's not your concern.

Gonzo · Post by **Gonzo** » Mon Mar 07, 2005 5:54 am

I have a set of SoZo caps in my SG.
It was a great improvement from the stock caps it came with.
I'll have to give the Orange drops a try .

Billy Batz · Post by **Billy Batz** » Mon Mar 07, 2005 8:09 am

I dont know about ODs being brighter or anything but I went and bought some Hovlands when the whole RSguitarworks upgrade kits were being discussed all over the place. They sound great. LPs sound great with extra clarity form the guitar. If ODs are that much more trebly in there they probably are better then Sozos or Mallorys. If you can I say try Hovlands. At nearly $10 a pop theyre not cheap, but they sound night and day in there.

dirtydeeds22 · Post by **dirtydeeds22** » Mon Mar 07, 2005 10:21 am

I tried the OD's and they definitely were an improvement fromt the stock Gibson caps, but Hovlands are an improvement over the OD's. More clarity, warmer tone, and allow for better tone shaping with tone controls.

Aaron0602 · Post by **Aaron0602** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 1:57 am

Does anyone here have a Historic LP? My 58RI was the first year to feature the replica bumble bee caps. I'm wondering if anyone has compared them to hovlands or OD's or anything of the sort.

Billy Batz · Post by **Billy Batz** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 7:26 am

It seems to me CTS pots and OD caps are the least any real historic LP could use. I cant say from experience but Id bet you my entire amp collection a Hovland or OD will sound 100x better then any cap Gibson claims to replicate.

Flames1950 · Post by **Flames1950** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 8:25 am

I've still got a set of the Auricaps to try in my Gibsons. I'm waiting for my High Order Pickups to show up so I only have to crack it open once though.
I'm guessing the Auricaps will be comparable to the Hovlands; anybody try the Auricaps yet?

Billy Batz · Post by **Billy Batz** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 8:36 am

Places that carry Hovlands always have them in the same place so I guess their considered the same thing. Theyre a bit cheaper then Hovlands but thats relative. If you consider most .022 caps are gonna be about $.70 the Hovlands are about $9 and the Auricaps about $7.

Flames1950 · Post by **Flames1950** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 8:51 am

Billy Batz wrote:Places that carry Hovlands always have them in the same place so I guess their considered the same thing. Theyre a bit cheaper then Hovlands but thats relative. If you consider most .022 caps are gonna be about $.70 the Hovlands are about $9 and the Auricaps about $7.

Kinda my thought when I got them, I was hoping the $2 difference would be negligible compared to the $6 difference over what I was already using!!

daniel · Post by **daniel** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 6:03 pm

I've tried ODs and the sozos in my paul and I really didn't notice much difference between the two. Personally I would go with the OD's between those two choices. I've never heard the Hovlands. Does anyone know how they compare to the OD's? Where is a good source to get some? I have goodall paper in oil .015 cap on my neck pickup and it is the best sounding cap I've had in the guitar so far. A buddy of mine has bumblebees in his paul and I honestly don't think the improvement is worth the crazy price tag.

Gonzo · Post by **Gonzo** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 7:07 pm

I tried some old OD caps in my SG and I must say they do sound pretty good .

I wonder how the Xicon polypropylene caps would sound? I have some laying around,I'll have to try them.

What voltage Hovland caps are you guys using?
I found them at antique electronics but they only have .022@ 1000 VDC . I thought I read somewhere that for a guitar you want to stay at the 400 VDC range.

It also makes a big difference in what cap you have across the amp's volume pot when you start testing different caps in your guitar.
A friend that works at a TV repair shop gave me some old disc caps and they sound amazing .Here's a blurry picture of some of them.

Zoso · Post by **Zoso** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 2:22 am

Flames1950 wrote:I've still got a set of the Auricaps to try in my Gibsons. I'm waiting for my High Order Pickups to show up so I only have to crack it open once though.
I'm guessing the Auricaps will be comparable to the Hovlands; anybody try the Auricaps yet?

I have a set of High Orders coming myself. Shouldn't be long now. You'll have to let me know how you like them with the Auricaps, as I may put those in my LP as well. I'm also curious as to the correct voltage range for guitar caps. Anyone?

Aaron0602 · Post by **Aaron0602** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 2:33 am

I mean, guitars put out as much voltage as terri schiavo does words. Aaaaaaaand, i just bought my ticket to hell. I'm thinking, if you're going for pure function, a rating of 10 volts is more than enough. I may be wrong though.