Are Your Capacitors Installed Backwards? Build this and find out
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 1 มิ.ย. 2024
- If you have been installing, orange dip, brown dip, green dip capacitors over the years, have you been installing them the right way? Even the little yellow ones have polarity in circuit. Find out how to test your capacitors before you install them.... Then build this test fixture to make it even easier.
- วิทยาศาสตร์และเทคโนโลยี
![How A Turn Signal Flasher Blinker Works - Complete Redesign With Schematic [Tung-Sol P229D]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/3ADoODcApNE/mqdefault.jpg)
![How A Turn Signal Flasher Blinker Works - Complete Redesign With Schematic [Tung-Sol P229D]](/img/tr.png)
![[TH] VCT Masters Shanghai Playoffs DAY 2 // PRX vs G2 | EDG vs TH](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/T5j2XVcDFs0/mqdefault.jpg)
In my 79 years of attending classes, primary, military, and advanced education, I've never had an instructor who presented as well as yourself. Thank you for sharing you time and knowledge.
90FF1 Thanks for the nice comment. Glad your enjoying the video's!
I wish I knew what you have forgotten they would call me Mr Einstein or Albert for short I don't know why your head isn't the size of a bowling ball to house your brain thank you so much for being you and the education you put out there for free I know the big guy upstairs is proud of you thanks a million RUCKUSSAY45
Holy crap, your lab is like a submarine sonar room. I love it.
Wow, has it been 9 years already?
I remember when this video came out and eventually developed into an amazing final project with LED amplitude readout.
Since supporting Mr Carlson's Lab on Patreon for all these years, I built this tester years ago and it's tested all of my capacitors for RF and Audio circuits and it's more than proven its weight in gold!! No more hum in my speakers!
Holy Cow!! 52 years as an electrical/systems/test/hobbyist engineer (analog and digital) with a BSEE and MSCS and I NEVER KNEW THIS. An outstanding explanation that explains why a troublesome noise issue is occasionally fixed by simply replacing what appears to be a perfectly good capacitor. If the band marking is only randomly the outer layer (and it's obvious in retrospect that it happens because the marking is being done last on caps that are dumped onto various conveyor belts during manufacturing - Duh!!) I'm astounded that sensitive circuits work as well as they do. I doubt that one engineer in a hundred knows this. Thanks for the great explanation, great design process and an outstanding little test tool.
Wow! I never thought about how the physical construction of a cap would interact with nearby fields. 40 years in electronics engineering and I learned something new from this video! Thank you Mr. Carlson.
I knew this when I was 12,years old
40 years and you werent aware of this???????
@@BenState Never came up in analog audio.
It's only marginally relevant. Paper caps usually are used for their low impedance characteristic. So both foils are at the same AC voltage. So either way is fine.
If you're a real purist, just ensure that any plate to chassis capacitor goes in the "right" way or is spaced at least 1/4 inch from any low-level signals.
That said, even after 65 years of putting in capacitors willy-nilly I've never seen a radio oscillate or howl due a to "reversed" capacitor.
Kudos to anybody that goes that extra distance. Long ago when Heathkits were a thing I would line up all the resistors in the same direction, just to look "right".
I must say, I took electronics in 1980. We started with tube theory and then semiconductors, and your knowledge is light years ahead of any instructors i ever had!!! I'm almost 60 now, and am still learning stuff from you! keep it up!
And yet he mispronounces solder.
@@dcolb121 RFMAO
@@dcolb121...well, "ya CAN'T please EVERYBODY!!!"
I find it hard to understand why over 150 people could have marked this video with a thumbs down. I for one found this educational and important. thank you for sharing.
that's 150 sad and envious people.
Hi Mr. Carlson!
The U.S. Navy trained me almost fifty years ago (avionics). During that time, and with all of the contact that I have had with engineers and technicians since, nobody else ever pointed out potential polarity issues with non-electrolytic caps!! I stumbled across this video quite by accident, but am so happy (and grateful) that I did! In retirement, the only electronics that I deal with are electric guitars and amplifiers, but you just switched on a bright light...shining on some of the 'mystery noise' issues so common with amplified guitars and basses! Thanks!!
As a considerably less 'elegant' alternative to your new bit of test gear, I simply used a DPDT switch, a metal box (shielding, of course), some clear labeling, and physically switch back and forth between 'Normal' to 'Reverse!' I could have added LEDs, a couple of resistors, a battery, and changed to a 4PDT switch, but figured that the O-scope display was plenty! Works fine, was way less expensive, has fewer potential points of failure (like none!), and only took twenty minutes to build! I decided that, at 65, the 'KISS' principle would serve me better! :-)
Thanks again....brilliant video!
I'm glad you found this useful!
Tweak or Tron God? ( O or I level?)
How can you sit and type that it has zero points of failure when it contains a mechanical switch... Yeah I'm smirking but it's not a hate comment just a smug one.
@@WereReallyRelayCamping OK, zero failure until 1 million cycles reached (typical switch life). At 10 caps a day tested that's 273 years of service. ;)
@@DataWaveTaGo makes you wonder if switches are so reliable why I get through so many toasters.... Lol just pulling your leg yeah most switches if not $5 for a bag of 100 off eBay should outlive us.
This is mindblowingly professional. I'm nowhere near doing any of this but I really appreciate the way it's presented and the thoroughness of your videos! Your work is impeccable!
Thanks for your kind comment Jonathan!
Join us for a great day
SSS 10 BOMB
UPDATED : SSS 13 BOMB
Great video! More than 35 years in electronics and I did not know this. Cheers.
+pepe cohetes
Glad you enjoyed the video pepe!
+Mr Carlson's Lab I knew about it, and I suspected those lines were erroneously placed on the components, possibly at random. It is a good thing they don't mark diodes for a living! I have a very nice LCR bridge, and the O Scopes, but that little test jigger could be rather handy. I usually run all my caps on the LCR just for GP, and a piece of aluminum foil in hand will verify the shielded lead, or outer foil, by showing a higher C reading on the LCR between the foil and one lead over the other.
Thanks for your comment Seth!
+pepe cohetes Similar with me too, only it's 55 years. Mr Carlson, would you sell me one of these gadgets? Excellent video - I will subscribe.
Hi Jim, If I had more, I would. I'm going to make a self contained unit (no scope needed) in the future. At that point I may make some extras. Thanks for your comment.
I preached on this subject of outside foil for decades and was called a heretic.
"Outside foil to ground"
Thank you for this good video! 👍
Great video. I am an retired Electronic Engineer, working at General Time on quartz watches, then currency counters and finally prescription pill counters. This was a great video. Thanks again for doing this.
I don't know anything about circuitry but i'm learning so much from watching your videos, this is amazing
Yeah this is a good channel.
Learn something new everyday. I had thought that the line still meant the same thing as in the old days, Another great Vid, Dave W4GSM
I love to hear these old tube radios work as they did when they were new. I am always looking for them to rebuild and play again. I have spent hours watching these very informative lessons you produce. Patrion, yes ! Thank you for your help Sir.
this is awesome. easily one of the best electronics tutorials i have ever seen on youtube.
I have seen this before, but for some reason I was able to concentrate more this time. I always remember the instrument you created for sensing dysfunctional components or parts of a live circuit. You make electronics so pleasant to learn/refresh, even to previous electronic engineers who have spent many years off the bench, like me ! Thanks :)
I was viewing your video for the second time, and continue to amazed how valuable this video is to so many people. I have enjoyed their comments about what they did in their jobs, and what they have learned.
Well, DAUW!
Who would ever have thunk this?
Obviously Mr Carlson....
I started studying electronics 57 yrs ago, specialising in digital (ones/zeros/edges) and have also been a HAM for 40+ yrs.
I don't think this has ever bit my butt, but who knows?
'Mr Carlson' will pop onto my mind every time I deal with capacitance, real or imaginary, again!
Thank you Sir for this very instructive vid.....
73 OM
Once again, an excellent vid and presentation. One valuable bit of test gear and very many thanks for sharing this... 10/10
I had no idea this was even an issue. After watching this video, it makes perfect sense. Thanks for education!
You're welcome Jeff!
I had the exact same reaction. I don't even mind admitting that i felt a little stupid for not realising this on my own. After all, it's so obvious in hindsight. ;)
A *BIG* thanks to Mr Carlson's Lab.
This seems so obvious. I never knew of or thought about this. Blew my mind. Awesome video
Thank you for posting this I am a newbie to tube radio restoration and grateful for any tips I can get. It seems from the comments I have got on this one from the start when the old hands didn't know about it. Best regards Ron H Lancashire UK.
My dad worked at Western Electric and Bell Labs, retired in '69. He taught me about the foil. This is a great refresher, and shows the reason it is important. Nice job.
Your father was an intelligent fella. So many people do not know this, or fail to see it's importance.
Thanks for this great video. I'm retired from 50 years in the service industry. Always installed these caps with the band considered the outside foil. Wish I knew this years ago.
Hello there Mr Carlson. I hope you read this comment.
I've been a Subscriber for a few years and want to let you know how much I appreciate all you do.
You are up there with the best on TH-cam in my opinion and I wish you many more years of increasing success.
Thank you for your expert presentations and commitment to excellence.
Just wanted you to know..
Yet another reason this is by far the best channel on TH-cam.
Thank you Mr. Carlson. Using your jig is so much easier than testing the thousands of caps I've done over the years by hooking each up to the Hantek. This is a great service to the electronics community!
Over 40 years in electronics and I didn't realise that the markings were useless. There you go... always something to be learned. Love your material !!
i swear I've built circuits and double triple check as in looking up to make sure i didn't get it wrong in terms of the markings on electrolytic caps. but somehow they still don't work. but i never know because the caps might be too old, maybe they're fake (more recently when i bought some on Ebay...i always struggle with electronics and it's really discouraging because ive built good circuits before, but it just seems like i always screw it up somehow and even if i check the schematic over and over and over i can't find why my circuit doesn't work. but i don't have good test equipment. somehow i still think it's worth it though.
@@simonlinser8286 Many parts are fakes these days. I have old equipment and my circuits and repairs are working. I buy my parts from reputable dealers only. Especially transistors and capacitors.
They are not worthless. Buy quality parts / caps - and don't worry about it. Unless you're planning on manufacturing capacitors, this is not relevant.
Great video. I could listen to you all day. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
Peter Byrd Thanks for the nice comment Peter! More video's like this to come :^)
Decades ago I learned all these stuff, even the technology of tube amps. You are absolutely right! Thank's alot for your explanations
Excellent info and video. 30+ year tech and always noticed the band but never realized the significance. Thank you...Learned something new to file in synaptic storage :-)
Impressive and very informative video. As a seasoned electronics designer, this subject never occurred to me when using foil type caps in hi-Z circuits. Congratulations on yet another great video. Thanks and keep up the good work.
This makes a huge difference in sound on my soundsystem. Thank you for the explanation.
You're welcome Harrie!
What an informative video. Like some others I was unaware of the polarity issue, I always thought only Electro caps were polarised. Thank you so much. Cheers from Down Under
Where was Mr. Carlson when I was in college. To be so young, and have so much knowledge, and able to explain everything in a way that anyone can capture his meanings. As an Engineer (retired NASA), watching his video's are not only informative, but enjoyable. I'm 74 years old, and when first starting my career, everything was tube technology. I had to learn with the changing of times as we moved into germanium, to silicon, and some SMT (luckily, I retired before it got to heavy). The transition wasn't easy for me, the professor's I had moved at a very fast pace, and you either got it, or with help from other students in the class, did the best you could. The actual knowledge came from the field where you used what little you had learned, and hands on taught you. I hope Mr. Carlson stays on line, I really enjoy the video's and his skills.
I have to thank TH-cam auto play for bringing my attention to your channel. As you opened the subject I had a slightly skeptical hat on, but as you continued I began to wonder if there was anything else so basic I had ignored for years? Brilliant video -outstanding,
mart fart Thanks for the comment!
WOW... never heard about this before. Learned this new information from here today. Thank you very much. I really need to buy an oscilloscope..!
Amazing amount of information in
Your welcome!
I have been restored old McIntosh tubes amps but missing out this video. Thanks a million and like a million if I could
Thank you! This was super useful to me, both in educating me of the need to have the capacitors the right way around and in inspiring me to think and create test jigs. Thanks for sharing!
Hi. I'm really impressed that you were using a vintage Tektronix 547 "for real", and that it's not just for display. And your video was really helpful. Even though I'm quite experienced with capacitors, noise, hum and impedance, it was very interesting to "see" the differences of the polarity. I'm experimenting a lot with coupling caps, but I have never had the polarity (of non-polarized caps) in my mind. Happy to see your next videos. Kind regards, Max (Austria)
Max Koschuh Thanks Max! Glad you enjoyed the video.
Thank you Mr Carlson for this golden nugget! This draws parallel to the 'pseudo balanced trick' played in recording studios to reduce hum by cutting shield on the input side of balanced audio cables
MAYBE MANUFACTURERS NEVER KNOW THAT CAPACITORS SHOULD BE PLACED IN THE RIGHT WAY .......... THEY SHOULD BE MANUFACTURED AS THE OLD CAPACITORS WHICH WERE WITH THEIR CORRESPONDING SIGNALING ON ONE OF THE END. EXCELLENT EXPLANATION, PRECISE AND CONSISE, THANKS FOR YOUR TEACHINGS .... CONGRATULATIONS, PROFESSOR
It's one of the "top secrets of making a noise free tube amplifier". People sometimes doesn't belive when I do some maintenance on their amplifiers and they get it without any noise, humming, etc hahaha.
Mr Carlson, do you have this three way switch that they use in Tube Testers or does know where I can buy them? I'm trying to buy one to repair my tube tester. My switch have A LOT of rust =(
Navarro Eletrônica Thanks for the comment Navarro!
Christiaan Baron
Yes! You need to take off them before testing! I usually 100% recap even good capacitors cause everything serviced here have 1 year of warranty. In 8 years doing repairs only one single amplifier came back faulty.
Christiaan Baron
And doesn't forget to decouple with 100nf plus 100nf and 10ohm the power supply after the retifier! It get some noise out of the supply lines and give more attack for the tube amp.
Navarro Eletrônica That may be another video in the making :^)
THANK YOU for all these amazing videos! Hopefully the few negative folks on here don't discourage you from continuing doing these. What you're doing is awesome, inspiring, and re-igniting my love of electronics and the love that others have too. PLEASE keep up the good work. ! I just loved the Thordarson T20W40 amp video!
+Joe Strabley
Thanks Joe!
As a 'semi retired' EE, I really enjoy your videos. You are the kind of guy I'd like to sit down with and enjoy a few craft beers and talk nerd junque. Thanks and Regards
Very nice test box to determine correct polarity of the capacitor so they can be installed correctly. Another successful demonstration and thanks.
Great stuff, explained well. I've been looking for this information for years.
Glad you enjoyed!
Yet another obvious thing I didn't appreciate, never knew about, never read anywhere and was never told. I've been building circuits for around 40 years now and I'm now wondering what circuits I can/could go back to and tweak. This could even have been the source of oscillation in some circuits where I'd swapped out a capacitor to cure and now I see I could possibly have left the value the same but reversed the component!! Ya live and learn, what other obvious stuff don't I know??!! Jeez - Thanks for the insight, Cheers Mr Carlson from the UK :o)
+Stuart Hossack
Glad you found this helpful Stuart. Thanks for your comment!
+Stuart Hossack Me To Going To Check The Last Amp I Did .... Wow The the manufacturer, miss led us all ..... I was taught that The Line was the ground and/or the foil side
Stuart Hossack p
Live and learn. Great comment.
I was taught the line was negative but these china parts did not mark the capacitors right. I had friends that took electronics in high school and they helped me in hobby electronics, I wanted to take electronics but my math skills were poor. I can use the computer to get math questions solved now. he he
This is fantastic! A concept I wasn't aware of, and a gadget build that I would find useful. Sweet!
I'm convinced that with each passing video Mr Carlson is actually getting younger
Cool circuit! I worked at Westinghouse, Kodak and a leading university and did a lot of r&d and had to build a lot of simple test circuits and test beds like this! I’m going to build it but just use a dpdt switch to swap polarity and watch the scope! Let the toggle point to the grounded lead. I always thought the caps were marked correctly!!! Thanks for the heads up!
Yeah a DPDT is fine. Keep it simple!
VERY helpful and VERY educational . . . thanks!
Great info, well explained, and the production quality is top notch. Thank you for what you do! Would love to see more on the diagnostic process. I'm looking for the ones you already have, I'm sure there are several at least..
I been in TV repair business for 35 years and I really enjoy how brilliant you are. I think the foil identifying device you engineered is great. I need to build one but for now I have to use a scope and a signal source. I restored a McIntosh 275 tube amplifier and all of the dy film capacitors we're oriented correctly but I was surprised to find that on eight of the capacitors the band was not marked on the shield and six were. I also found out I didn't have to replace them because they were not the unreliable paper types. One of the electrolytic blew its black tar out and made a mess so it got all new electrolytics. One of the 6550 did not have any emissions. It got all new caps anyway and I tested for foil side and made sure it went to the low impedance side. Now the amp plays beautiful but I was really surprised about the band. I even tested a wax paper I had laying around and it was even written FOIL SIDE with the band and it still was wrong. I wish I could send you those
Awesome information & presentation. I knew the importance of electrolytic polarity. I never knew in my 40 years of electronics since the USAF of this and now appreciate learning of the difference in non electrolytic capacitors circuit orientation. You would logically think a capacitor manufacturer would understand this and come up with a standard and manufacturing process to identify the band end. It seems they may not know what you do and that would not be too surprising. You are a special person!
Outstanding explanation. Learned something new and extremely useful. I'd like to try a 556 configured as a D-type flip-flop (manually push button triggered instead) along with the CD74HC4066 since I'm using through-hole PDIP components to reduce the parts count and circuit footprint. What a great project, thank you! You've gained a new subscriber :), cheers!
Your channel became my favourite one. Subscribed and supported via Patreon. After 16 years of "experience" I have a feeling that from now I can learn some really useful stuffs from you. You are Legend Sir. Thank you.
this is the ultimate bit of knowledge, and it makes the audio circuit work 100% with all hum gone
Clever Paul! I like it. I have a little rig using a DPDT switch in an Altoids tin that I use for this -it works and ends the unwanted capacitor juggling. Low part count, no IC's to zap. Sans LEDs -the switch lever points to the Lo-Z lead (foil out lead) . Circuit and concept is basically same as yours, just more caveman.
cny02253 LOL, Caveman made me chuckle! Hey, what ever works right. Thanks for the comment....LOL
cny02253
Instead of caveman I call it Flintstone.
Thanks cny02253, I was going to say that a simple DPDT switch would seem to work just as well - and never worry about having a battery go bad right when you need it.
Watch out, the Altoids generate a lot of heat.
I wondered about this--why the circuit, battery, led's..............I'd go with the DPDT switch in the box, every time!
Great channel. Learning lots. As a guitar tube amp guy, I wondered what other people are doing to test for polarity of supposedly non-polarized caps and found Acid Fuzz Pedal's channel's video on their capacitor polarity checker. Using just a fuzz pedal and a guitar amplifier, he just touched the capacitor leads to the signal tipe and ground sleeve of the the instrument cable and you can clearly hear that one direction is much quieter than the other direction. This seems to be the same noise test as Mr. Carlson is addressing, but I'm wondering if it's as reliable/good as Mr. Carlson's tester. (I see some discussion in the comments about why a simpler tester using a switch might not be reliable, but I didn't follow. I'll have to watch this video again and read through the comments.). Really like this channel.
That’s a great idea. I was wondering if ways to do this with what I already have (not wanting to buy an oscilloscope as I’m just a player looking for “my sound” )
Having recently changed the caps in my guitars , one guitar started to have a BAD hummm .
Now I know why , AND how to test it and most likely fix the issue.
Thanks.
What everybody else said!! I also built CNY02253's double-pole, double-throw passive version but without the Altoid's tin! Your solution is useful, professional, AND a great project. Thank You!
I Love your detailed almost scientific explanations !!! Keep up the good work !!
"Thank You", thank you very much😎 May I have a link to your capacitor test circuit🤔 Let me know, I look forward to hearing from you
Thank you very much for the video, I noticed that something was happening on one of the channels of my Headphone vacuum tube amp because I had hum from somewhere, then I did the inverting of the cap that goes to the plate and not any more problems.
George T Glad to hear this helped George. Thanks for your comment!
You're a real genius! I'm learning so many things looking to your video lessons. that's what a teacher has to be... thank you! 🤗 🤗
Sweet! Once again, a great education.
One thing I wanted to mention, is that I have a lot of foil tape which is about 3 inches in diameter. I have used it for shielding on other projects. This is nice if you have plastic project boxes, and since the tape can be used to "Noise Seal" the inside of the box, you should never have a problem. Never tried to solder to it though... But for shielding from outside influence, might work a treat for something like this.
So, do you ever take apprentices? I can sweep a mean floor and make great coffee. :) I watch everything you do very closely and learn a lot. I feel fortunate that, as a newbie, I'm learning things at the same time as old timers are. Doesn't get better than that. Thank you.
I know what you mean sir.
Can you upload a document with the diagram and the parts you used? It's hard to figure out from the video.
(5 mV is the minimum accuracy)
very interesting don't recall seeing or hearing about this before .going to watch all your videos for more secret stuff! thank you!
Hard to believe there are 'thumbs down' (dislikes) for your videos. You speak clearly and precisely. take your time explaining what you are demonstrating - and are knowledgeable. So what's with the thumbs down(s) ???
This is common for youtube. I pay no attention to any thumbs down unless they provide a reason. To date... I haven't had a single reason. On the up side, they are helping my exposure in this platform :^)
HEY! The PCB layout, component map, and schematic are now available on my Patreon page. All the information you need to build your very own. Check out the community section to see other Patrons versions as well. Here is the link: www.patreon.com/MrCarlsonsLab P.S. if you like my videos, there are more on Patreon as well.
So, a particular equipment model may have different signal to noise figures depending on what day / who assembled it etc. Very interesting indeed. Thank you. (P.S. I would pay just to sit in that lab!).
In the beginning, when I was a teenager, I used the phono-ceramic input of my amplifier and watched the volume of the snorer in the speakers ... and it worked well! Greetings from Brazil, South America.
If only i had a neighbour like you Paul. Its awakening my hobby of diy electronics
For people without a scope, one could also use a very simple circuit that uses a small but sensitive audio amplifier with a diode on the O/P connected to an analogue meter. This should clearly show which way round the capacitor needs to be by how large or small deflection is. It might even be possible to replace the meter and diode with a loudspeaker and hear the difference. Even a domestic or HiFi amplifier that has as mag input at about 2/3mV should work well as the input is sensitive and has RIAA EQ (ie bass boost) Be careful with levels, you don't wont to damage your loudspeakers!! or just buy a scope!! and make Mr C's tester.
Michael Beeny Sounds like another great idea! Thanks for the comment!
I built one of those! Have to do a video...
You should, Then come here and let us know about it.
My video would be really bad in comparison to your knowledge... Been watching your stuff, wow incredible insight! Good stuff man. Really impressed!
Thanks for the very nice comment!
This is Mr electric, he can be believed , plain and simple.
This seasoned, very experienced EE learned something!
Well done!
Your video is world class both for superb content and production quality. All of your clips are exemplary and raise the bar high. I look forward to watching all of your content. I will build this test box using through-hole components, easier for me. I may also build a second test box using an Arduino to do the heavy lifting. Thanks for producing the clip and providing inspiration for building a fun and useful piece of test kit!
Why didn’t I know this? I learned something today 👍
I like this technique, I finally tried it out in replacing some paper capacitors with film capacitors in an old GR megohmmeter. But I find it easier to get a clear indication of which way is best with a good analog ac voltmeter with a 1 mV range.
I read about the old capacitors and the ground part but did not know about the newer caps. Great info.
Hello, i just subscribed. Thank you for doing this. I'm 30 and didn't had a chance to get such education so i'm learning now. It really means a lot that i have a chance to learn from yout videos.
Kind regards from Slovenia.
You are very gifted sir, and I always learn from your videos, but I must ask, why not just use a simple dpdt switch.
Pete Dazer is
Wow, you sound like my dear departed Dad, he was an electronics guy, I'm a metal worker like his Dad.
I use very old Miller tig welders that use two .002 uf mica capacitors in parallel in the H.F. spark gap oscillator circuit.
These welders last longer than some humans, but those caps don't! tar leaks out of them. I was given a box of modern
alternatives to use, so far two types from Sangamo have worked well. Another wound or layered type he said would work
but they are not marked for polarity. I wounder if it will matter, now that I've watched your vid.
My guess is it would work either way, but send out H.F. interference more if wired in backwards.
Can you advise and educate me further in this application?
Thanks. Very neat vid by the way, reminds me of Dad, and I'm 59 so that's back aways.
All I can say is "WOW" ........I'm going to try to build one of these and it makes perfect sense to me the way you have explained and demonstrated it. Thank you again.
Thanks for your comment!
Thanks so much for the demonstration on finding capacitor polarity. Ive always assumed the band denoted polarity. You know what happens when you assume. Thank you again...
I have known for years why we need to know which capacitor lead goes to the outside foil, but I am shocked to learn that we cannot trust the factory marking!
at 73 i always thought the line denoted outside foil.you showed i was wrong.
i'm not building anything as i am satisfied with the earlier experiment showing the where the outside foil is by introducing a signal with your body.
i hope my electrolytics are correctly marked :>)
barry
Anybody know how close you need to be to a mains source for the 60Hz to be induced into your body? This tester looks to work great, but what if you work in an environment where there's a lot of high-power and high frequency switching gear. Coupling the mains signal to the cap under test via your finger, may lead to situations where it's difficult to tell a small signal from a larger signal on the scope screen...??
Mr. Carlson,
I've been a EE for 30 years and never thought about what you covered in this video. Excellent coverage, will start paying orientation attention during all future amp builds. Thanks for the excellent tip.
Craig
+Craig Hollabaugh
Your welcome Craig!
I just tried this with a $50 USB oscilloscope & a variac. IT WORKS! I just sat next to my variac, turned up to like 25 volts but nothing was plugged in, connected scope leads to a capacitor and injected a sine wave signal through my fingers. Switched leads and sine wave was bigger. Ya!
I'm not going to build the tester, I'll just check all the film caps as I go building an amp. Thanks Mr. Carlson!
is there a tester you can use that does not require a scope for checking these ?
It should be easy to use and arduino or other microcontroller to sample at a certain frequency and do peak detection on it. With an lc display you can show the levels in each direction. Or connect an amplifier to it and listen for louder/softer volume. Maybe a crystal ear piece provides small enough load to do it without amp.
I mean, your talking about the issue of interference sheilding, but it is not a polarity issue like in DC electronics, therefore marking the line on the one side is not to be confused with the line that would be on one side of an electrolytic capacitor.
Thanks so much for your terrific work and great explanation of the operation of all the components. As a self taught electronics fan, your videos are a true treasure chest of information....now back to my world domination machine...
Great video, pleasant, concise, and complete! Always a pleasure learning from you.
+Roger Kerr
Glad your enjoying the video's Roger. Thanks for the kind words!
Mr. Carlson you should make and sell your creations I believe you could be very wealthy No body makes equipment with the quality that you design. I would buy one of those.
BK Precision move over. Carlson Designed Electronics I like the sound of that...
Yes, I would buy one for sure....
You need more oscilloscopes :P . Do you have a recommendation for a good affordable one I can pick up on ebay thats reliable?
If the seller explicitly says it still works, the manual is available online, it's $20-$50, and 20-30 years old, it should be fine. Yes, it's actually going to take some effort to track it down, and yes shipping is going to be expensive.
I bought this one... Got mine off eBay. Works great, especially for someone like me who is only going to be testing caps for my electric guitar and amp.
www.robotshop.com/en/seeedstudio-dso-nano-v3.html?gclid=COiGzOOWjdECFQKewAodiIUO-g
Your Channel is amazing. I am a electronic hobbyist since mid eighties and radio amateur. But thanks to your channel I'm in progress to get even better in doing my work. Big thumbs up. Thank You for sharing your knowledge!
Glad to share Gustav! Thanks for your kind comment.
I was repairing an audiocompressor kit build few months ago and when going through a calibration step all of a sudden this oscillation appeared when a pot was set halfway it was inaudible but I could see it on the scope then I recalled this video and voila! Flipping the orientation of a foil cap sorted it, thank you