polarized capacitor question

[Barry H]

this is my first post .
I am planning a upgrade to my N1200 & N7000 crossovers and are considering using Auricaps capacitors. These are polarized capacitors and would there be any problem going from non-polarized to polarized capacitors? I read somewhere that you should only use non-polarized capacitors in x-over networks.

[Mr. Widget]

this is my first post .
I am... considering using Auricaps capacitors. These are polarized capacitors...

You should never use polarized electrolytic capacitors in a crossover as passing an alternating current (such as an audio signal) through them will cause them to fail... frequently quite spectacularly with an explosion or fire.

Auricaps are not actually polarized in this sense... they will work in either direction though they are supposed to sound better when following their polarity scheme.


Widget

[Ian Mackenzie]

this is my first post .
I am planning a upgrade to my N1200 & N7000 crossovers and are considering using Auricaps capacitors. These are polarized capacitors and would there be any problem going from non-polarized to polarized capacitors? I read somewhere that you should only use non-polarized capacitors in x-over networks.

Please let us about your project.

If you plan on spending that much money make sure you request matched capacitors. The tolerance can vary in some values apparently.

Ian

[tweeter]

Although they are non-polarized, the manufacturer says:

LEADS

In signal path applications the black lead is "in" and the red lead is "out."

In power supplies the black lead should be connected to ground and the red lead to the + or – voltage.

In loudspeaker crossovers the red lead should be connected toward the + terminal on the drive unit.

Regards.

[Barry H]

Just thought I would share more info on my crossover project. I have been researching this project for the past year on this forum & the internet. I plan on upgrading the N7000 to N8000 since i'm using the LE175DLH as a midrange. This one seems fairly straight forward, just add 20 ohm resistors across the outputs and change to 0.3mh inductors. In the N1200, I would leave the tapped coil as is and just replace the 1.4mh coil & all resistors with Mills 12w resistors. Should I bypass the original mylar caps or replace with all new capacitors in the N1200? These crossovers are 25 yrs. old & have never been opened. Any advise would be welcomed. BTW my drivers are 130A , LE175 & 075 in a 5.3 cu.ft. ported enclosure. (001 system + uhf).

Barry.

[tweeter]

I´ve just bypassed my 4301B filters with Auricaps and they are singing.