Guitar Tone Capacitor Comparison

And using the right tone cap can add new dimensions to your guitars tone. A tone cap capacitor is a passive electronic component that stores energy in the form of an electrostatic field.

Bass Bench Exploring Passive Tone Controls Premier Guitar

Guitar Tone Capacitor Shootout Cigar Box Nation

Guitar Tone Capacitor Comparison With Real Time Switching And Matched Capacitors

These are some good questions and the answers will help you select values and give an idea of how they will affect the overall tone of your guitar before you start to solder.

Guitar tone capacitor comparison. Ever wonder whether a different capacitor would affect your tone. I often receive e mails and calls from guitarists who dont use the tone control at all mostly complaining about tones that are darke and lifeless. A cap lets the tone control roll off the treble response progressively warming the tone.

The data and sound clips above show clearly that for tone capacitors of close measured capacitance value there is no difference in tone. Its between you and your own ears nobody else can tell you what you hear. The capacitor only contributes to guitars tone when you lower the tone pot.

For example compare the clips and plots for the monolithic x7r 0022uf 00204 and the vishay 225p orange drop 0022uf 00204. The most important thing to know as a guitar player is that different value tone caps are going to affect. Remember the tone cap is always part of the guitar circuit and it even influences the tone when the tone pot is fully opened.

Ive marked the capacitor wires in blue and given a top and bottom view of the wiring setup its a fairly standard setup and even though yours may appear a bit different the capacitor tone pot are likely the same. If you always play with your tone pot wide open none of this matters. The tone control can have anywhere from a subtle to a dramatic affect on a guitars sound for any style of music.

I far prefer the tone of a guitar or bass with much smaller than normal tone capacitors and the tone control all the way down or of course tone control wide open without the cap having any effect to the muddy dull tones of a tone control turned down partly but this is a subjective thing of course. Whether you use a high quality ceramic or poly film cap or opt for a vintage nos type the tone cap you use will make a difference. What do the pots have to do with the tone caps.

One end soldered to the pots arm and the second leg is soldered to the bottom of the pot or somewhere else in the ground circuit. Let your ears decide. The guitar i used to demo the caps has passive single coil pickups but the principle is the same with humbuckers and even active pickups.

50 videos play all mix comparing guitar tone cap values youtube tech tips with lindy part iii tone capacitors explained duration. Lindy fralin pickups 88480 views.