Budget ELNA Cap upgrade for X-CAN v1 / v2

[PinkFloyd]

New for 2008! ELNA cap upgrade for Musical Fidelity X-Can (V1 / v2).

Many people have asked me if I do a "cheaper" upgrade kit for the X-can v1 / v2 than the current kit which features panasonic FM capacitors.

Until now the answer has been no. I have been experimenting with quite a few different types of capacitor with a view to providing a "budget" kit which has all the sonic benefits of the Panasonic FC kit but at a lower price.

I've finally settled on the ELNA RE2 series capacitor which have proved to be excellent when used in the X-CAN v1 / v2. They bring about a warmer, more flowing and laid back presentation compared to the Panasonic FM which are more neutral sounding but a lot of people have actually requested a "valve like" (tube like) presentation.... so here it is!

The ELNA RE2 bring about a richness to the sound and, dare I say it, the presentation is very "valve like", not strictly accurate but a sonic signature many music lovers like.... easy going with the music washing over you.... lovely!

These are not just any ELNA RE2 though! The standard ones are 85C (85 centigrade) temp. rated..... one of my major criticisms of the stock caps was they are only 85C rated and prone to premature failure in the warm environment of the X-Can...... the ones I have sourced (and will be using in the ELNA budget kit) are the harder to obtain ELNA RE2J types which are temp. rated at 105C!

Fantastic quality capacitors with the ELNA house sound, rated at 105C so longevity is assured in the X-Can....... the good news is the ELNA capacitor upgrade will be a lot cheaper than the Panasonic FM upgrade. I will still be offering the Panasonic FM upgrade as I believe it brings about the most honest improvement to the SQ at a very good price.... as previously suggested, the ELNA upgrade makes the X-CAN amp sound more "valve like" and some people actually want that so I won't argue One thing is for sure, both the Panasonic and ELNA upgrades knock the crap out of the stock Jamicons in the sonic department... you could class the Panasonic FM upgrade as "accurate" and the ELNA upgrade as "Valve like"....... to be honest there is very little between the two (the panasonic and ELNA) but to my ears the ELNA certainly veer toward the warmer side of neutral.

Cheaper you say.... how much cheaper?? The current Panasonic FM upgrade kit is £45 shipped (see here: www.rock-grotto.co.uk/v2upgradekit.html ) The ELNA kit will come in at £30 shipped (to the UK) and will include the following (X-can v2 used as an example)

ELNA RE2J (105C) x 10
ELNA Tonorex x 4 (or may be substituted with Nichicon Fine gold)
EVOX / RIFA Polyprops (same as in panasonic kit)
CapXon 470uF non polar x 2 (same as in panasonic kit)
UF4007 ultrafast diodes (same as in panasonic kit)
CapXon 10uF non polar x 2 (same as in panasonic kit)
Purple LED assembly x 1 (same as in panasonic kit)
2 metres silver bearing solder
Comprehensive 4 page instruction manual (detailed instructions)

These kits are available now (£30) I will be going into more depth regarding the ELNA RE2J shortly and may even end up calling this the "tube sound kit"..... at the moment it will remain known as the "budget kit" and will stay @ £30. Full details to appear on the website shortly.

To sum up..... if you like your music warts and all, neutral and detailed then the Panasonic FM kit is for you. If you like your music laid back, flowing and mellifluous (tube like presentation) then look no further than the £30 ELNA kit!

[Deleted]

Nice one Mike !
To get all those bits from the same place, with only 1 lot of
P& P, for 30GBP , is very good value.
Throw in the good solder and a detailed instruction manual, and that's even better value!
SandyK

BTW, what is your opinion of Elna Stargets in other locations than either side of VREGs ? In your opinion are the higher values than 100uF worth buying, or is there better value (and SQ) from
Nichicons,Panasonics etc in most applications?
SandyK

[PinkFloyd]

mrarroyo said:

This is very interesting, I may have to get a 2nd X-Can V2 w/ this new kit. Then I can compare it w/ the V2 I have w/ the Panasonic Caps. Should be interesting.

It's very interesting and also "audible" Miguel. I have had plenty of time whilst recovering from the car accident and have been playing about with a couple of v2's.... one with the Panasonic mods installed as reference and the other being used as a guinea pig. A few people have actually asked me if I can make their v2 sound "warmer" and more "tube like" and, after a lot of head scratching, it was a simple case of trial and error with a selection of capacitors! Anybody who says capacitors don't influence the tone has got their ears up their arse! The V2 with the RE2's on board certainly gives a warmer presentation, more of a rose tinted slightly syrupy view, which (albeit not strictly accurate IMO) is very easy to listen to (with all types of music) and most enjoyable into the bargain.

[PinkFloyd]

I think I'm actually going to phase out the Panasonic FM in the X-Can v2 kits. These ELNA RE2 are performing absolutely fantastic in my v2... so fantastic I sometimes have to slap my self and ask "Is this really a v2 I'm listening to?" I fitted them a few weeks ago and have given them the opportunity to fully form before saying more, I am now 100% convinced there shouldn't be a Panasonic kit and a budget kit, there should only be one kit and that kit incorporating the ELNA RE2.

As previously stated, these are not your standard ELNA RE2 caps which are rated at 85C. These are the 105C variants which are more than up to the job of withstanding the heat inside the v2, they should be good for years and years of service.

A few pics of the v2 with RE2 on board...... actually I may as well make a little tutorial on how to populate the PSU board whilst I'm at it:

Strip everything off the board as shown:


This is not standard practice but you can do it if you want.... fit 100nF film caps on the top of the board where the diodes should go.... superglue will hold them in position:


I hope you noted the orientation of the diodes before super glueing those caps on? Good! Now solder the diodes into position on the underside of the PCB. You are effectively soldering the diode in parallel with the cap.... the superglue ensures the cap stays in position when you are performing this task.


Next thing to fit is the 470nF polyprop:


Now all you have to do on the PSU board is fit the 10 x 1000uF caps:


That's the PSU board populated. Easy eh? easy for me as I have done it hundreds of times! I go into more depth in my construction manual and explain things in a painting by numbers way.... one good reason to buy a kit

Anyways.... here are a few more pics:

[PinkFloyd]

I have managed to secure some 100uF ELNA RE2 (105C) caps so these ELNA X-Can v2 mod kits will now come complete with the following:

ELNA RE2 (105C) 1000uF / 35V
ELNA RE2 (105C) 100uF / 35V
UF4007 Ultrafast diodes
CapXon 470uF Non Polar
CapXon 10uF Non Polar
EVOX Rifa 470nF polyprop
Solder
Full Instructions

The price will be £30 (UK) £35 (ROW)

[PinkFloyd]

To be more precise this very good value, superb sounding kit will include:

10 x ELNA RE2 (105C) 1000uF / 35V
2 x ELNA RE2 (105C) 100uF / 35V
6 x UF4007 Ultrafast diodes
2 x CapXon 470uF Non Polar
2 x CapXon 10uF Non Polar
1 x EVOX Rifa 470nF polyprop
2 metres high quality Solder
2 x zero ohm links (optional)
1 plug and play purple LED
4 page instruction manual

£30 (UK) £35 (ROW) Shipped.

[canjunkie]

Oh to have my PCB's that clean 'n' shiny ;D.

Still, I can look forward to waving a hot wand over the X-Cans soon

[PinkFloyd]

canjunkie said:

Oh to have my PCB's that clean 'n' shiny ;D.

Still, I can look forward to waving a hot wand over the X-Cans soon

Yours will be shipped tomorrow CJ I've sorted you out a nice pair of 1974 vintage 6H23N. Your kit is shipping with ELNA Tonorex 100uF (ELNA RE2 1000uF are all present and correct), my batch of RE2 100uF is not due until Monday but I will send you four of them when they arrive anyway, you can fit them instead of the tonorex or use them in something else. (tonorex are actually very nice caps )

The 100uF pads are possibly the weakest part of the PCB, they lift soooooo easily so make sure you're on and off with the iron pronto when desoldering them. Best way with the 100uF is to grab the cap, pull it to one side to prise it off the board and then just dab the pad with the iron and the leg will come free.... repeat for the other leg..... either mop the pad with desolder braid or a desolder pump. The rest of the caps just desolder them normally with a desolder pump.... my strange technique with the 100uF pads ensures the pads don't lift so it works

Another little tip.... when you are removing the 1000uF caps you can quite easily "pluck" them off with your fingers without having to apply heat (this is another little secret tip ) just grab one of them and pull it over sideways, it will pop out pretty easily.... repeat for the other leg..... I have this down to a fine art and can strip a v2 PSU board in under one minute (caps and diodes) just flip the board over and use the desolder pump to suck up the solder after plucking the caps.

I also enclosed your ALPS pot CJ.... this can be another little bugger when it comes to desoldering! The pads are pretty small and care must be taken not to apply too much heat or BINGO the pads will lift. I find the best way is to snip the excess legs off the stock pot as flush as you can to the board (don't snip "too" close to the pads) then do one pad at a time, position your sucker right over one of the pads... get your thumb poised on the trigger.... apply heat and the nano second the solder melts hit the trigger and withdraw the iron fast... repeat for all 6 pads and then simply pluck the old pot off the board. Another way to do it is with some pretty thin desoldering braid (don't use the thick stuff) lay the braid over the pad you are desoldering... apply the iron and the second you see the braid fill with solder withdraw.

Anyways CJ let me know what you think of the ELNA caps. They are good solid 105C rated types (not the standard 85C RE2 series) and will last forever in the hothouse that is the v2. I wouldn't worry too much about bypassing the diodes, I just had a few WIMA film caps going spare and and felt like adding a bit of colour to the board.... I've come to the conclusion that they don't really make a lot of difference but they sure look pretty Just fit the ultrafasts naked and you're good to go.

You'll think the legs on the blue polyprop aren't long enough..... they are! You'll just have to form them with a pair of small long nose pliers. I usually form them before sending them in the kits but forgot to do yours no worries though, it's not rocket science

Let us know what you think once they are all fitted and formed CJ.

All the best.

Mike.

[canjunkie]

Cheers for the info + tips 'n' tricks Mike. Don't you just love it when you've got a job on & there's some one around who's done the business a few times (or more than few times in your case I gather ).

After the transformation in the noises coming from the QED I'm really looking forward to this