Components #

The following is a list of my go-to components for building amps. I find it helpful to see what components look like as installed to get a sense of what you’re buying.

Capacitors #

Electrolytics
- Manufacturers are moving away from axial electrolytics since they’re not used in modern PCB designs so I suggest using radials for new designs.
- the “con” brands tend to be reasonably rated e.g. Rubycon, Nichicon, etc.
- Look for >5000 hour lifespan with >105 deg c rating
- Some good example caps are as follows:
Film
- Lyle at Psionic doesn’t believe the hype on Sozo, bumblebee, sprague orange drop, etc. I believe him and would recommend Panasonic ECQs, Vishay MKT1813, or Mallory 150M. The Panasonic and Vishays have a nice small footprint.
  - Vishay MKT1813
  - Panasonic ECQ
Ceramic
- 1KV, class 2 for signal path and multi-layer dipped for non-audio e.g. tremolo oscillators.
  - Vishay class 2
  - Murata multi-layer

Resistors #

Vishay for power supply droppers, screen grids, etc e.g. 3 watter
Xicon or Yageo 1/2 or 1 Watt carbon film for most other applications e.g. 1/2 watter

Wire #

My ideal hookup wire would be teflon jacketed, top coat (aka pre-tinned) wire in 18-22 AWG but I cannot find a good supplier.
The best I’ve found is from TubeDepot. I don’t love the thin jacket and it’s not top coated. The jacket is very high temperature though, which gives more wiggle room when soldering higher temperature lead-free solder.
Dave Friedman recommended Valvestorm wire in a Tone Talk video but I haven’t tried any. It’s top-coated PVC so probably good stuff but more likely to melt when compared to teflon.
I use Mogami W2330 for shielded runs. Something with a heavier gauge conductor would be nice since this stuff is 29AWG.

Transformers #

Mercury has a wide variety of options but you’ll likely want to contact them before ordering unless you’re just replacing a known component.
Hayboers are good if you can get them
I’ve read mixed things about Hammond. I used one for the output transformer of the Ltr Special and it sounds great.

Pots #

I like the shaft material of the CTS pots but 24mm Alphas are a good choice.

Jacks #

Proper Switchcraft or Cliff. I prefer the Cliff’s isolation from the chassis.

Knobs #

Use brass insert knobs otherwise the knob plastic will crack over time e.g. chickenheads