I was wondering if there was a best type of electro to use in the power section of circuits? I got the idea from the VFE switching board that required a low-ESR electro. I was just wondering if there are other "best type" electros to use in different parts of circuits.
I have a pretty good stash of audio electros that I like to use in my builds. I shop around, so, I usually buy a bunch when I can find them cheap. I know there are a lot of opinions that any electros are fine, but I haven't found buying good caps in bulk to be that much more expensive.
If I remember my basic electrical engineering correctly (and I fully accept I may not), you want low ESR in higher frequency situations, so the 50/60 Hz of mains voltage isn't so much of an issue, but the near-audio-frequency output of charge pumps would benefit from low-ESR caps for filtering.
You could also want low ESR in places where you have highest current draw, as it will limit heat and increase lifespan of the cap.
There are probably other situations but my sleep deprived brain can only think of those two at the moment! :-[
Thanks somnif, appreciate the input.
For the VFE stuff, he used low esr for the caps when the voltage inverter is in being used. In that case it makes a lot of sense because low esr means less voltage drop while the caps are being continuously charged and discharged. For regular decoupling caps (between power and ground) I always use regular electros because that's what I stock. But, it's probably never "wrong" to use low esr. It just may be unnecessary in many applications.
Thanks Bean.
I have some general use series that I recently started putting in the power section, so I didn't have to use the audio ones I have. I was just thinking that there are so many different series of electros for any one brand, it would be good to learn if different series are better suited for commonly encountered sections in pedal circuits. I know at 9V it doesn't matter too much.