Tweakers' Asylum: REVIEW: Audience AuriCap Passive Components by Triode Dude Tweaks for systems, rooms and Do It Yourself (DIY) help. FAQ.

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Model:	AuriCap
Category:	Passive Components
Suggested Retail Price:	varies
Description:	metalized polypropelene
Manufacturer URL:	Audience
Model Picture:	View

Review by Triode Dude ( A ) on February 14, 2002 at 13:16:44 IP Address: 136.8.1.100

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Auricap Review

A friend of mine recommended I check out the Auricaps, which he had used in his DAC DIY project. After browsing the site
(http://www.audience-av.com/passive.htm ) and reading the overwhelmingly positive reviews, I came to reasoning that they were worth a try and ordered a few to suit my tube pre and poweramps. Up until this point I had tried Arcotronics, Jensen Paper in Oils, SCRs, RTX, Wondercaps and Axons in these units (mostly in the preamp, as it is easier to change them). I would say that I was fairly much settled on the Axon 630V coupling caps (0.47uf) which had a nice extended top end, although were a little bit tizzy at times. The Axons also exhibited excellent depth which I found increased my engagement with the music. My experiments thus far had even led to try combined Paper in Oil and Poly caps in parallel to attempt to get the best of both worlds. In fact, this turned out to be quite the opposite, with bass rolling off, a very euphonic midrange and rolled off top end also. The Auricap site advises against this, and now I understand why.

I was pleased to find the package on my door step after only a week via USPS after ordering internationally. I went straight to the soldering iron to try them in my tube preamp. Well it didn’t take more than a few bars to realise something was quite different about the presentation with the Auricaps in the circuit vs the Axons. Immediately the top end sounded more open. Piano had a lovely body to the instrument. Hihat strokes were presented hash free (so rare!). Voices were palpable and the layering of instruments was very engaging and natural.

I started out listening to Fourplay’s “Yes, please”. Track 5 - Blues Force has a piano bass note that just hung and decayed so naturally in the air. The reverb on the guitar was more apparent as was the acoustic space of the recording (however artificially created). Track 6 - Save Some Love for Me, displayed tight, low bass and the voices crooning in the mix had me oozing into my couch. Depth was very realistically portrayed, at times outside the speaker envelope.

I then yanked out my Simon Phillips “Another Lifetime” jazz/funk/fusion disc. Simon worked at Abbey Road for a while and learnt some excellent recording tricks from the master Alan Parsons whilst there. Track 2 - POV - just slammed. The meatiness of the bass was just delicious and the guitar on this track, often sounding quite screechy, had much more tonal inflection. I had never heard it this good before. Track 3 - Freudian Slip - showed the terrific micro detail available using these caps with every one of Simon’s ghost notes on the snare clearly delineated and each one sounded unique. Track 4 - Eyes Blue for You - entranced me with a shaker with real body, sounding like a person was attached, rather than a machine. Lastly Track 5 - Euphrates - had tom overtones and reverberation which were enticing. I went over and turned the rig up. This was music!

So, after some notes were taken, I rushed back to the soldering iron, unplugged the power amp, and set task to remove the SCRs and Axons in there to see what the Auricaps would do now. Surely, it couldn’t get much better? It did. Overall I would say the musical presentation had more impact and drive. Marcus Miller’s slap bass delight CD “M2” rocked. Track 1 - Power - allowed me to hear the tremelo in the synth clearly, which I had never noticed before. In Goodbye Pork Pie Hat, again, the clarity of the muffled rimshot and the air and space around it were most engaging. As was ‘Cousin John’ which was so layered, with every instrument in the mix clearly able to be followed.

My last test was one of my all time favourite discs, the acoustic treasure “Tiny Island”. Fundamentally, this disc sounded like better musicians were playing it compared to how I’ve heard it before, and that’s many hundred times over. The shaker’s coherence and body, the piano in the rear of the studio so identifiable and played with nuance and a tonal structure to die for.

Were there any deleterious effect of using the Auricap? None sonically I could determine. The only thing some might find a touch awkward is mounting the stranded leads in holes designed for solid core wires (if PCBs exist in your amplifiers/speaker crossovers). However it is not hard to solder to some leftover resistor lead in this instance. Richard advises his OEM customers can get solid copper lead ends, but says they don’t quite sound as good.

Although I have not tried every coupling cap there is, I am confident in saying the Auricap is the best I have tried by a long, long way, and I will be trying more Auricaps in my speaker and amplifier projects in due course. The fact that they are so reasonably priced (in the world of ridiculously priced esoteric caps) makes the choice all the more easier. Richard said to me, “There is no single reason why the Auricaps sound so good. We have been making premium audio capacitors since 1983. The Auricap is the result of many refinements over the years and attention to detail.” All I can say is “Here, here”. Try them, you will not regret it.

Cheers, Kendrick Pavey ( kpavey@ford.com )

Vice President, Melbourne Audio Club (Australia) - in it’s 29th year!
http://home.vicnet.net.au/~macinc/ also
Director of Acous-tick Technologies (Silver Cables, Power Cords)

System evaluated in:
Camelot Merlin Pro Transport
Camelot Dragon Pro 2 Dejitterer
CS43122 DAC with passive output stage and battery supply
Silver Stealth interconnects (solid core, own design)
Silver Stealth speaker cables (solid core, own design)
Cawsey Power filters (2)
Cawsey and Belden power cords with Marinco IECs
Custom design 5963 tube preamplifier, dual mono, solid state rectified,choke regulated, silver internal wiring
Contan modified PP KT88 triode amplifier, solid state rectified, silver internal wiring, choke regulation
Gallo Solo speakers
Various bass traps and room treatments, rear diffraction panel, etc

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Product Weakness:	None audibly. Leads may be difficult to fit in PCB holes without drilling or trimming the lead first. Else solder to leftover resistor lead
Product Strengths:	Transparency, ability to convey emotion, slam, liquidity and engagement. Value for money +++

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Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier:	Contan Tube PP KT88 (modified)
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	Custom Tube 5963
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	Camelot Merlin Pro
Speakers:	Gallo Solos
Cables/Interconnects:	Own design - Silver Stealth, Cawsey and home brew power cables
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	Jazz, Acoustic, Fusion
Room Size (LxWxH):	20 x 20 x 12
Room Comments/Treatments:	Bass traps and first order reflection devices and rear diffractive panel
Time Period/Length of Audition:	2 days
Other (Power Conditioner etc.):	Cawsey + others
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner

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