Resistor Sound Quality?

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Hi! Noobie here with question about resistors.

I have read with much interest in the Blackgate cap threads and the sound diferences they made. I won't go much further into that!:D

Those BG threads now got me wodering if there are any BG equavelant for resistors? I mean audiophile grade resistors? if there's such a thing.

Or are all 1% metal foils resistors just the same(in terms of sound to value)?

If there are so called audiograde resistors available, what are your prefered brands?

Thanks for enlightment.
 
Carbon composite resistors are known by audio-, guitar- and vintage people for their very clean and natural sound.

Composite resistors differ from film resistors in that they consist of a little tube with a composite carbon resistor material inside. This makes the resistance, so you only have a few mm (tenth of an inch) of material in the signal. :angel:

A film resistor is made by carving a channel into a carbon (or metal) film on a glass or ceramic tube, resulting sometimes in meters (feet) of material in the signal! Also a film resistor always has inductance :dead:, composite resistors don't. :D

Allen-Bradley is the brand to look for. They are far less expensive than the brands mentioned above by member float.
;)
 
Thanks klitgt,

I went to purchase some TKD resistors, and tried them out in the output stage of the NAD PP-2 phono stage. The results are good.

I am now wondering if I do a little bit better if I mod the input resistors as well.

I did see the A-B resistor in store. Worth a look.

The store was also showing me some Kiwame resistors, saying that they sounded "sweater at the top end" conpared to the TKDs.

Anymore recomendations?
:D
 
You should also be aware that carbon composite resistors are unstable and drift upward in resistance value over time. They should not be used where 1) they are setting critical bias levels and/or 2) where you want the equipment to operate consistently for a long time (years).

I think the "classic" amp guys prefer them mainly because that's what was used in the original circuits they are repairing or duplicating and they want to duplicate the "sound" of the original.

I_F
 
KIWAME FOR EVER

Dear Sir,

please have a look at my personal realization and you will understand !!!

Carbon comp :
1) kiwame ( lush sounding - the best ( to my opinion ! )
2) riken ( taut and three dimensional but very expensive )
3) kamaya ( very good but 5 to 10% tolerance )
4) Ohmite little devil ( see kamaya )
5) morganite ( pleasant sound - tend to drift !! )

Metal :

1) roederstein ( tight 'n' fast - a little thin )
2) Holco ( very fast - "metallic treble )

To my opinion KIWAME resistors are the overall winners.


Regards

ROCK
 
The "Cheddar" of resistors....

.
I have never "heard" any difference in sound between resistor types, except carbon composition when used at high voltage, where they sometimes exhibit a slight VDR effect.
That doesn't mean I don't advocate high quality resistors. They will be more accurate, more stable over time, and less liable to failure (which could affect audio quality). But which ones to choose is really down to budget, cosmetics and supply.
Time is much better spent considering sound engineering principles of electronic design and thermal management.:hot:
 
Resistors

klitgt said:
Carbon composite resistors are known by audio-, guitar- and vintage people for their very clean and natural sound.

Composite resistors differ from film resistors in that they consist of a little tube with a composite carbon resistor material inside. This makes the resistance, so you only have a few mm (tenth of an inch) of material in the signal. :angel:

A film resistor is made by carving a channel into a carbon (or metal) film on a glass or ceramic tube, resulting sometimes in meters (feet) of material in the signal! Also a film resistor always has inductance :dead:, composite resistors don't. :D

Allen-Bradley is the brand to look for. They are far less expensive than the brands mentioned above by member float.
;)


I really like the AB carbon comps also. The leads on the 1/2 watt do not fit holes drilled for modern metal films. This is about the downside I have seen.
The drift up in value should not be an issue. Always measure and match all resistors. A twenty year old resistor has drifted about all it is going to.
One modern metal film that is real nice is the brown bodied Dale CMF55. These are extremely neutral and totally non-magnetic.
I shop for resistors with a magnet in my pocket. If the resistor sticks to the magnet it stays in the bin. Several of the resistors listed as favorites have either steel end caps on the body, or worse yet, steel leads.

George
 
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Whats the deal with magnetic leads or end caps? Will 1nH of inductance really affect your amp with a bandwidth of maybe 50khz? I can't even get an inductance reading with a metal film resistor on a HP 4192A LCZ meter. Thats up to 13Mhz. Will it make a difference at UHF, probably. At audio frequencies, no.
 
John,

it is intersting that you mention VDR effects, since that is seldom discussed. All, or almost all, types of resistor have a voltage dependent resistance, some types more than others. I don't think I have ever seen any figures, but presumably the voltage dependency is quite small. There is also a potential secondary VDR effect from heating, since the resistance is also temperature dependent. Both of these effects are likely negligible for most resistors in an amplifier, they will both be swamped by other non-linearities and corrected by feedback. However, there is one resistor that both sees large voltage swings and cannot be corrected by feedback, namely the feedback resistor. So if there is any resistor in amplifier that may cause an audible effect at all, I would suggest this one to be the primary candidate for experiments. If it is not possible to hear a difference between different types of feedback resistors, then I strongly doubt it is possible to hear a difference for any other resistor.
 
Besides voltage coefficient of resistance, the other major issue is noise. Carbon comps are the worst in that regard. I use them as grid-stoppers for high-level circuits where the noise and drift are not an issue.

TCR isn't an issue for signal because of thermal inertia. It is an issue for filters and places where matching is important (e.g., plate loads). Again, the carbon comps come off worst.

So of course, carbon comps will become fashionable.
 
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