Recently, I have been reading about resistors. I thought I would share some links that I found interesting and invite you to add to the list. Although there is much opinion in the forums about how different resistors sound, there is little in the way of background and measurement information. I would like to keep this thread focused on the objective side of things, not because I don't think the subjective side has value, but because each subjective case is different and becomes a personal choice. I personally view the objective discussion as a good starting place to learn about how different designs work and a way to find resistors that might be interesting.
My links can be divided into;
Basics – How different resistors are made and function
Manufacturer information – Sometimes, they tell us what they think is important for audio
Measurable data – Ways of measuring and comparisons of different resistors (some of the manufacturer information will help us with this)
Basics
The resistor guide is the best basic resource I have found. Start with Fundamentals including inductance, capacitance, and resistor properties under the Fundamentals tab. I also recommend the Materials tab. A couple of links are shown below to get you started.
Resistor Noise >> Resistor Guide
Resistor materials >> Resistor Guide
https://www.edn.com/design/components-and-packaging/4423492/Resistors-aren-t-resistors
datasheet - Noise and what does V/√Hz actually mean? - Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange
https://www.edn.com/electronics-news/4383541/Calculate-and-measure-noise-values
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1272283
Manufacturer Info
I found that texascomponents and susumu gave the most technical information about their resistors, so you will see lots of links from them below.
http://www.texascomponents.com/store/TechnologyGuide.asp
http://umwxd.xdqqt.servertrust.com/v/TxCC_Graphics_Files/DataSheets/TX2575_Data_Sheet.pdf
http://umwxd.xdqqt.servertrust.com/v/TxCC_Graphics_Files/DataSheets/ASM2575_Data_Sheet.pdf
http://www.susumu.co.jp/usa/tech/know_how_03.php
https://www.digikey.com/en/ptm/s/susumu/rs-series-precision-audio-resistors/tutorial
http://www.vishay.com/docs/49188/_thin_film_chip_selection_guide_vmn_sg2168_1604.pdf
https://www.vishay.com/docs/28871/resistorsmicrowaveapp.pdf
https://www.vishay.com/docs/60107/freqresp.pdf
http://www.susumu.co.jp/usa/tech/know_how_02.php
http://www.susumu.co.jp/usa/product/video/krl.html
http://www.cetti.ro/v2/download/materiale_bibliografice/Thermal Management-SMD-Vishay.pdf
Measurable Data
Frank Seifert's paper shows the largest comparison of resistor current noise that I have found. If you take the time, you can find resistors that are commonly used in audio in this study. For example, Dale CMF55, Susumu RG, 3 Caddock power resistors, Vishay MELF resistors, and even a Vishay S102K bulk foil resistor.
https://dcc.ligo.org/public/0002/T0900200/001/current_noise.pdf
https://people.phys.ethz.ch/~pmaerk...30723a_white_paper_resistor_flicker_noise.pdf
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/3b42/66ac74bfc96b3e1460e1d550ebeec0c9b8aa.pdf
This is an application note talking about how resistor noise interacts with op amps.
http://www.analog.com/media/en/technical-documentation/application-notes/AN-940.pdf
This paper is about the design of a low distortion oscillator, but the section on passive components gives some interesting insight into capacitor and resistor distortion.
http://www.nanovolt.ch/resources/low_distortion_oscillators/pdf/low_distortion_oscillator_design.pdf
I hope you find this useful and we all learn a little more from the process.
My links can be divided into;
Basics – How different resistors are made and function
Manufacturer information – Sometimes, they tell us what they think is important for audio
Measurable data – Ways of measuring and comparisons of different resistors (some of the manufacturer information will help us with this)
Basics
The resistor guide is the best basic resource I have found. Start with Fundamentals including inductance, capacitance, and resistor properties under the Fundamentals tab. I also recommend the Materials tab. A couple of links are shown below to get you started.
Resistor Noise >> Resistor Guide
Resistor materials >> Resistor Guide
https://www.edn.com/design/components-and-packaging/4423492/Resistors-aren-t-resistors
datasheet - Noise and what does V/√Hz actually mean? - Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange
https://www.edn.com/electronics-news/4383541/Calculate-and-measure-noise-values
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1272283
Manufacturer Info
I found that texascomponents and susumu gave the most technical information about their resistors, so you will see lots of links from them below.
http://www.texascomponents.com/store/TechnologyGuide.asp
http://umwxd.xdqqt.servertrust.com/v/TxCC_Graphics_Files/DataSheets/TX2575_Data_Sheet.pdf
http://umwxd.xdqqt.servertrust.com/v/TxCC_Graphics_Files/DataSheets/ASM2575_Data_Sheet.pdf
http://www.susumu.co.jp/usa/tech/know_how_03.php
https://www.digikey.com/en/ptm/s/susumu/rs-series-precision-audio-resistors/tutorial
http://www.vishay.com/docs/49188/_thin_film_chip_selection_guide_vmn_sg2168_1604.pdf
https://www.vishay.com/docs/28871/resistorsmicrowaveapp.pdf
https://www.vishay.com/docs/60107/freqresp.pdf
http://www.susumu.co.jp/usa/tech/know_how_02.php
http://www.susumu.co.jp/usa/product/video/krl.html
http://www.cetti.ro/v2/download/materiale_bibliografice/Thermal Management-SMD-Vishay.pdf
Measurable Data
Frank Seifert's paper shows the largest comparison of resistor current noise that I have found. If you take the time, you can find resistors that are commonly used in audio in this study. For example, Dale CMF55, Susumu RG, 3 Caddock power resistors, Vishay MELF resistors, and even a Vishay S102K bulk foil resistor.
https://dcc.ligo.org/public/0002/T0900200/001/current_noise.pdf
https://people.phys.ethz.ch/~pmaerk...30723a_white_paper_resistor_flicker_noise.pdf
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/3b42/66ac74bfc96b3e1460e1d550ebeec0c9b8aa.pdf
This is an application note talking about how resistor noise interacts with op amps.
http://www.analog.com/media/en/technical-documentation/application-notes/AN-940.pdf
This paper is about the design of a low distortion oscillator, but the section on passive components gives some interesting insight into capacitor and resistor distortion.
http://www.nanovolt.ch/resources/low_distortion_oscillators/pdf/low_distortion_oscillator_design.pdf
I hope you find this useful and we all learn a little more from the process.