How to Repair Vintage Tube Radio Filter Capacitor Fix Hum Antique Receivers 

Your channel is the first I've seen the tube socket trick, which is great. I usually mounted a row of soldering posts to the bottom of the chassis. Your way leaves the instrument much more original.

That is a most awesome solution for replacing filter cans, especially in tight areas. Sadly the price is about double now, but still way cheaper than metal clad combo caps. Great idea Terry, I will try this soon.

People have told me for years "Rick you can fix anything"... Not! lol But thanks to you this ol guy is learning. Thank you so much for your time and sharing your knowledge .

I actually remove and deconstruct the original capacitor case, and put the new caps into the original case for folks that want to keep the original look. There is usually more than enough room; because of the added height you can stagger the new caps to make them fit. I do leave a small opening in the bottom for the new caps to breathe. Tube socket isn't a bad idea at all, though.

A big thank you for explaining this clever fix to a bad cap. My admiration for passing the technique along.

Kudos at resourcefulness, very good workmanship and clear, well-narrated clip. Thanks for sharing.

That's good solution to the problem. We used to call these things blocks , when they were still widely available and cheap. They were forever failing in late sixties early seventies televisions as well. Buzzing and hum bars on video , those were the days .

I respect your craftsmanship and the fact that you're very clear compared to other channels

Great job, I love to hear them come back to life also. Thank you for this video .

Terry you are a genius. Creative solution.

Will done Terry; the new approach looks very professional and authentic.

Thanks for sharing this excellent technique, I will use it myself in future. Ingenious and neat solution, made me smile.

Hi Terry, just want to stop by and say thank you for your videos.

Man oh man what a clean job! I needed to see this because I currently have many radios that need this. In fact 8 Johnson messenger ones, a knight r100 and a zenith model 600. Thanks man!

Thank you D-Lab, With your tutorials and awesome videos, I recently fixed a 1939 Wards Airline radio! Thank you!!!

That came out awesome, Terry... and that is definitely a nice looking National, too.

Probably the best video I've seen this side of Xmas! Thanks!

Awesome fix and great explanation of steps! Well done!!!

Terry, I appreciate all your videos, great job.

Hey DLab: I just completed this mod on one of my daily radios, a Zenith 6-D-539, and no more hum! Thanks a lot for posting this.

Thanks for this video. I just inherited a Zenith floor model radio Mod- 5308 that I believe to be from 1939 that works but has a very loud hum. I am now in the process of restoring it with very little knowledge of these sets.

1950's 5 tube am radio, horrible loud buzz at zero volume. Replaced 3-lead cardboard capacitor with 2 electrolytics I salvaged from a free landfill tv. Works beautifully now. Thank you!

Thanks, Terry for the video...much appreciated! Speaking of appreciation, want to also let you know that YOU are very much appreciated too!

One of the slickest tricks I've seen lately .. thanks.

Hey there Terry just ran across your 3 year old video because I thought I was way beyond filter cap replacements. Been there and done there many times. BUT Mr Smart One your tube socket idea is pure Real Good. I'll certainly try it next time. 73 OM!

As mentioned by another comment, if polished up that can it seems like it might slip right over the top of your new caps and would look fantastic! Nice video and job well done.

Wow, talk about Pearls of Wisdom. What an ingenious way to get an old radio up and running like new. I was wondering about that old carbon resistor. It sure looked overheated on one end. Glad you replaced it. The only other thing I might have done would be to put a label on that big heat shrink tubing stating what the three capacitor values were.

"Very nice Terry. Need to do this to one of my old Browning's! You bought an audio set from me...I didn't know I was meeting somebody that is so cool and helpful to others out there. Need more people around this globe like you bud'. ")

that's a really good trick with the tube plug!!! I'm fixing up my first old radio, and unfortunately this won't work with the layout, but I will absolutely remember this for my next project!

Justs what I needed and you told me like I was 7 and that was also what I needed! keep up the great work brother!

This is hilarious. And very practical. Love these vids.

That's a great video I always have trouble with filter caps when I repair radios and that is a handy and less expensive option. Oh and I subscribed to your channel. Thanks again for sharing.

Never seen this one before, and grew up with 5 tube stuff, and hit HS just when transistors came in, and LOVE IT,,,,,

That's a good tip and a clean repair, thanks for sharing!

Great information Terry; I have several old tube broadcast receivers and they all hum; I am going to see if I can incorporate your repair into them! Thanks for the great video!

Thank you so much! I followed your instructions and fixed the hum in my tube radio.

You are brilliant I wish i could spend some time taking lessons from the beginning I keep tellin my grown adult kids i am a widower whose husband did not pay into social security like he told me he had been doing all along and when he died the kids and i had zero benefits to take care of us and support us food shelter car repairs home repairs all had to go unrepaired i had no oven for almost 4 years and only one burner on my cooktop a heater that broke then found out the asbestos was cracking and leaving particles blowing on us! So no heater! I told my children IF THERE WAS A SCHOOL A PLACE TO GO AND TAKE SURVIVAL SKILLS BASIC HOME REPAIRS WASHER DRYER HEATERS ROOF REPAIRS DRAINAGE ISSUES INSTALLING A FAN LIGHT HARD WIRED AND INSTALLING A NEW OVEN HARDWIRED HOW TO REPAIR A DISHWASHER HARDWIRED HOW TO CHANGE THE OIL IN A TRUCK OR DO A TUNE UP OR CHANG3 A TIRE OR PUT ON NEW BRAKES OR AS IN NOW, REPLACING A HEAD GASKET ON A TRUCK WITH LESS THAN 90,000 MILES NEVER BEEN DRIVEN HARD NEVER OVERHEATED ALWAYS HAD FLUID A CLASS FOR ELECTRICAL WORK CAR REPAIRS HOUSE REPAIRS HOW TO FIX A SLIDING GLASS DOOR THAT IS WORN OFF THE METAL FRAME HOW TO REPLACE OR REPAIR ADD ON SUN ROOM ENCLOSURE WHERE THE WALLS ARE WARPED AND WERE THE ONLY THING NO LONGER HOLDING THE ACRYLIC WINDOW PANELS FRAMES IN PLACE AND THE ACRYLIC PANELS FROM THE 60S ARE BRITTLE SO WHEN IT RAINS I FRANTICALLY STAPLE GUN LARGE CONSTRUCTION PLASTIC AROUND THE OUTSIDE OF THE SUNROOM BECAUSE IF NOT THE RAIN SOAKS THE CARPETTING AND WILL GET MOLDY! THE BACK YARDFLOODS AND I MUST RUN A SUMP PUMP I HAVE TO DIG A HOLE UNDER WATER TO SINK A BUCKET FOR THE SUMP PUMP TO WORK I GOT ELECTRICUTED 4 YEARS AGO WHILE ATTEMPTING TO CLEAR THE DEBRIS CLGGING THE PUMP ...SO YEAH I WISH THAT MEN LIKE YOU WHO REALLY KNOW A THING OR TWO ABOUT A THING OR TWO COULD GATHER TOGETHER OPEN NATIONAL SCHOOLS FOR SURVIVAL I KNOW THERE WOULD BE A WAITING LIST YEARS DEEP IF ONLY!IF ONLY!

Great video, will follow your technique on recapping a vintage tube radio !

I just found you channel and subscribed. Great teaching video, Thank you for this!

I found a mint condition Quadraflex Reference 300R at Goodwill for $8 yesterday. Never heard of the brand, and can't find much on this specific model yet, but completely analog, and looks to be from mid 70s, maybe early 80s. I figured reference series sounded good, and says made in Japan on the back. So for the price, and it's like-new condition, I figured its worth a shot. I wasn't surprised to find a very loud and cobstant hum, even with volune at minimum, and no input source. I connected a source, and also tried the fm tuner, and I can hear music playing 'behind' the hum. I didn't want to push it and damage anything (else) tho, so I powered it down, and have been digging into vintage stereo repair to see what I might be able to do to bring this thing back to life. It's absolutely beautiful when it's lit up, and the dials feel takes me back to when my dad had his old Sanui/Bose system from the same era. Anyway, I picked up on you sying that because the volume pit is at full minimum, but hum is still present, it indicates a problem.in the power supply, not the audio side. That sounds exactly like the unit I picked up yesterday, so in your opinion, would you suggest I investigate the power supply first? And also, what if I can't find a schematic? How might I go about testing? Are there general standards, or anything I could use as a baseline, so to speak? Or is every unit completely unique and random in parts that are used? I'm pretty good with modern electronics, so it's not too difficult for me to pick up on these old methods, but it's a lot like trying to work on a carburated vehicle when you've always dealt with one controlled by a computer. It's so simple, yet equally complex, and somewhat foreign, all at the same time. I enjoyed the video, and learned a few things, so I subscribed. keep it up

Thanks for sharing your Filter Cap Repair procedure. Nice Video!

really good idea, and I'm surprised as articulate and neat as you are, that you did not mention draining the caps first with a resistor for safety

Excellent video. The multi-stage capacitor replacement is tremendous

Thank you for the great video. I learned a lot. I do have a question. I have an old German 1953 RCA radio (made by Graetz). It was working PERFECT one day no hum at all. loud and clear beautiful radio. Then in the wink of an eye - no warning at all - it began buzzing LOUDLY and the green eye tube went dark. I unplugged it within seconds. Unlike a typical filter hum - where the radio has to warm up first this buzzes the second it is turned on. Could this be the filter can? Cant find a schematic - RCA (By Gratez) Model 67 QR 73 FM - M Thank you for any help!

One leaving the old cap is in slopie work and lazy ,two like you said the cap will keep on leaking,the way you do it is so clean .this why I love your videos ,I hate guys say they were preserving the look ,bull .

hi, my name is ted i have a question, i have a 1941 GE radio phonograph console, it had started making a very loud humming noise with out touching the volume control, i took the unit apart and i found 3 bad capicators they were leaking and there was 3 broken wires so i replace the Capicators and fixed the wires made sure there was ground hooked up and when i Plugged it in it still was making a loud humming noise so i watched this episode on identify a bad audio filter cap, i did the test and mine dose the same thing you just showed, my cap is 4 prong 30 MFD 350 VDC, 30 MFD 350 VDC, 15 MFD 250VDC, 20 MFD 25VDC CAN NEG i found a 4 prong 20 mfd 400 v 10 mfd 350v 80mfd 300v pln,20 25v can neg, now will this one i found work in my unit?? please let me know thanks ted

Nice video I have a HA-10 to repair I need the meter movement. Any help I'b be thankful.

witam/lubie ogadac Twe filmy,z zaciekawieniem patrze na kazdy Twoj film,poprosze o wiencej tego typu filmy,pozdrawiam,Krzysztof z Warszawy....................

Nice idea, I will use it in future repairs. I think I will install the tube socket as you described but solder the caps to the plug of a burnt out tube whose glass and internals have been removed. That will make the caps removable as a unit and make it just as replaceable as the tubes. Unfortunately, neither idea will work well for my 1937 Hammarlund HQ-120 which has its filter caps buried in a cardboard tube strapped to a side wall under the chassis. Since I'd rather not drill holes in the chassis topside that didn't belong there originally, I think I will drill out the cardboard tube and epoxy in three modern caps instead making a completely invisible repair.

Thank you for the learning experiences concerning the filter caps...ingenious!! What size heat shrink tubing did you use?

regarding your use of the stand. by switch on tube amps, is this why if I just turn my tube amp on without standby used.the amp just smoothly comes to life.however if I use stand by...Ms soon as I shut stand by off I get 2 little crackles and sputtering pop sounds when I take the amp out of standby but then those pops go away and the amp runs smooth and quiet

Instrumental of Bon Jovi's Living on a Prayer is playing in the background during the intro --- Love it!

D-Lab, I have a 1964 RCA Victor model 4 V F 488. I was wondering how to know what caps to use to replace the wax caps with? I am totally new to this stuff. Also was wondering if replacing the caps will fix my volume problem. When the volume is all the way down, there is still sound. I appreciate any help you can give. Thanks in advance.

Do you offer the service of recapping old radios? I have a Hallicrafters SX 71 that works, no hum, but I would like to get it re capped etc for safety reasons. I am reluctant to venture into it myself, although I have done one old radio a few years ago.

I'm completly new at this and attempting to fix a 1946 Stewart Warner 9001-D. It acts the same as the radio in the video where it just hums when turned on. The concern I have is the filter capacitor has labeled 502207 20uf, 10uf, 20uf. So would I be able to make the same repair as in the video being the uf's are different?

The last time I did this was on an old Emerson 560 battery radio which was converted to AC. The 3-section capacitor used had fly leads so I got myself one of those green UMHWPE plastic bag rolls they throw away at the produce counter and built the new one in one of those.

Thank you Sir i bought 3 radios in the estate sale for $2.50 and $5 but broken, i subscribed in your channel on how to fix it.(2 airlines tube radios and 1 packard bell)

In 2022, this is a money saver BIG TIME!

Good one Terry. I will use this in my next restoration where the cap is in the upper chassis area. I think I will add a tube base to the socket and mount the caps to the base instead. That way the new cap assembly can come out as though it were just another tube without desoldering all those wires again. I think you did a video on this as well or am I mistaken? Anyway, great tip so thanks for the video!

Thank you for uploading :) I have a o'l Philips I am trying to repair, with your tips I think i'll be able to make it work now :D

Terry; My son was given a old General Electric tube type, AM/FM clock radio this week, that looks like new, probably from the mid 60's I would guess! The original owner said it only had a loud hum and if my son didn't want it, he was going to throw it out! The cabinet for this radio is real wood and it has 6 miniature tubes sitting on a early type of printed circuit board. The filter cap was a dual cap, 50 and 100mfd at 150vdc. I removed it and replaced it with two 100mfd/200vdc caps that I had removed from some old electronic circuit boards at one time and had in my junk box. I wired them in and I now I have a beautiful sounding radio! The only problem that I have with this radio now, and I am looking for a answer to, is it has a 10" "slide rule" dial, and the dial cord slips. The clock on this radio works great, controls the radio and is quiet. This currently, is the best sounding broadcast receiver that I have in my house! I am a old tube guy, and I have amateur radios that I enjoy putting on the air! Regards, Karl

Very educational video! You learn new ways everyday.. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and time! 73, Joe-k4jga

Trabalho muito bem feito....Parabéns colega...!!!!!!

Thank You for your Efforts !

Nice to see what components used to look like before printed circuits and chips

Nice fix, solid and neat.

Thanks for explaining your analysis!

Thank you. Awesome fix!

Great video and very informative. Thanks.

Hi, I got a old Motorola console that hums after about 10 mins on the radio and turntable. do you think thats the filter caps? Thanks!

What happens or what is wrong if the hum is still there after doing this? With the volume all the way down.

Very nice tip. I'll start using that technique thanks

Nicely done. You could also refill old can with new capacitors.

Hmm, confetti generator... (6:41) great line Terry

nice and clean i like the way it turned out

I wonder. Can you use different working voltages and farads in your homeaid filter cap

Terry, two questions. What are your standard settings you use on your oscilloscope for troubleshooting tube amps? I just bought a new digital scope and I have two old tube ones that need restoration. Second, I’d like to see a video on how to troubleshoot ground loops inside tube amps. Some of my own making but most others are on old gear that have frustratingly difficult to find loops.

Agree! Those that parallel bad caps with new should not be allowed to work on *ANY* equipment!

if the cap is 2 positive and 1 negative terminal do you need 3 caps anyways?

Fantastic idea!! Thank you!

Hi D-lab. Thanks 4 a Great RU-vid channel!!. Looking on a secondhand osciloscope here in Denmark! Q: what resolution - MHz, Will be sufficiente 4 doing the jobs like: Hunting and killing hum and noice in tube amps. Best Regards.

Can you do this with a guitar amp filter cap?

Thanks for that. It’s quite helpful.

Been watching a lot of you videos lately. Im new to the radio thing. I have a victor re45 that has a nasty speaker hum all the time would it be correct to think a capacitor could cause this? Or possible other ac interference?? Thanks!

hi D-lab i did the test like you showed on this video and my filter capacitor was doing the same thing, so i ordered one from "hayseed hamfest" it was only $39.95 with shipping, i installed it in my 1941 GE and it works perfect plays clear as a bell, i just want to thank you for this video it help me alot, i am still new to repairing this type of vintage stuff and your expertise help me threw it. best regards ted

What about going about discharging any stored voltage before "digging in"? Will unplugging a radio from the wall, switching it to ON (or turning ON and OFF rapidly) and leaving it for some time suffice?

Great tip and explanations

Hi. Very professional repair. I have a Graetz Spitzen Super W176 or 176W. Still cant find a decent schematic for it. Same problem as in your video, low hum with no volume. Have you ever came across one of these? Lots of pics and talk about them online but no clear layout. Hard to tell values on the caps. Any ideas. Shipping is possible. I am in Ontario, Canada, across from Port Huron Mi. Thank you in advance for your time. Rob

Hi there. I have a technics sa 300. It's a 70s amp that hums separately of the volume knob. There are no tubes in the unit but could there be a problem with the filter capacitor

Enjoyed watching your video. A friend gave me a 1967 RCA Console Stereo and I just turned it on today and guess what....it hums. For a girl, I thought I might possibly be able to do this, but when you got to the soldering step and it if you don't do it right you could blow up the whole thing up....you lost me. And cutting all the wires at the end was a little intimidating too. It's not grounded yet....could that possibly help the humming problem?

I have a Grundig HiFi 2035 tabletop that I used to frequently play the jazz station on. Recently it began to get this hum as well when on and it even continues to make the sound with the volume knob all the way down. Kind of a shame I don't have the technical skills to play around with it. It's the same reason I have not been able to diagnose my RCA 9t240 with bad wax capacitors.

Terry, excellent video! I have a bad filter capacitor that I have been unable to find a replacement for. The Number on it is 972187-25 (RCA). It is a 4-pole, and all 4 have different micro farad ratings. Is this still the best method to replace the bad capacitor? How do I figure out for sure which capacitor goes where? Thanks.

Great video. I have an old sears am fm tube receiver from maybe mid sixties. My question is, I want replace the old multi section can capacitor but, it is a 4 section with different values and voltages. Should I buy a 10 pin tube socket holder for the extra room and how do I identify the different values and voltages from the terminals underneath the chassis? Carl P.....

where can i find speaker grill cloth. mine is in really bad shape? i have a zenith k731

Do you know how to repair a Sharp SG-155H record player? I think it's a potentiometer problem but if it's dry caps I'm totally lost

Nice video D! Regards Lee.

Great channel Terry. ALSO check out RCA 77V1 Radio phono console. RCA put the 6V6 push pull output transformer outboard on the (P.M.) speaker just to be able to advertise this as an "electrodynamic" speaker.system! I'm restoring my parent's 1947 radio console.

Love the video, thanks for showing us another way to get the job done on a budget. I was wondering if you considered recycling the black cardboard cover to the old Cap, and stuff the three new caps in it, even if you had to add extensions to make it all fit? I'll remember you trick, and love all your videos. Thanks.*** didn't see the suggestions prior to recycle the old cap cover, so I concur it's a good idea. :-)

Great video!!

That was neat.I have two receivers that need the filters replaced-my 1952 Midwest radio/phono combination I bought about four years ago,and a Hallicrafters S 20R Sky Champion I bought the other day.I noticed,however,the black carboard tube just came off.Why didn't he just glue it over the plastic shrink wrap?