Cheap Aliexpress Capacitor: Much smaller than original. Safe to use?

[nobbnobb1]

I am trying to get a set of Creative T40 computer speakers to work again of which I believe the problem is bad caps (470uF @ 35V). So I get a generic set off Aliexpress. The brands are meaningless, but if anyone cares it's a "Chongx"

When they arrive, to my surprise it's much smaller than the originals. These are 8mm x 15mm whereas the OE is 10mm x 20mm. Unfortunately my meter does not test capacitance but I'm guessing there's no way this meets spec at 80% the size.

Thoughts? Is it still worthwhile or safe to try and install these to see if I can get the speakers working?

[stj]

whats the series on the chang?
https://www.paullinebarger.net/DS/Chang/
https://www.paullinebarger.net/DS/Chengx/

[lti]

I've also run into unusually small caps from these weird off-brands. Sometimes they measure close to their rated capacitance, and sometimes they measure 15-20% low (still in spec, but barely). The worst part is when the PCB and chassis were designed specifically for the oddball cap that's smaller than anything from a reputable manufacturer.

Are they the Chongx caps with "vent" misspelled? There are claims that they're counterfeits of the real Chongx, which is sad. They might be worth trying if the voltage in the circuit doesn't go too close to 35V.

[nobbnobb1]

Are they the Chongx caps with "vent" misspelled? There are claims that they're counterfeits of the real Chongx, which is sad. They might be worth trying if the voltage in the circuit doesn't go too close to 35V.

They are "ChongX" and says "VEHT" and "low ESR". Is it supposed to say "VENT"? In hindsight, I'm guessing I shouldn't risk it. Didn't realize knock offs of even Chinese capacitors is such an issue.

[momaka]

FWIW, I've never been able (or bothered) to remember which variation of Ching/Chang/Chong/Cheng +/-X (sorry, that probably sounds racist now that I think about saying it like that, though that wasn't the point here ) is the "genuine" one. So I genuinely threat them all as likely junk. Granted I've seen TLC/Roku TV sets use these (the "Chang" variant) in their PSUs... and in the one I found, the LED backlights blew before the caps did... so I suppose they aren't all *that* bad if they outlasted the LED backlights. And a few years ago, I found a pair of free Logitech X230 speakers that also had Chang caps (I think), which are still OK too after many years of use. In short, the "genuine" Chang/Cheng/Chong caps aren't the worst caps around, and I can think of many other brands that are much worse. But all in all, I don't trust them much either, since I can never seem to remember which one was the "OK" one, if any.

As for the AliExpress ChongX "VEHN / LOWESR" caps... I think those are a lot more likely to be counterfeit / completely garbage caps.
The fact that they are smaller doesn't necessarily mean their specs have to be counterfeit. Some low ESR caps can be smaller than their general purpose equivalents. It all depends on the manufacturing technology, though. Newer gen caps in general tend to be smaller than older ones. Nevertheless, I am still wary when I see this with no name brands. I can't remember where I read this on, but I do remember someone reporting that their new "no-name" caps blew at much lower voltage.
So it's possible the caps you got might have proper capacitance, but perhaps they are a bit under-rated on the voltage. Problem is, you won't know until you put them under full operating voltage... and even then, they might still be OK for a bit.

Granted PC speakers aren't exactly a demanding place for electrolytic caps spec-wise... but if you never want to open those speakers again to check on the caps or to replace them, then certainly ditch these and get genuine good brand of caps (i.e. Rubycon, Nichicon, Panasonic, and United Chemicon.)

nobbnobb1[/URL]]They are "ChongX" and says "VEHT" and "low ESR". Is it supposed to say "VENT"?

Yes, "vent" is the correct one, as it's supposed to indicate that the capacitor has a safety vent to release gases, should it pressurize internally due to a failure.
"VEHT" might be an acceptable spelling only if you mix the Latin and Cyrillic alphabet together , as Cyrillic "H" = Latin "N"

[ChaosLegionnaire]

lol! dont worry, i dont mind a good casual racist joke even though yea, it wasnt intentional or the point! nor is it the vip room. if the admins or mods deemed it inappropriate, they would have censored and edited your post by now...

[andrewsawesomr]

Chang are the real guys, they aren't great but (if not fake) they won't blow up at the rated voltage. Yes, there are fake Chang capacitors. If you get them from eBay, they're probably fake.

[momaka]

lol! dont worry, i dont mind a good casual racist joke even though yea, it wasnt intentional or the point! nor is it the vip room. if the admins or mods deemed it inappropriate, they would have censored and edited your post by now...

Well, apologies once again.
The thinking in my head at the time was, all of these Ch_ng capacitor names, but just with a simple vowel variation each time, so I "filled in" more I could think of... and that's when that came. Thought the joke was mild enough to pass, though.
I suppose the other two possibilities that I didn't come up with are Chung and Chyng... though I better not give those cheap cap companies any more ideas now, or it's really going to get even more confusing.

Chang are the real guys, they aren't great but (if not fake) they won't blow up at the rated voltage.

Yes, I eventually figured this from the pictures of the PSU boards from the TLC TVs I've repaired / scrapped.
The TCL TV I fixed for my parents is still holding up... though they haven't put a whole lot of hours on it yet. The fact that it's a 2019 model and the caps are still not dead (even on their own from sitting around) is enough evidence that perhaps they are not utter garbage.

[stj]

i dont care if it's a jackie chang - i still wouldnt trust it!

[ChaosLegionnaire]

I suppose the other two possibilities that I didn't come up with are Chung and Chyng... though I better not give those cheap cap companies any more ideas now, or it's really going to get even more confusing.

there's also another possible name called chng. the name has no vowels so thats a scary thought... hahaha!

The TCL TV I fixed for my parents is still holding up... though they haven't put a whole lot of hours on it yet. The fact that it's a 2019 model and the caps are still not dead (even on their own from sitting around) is enough evidence that perhaps they are not utter garbage.

well... tcl roku is a china brand so we shouldnt expect too much from them. if someone wanted a reliable and quality tv, they would have paid more and bought from the more established korean brands like lg and samsung instead.

i dont care if it's a jackie chang - i still wouldnt trust it!

if someone needed to name their caps after jackie chan, ppl wouldnt believe their caps had a fighting chance if they needed to invoke jackie chan's name in such a manner!