I recently repaired some power & video boards found in Gateway monitors (built by Samsung) suffering with the capacitor plague of 2005. I had purchased a number of these years ago when they were being liquidated on eBay. Well, I guess "dumped" would be a better phrase since sellers who had no knowledge of electronics were in a panic to get rid of them since warranties had run out.
There has been some talk of capacitor ESR so just for grins, I included some of the Panasonic FR series in my last parts order to replenish my parts cabinets. The majority of electrolytics I use are the NHG standard series but wanted to recap one machine in particular with low ESR. As expected, there was no noticeable difference visually or when taking voltage readings. Probably due to the fact that my application is not mil spec or some specialized device. The price difference is not significant so I see nothing wrong with seeking out low ESR caps when available.
But here lies the crux of the problem. It's been my experience that foreign manufactures are only interested in selling products with no attention given to essential items like schematic diagrams, pictorial drawings, parts lists, and trouble shooting flow charts & procedures. Further, when you look at the side of an existing capacitor, you typically only see the capacitance, voltage rating, and temperature. If lucky, some have a logo & series stamped on them and can be found during a lookup. I estimate few electronics enthusiasts even bother with this. If it walks like a capacitor and quacks like a capacitor, we'll just grab an 85 degree from Radio Shack.
Which leads to expensive ESR meters. Quite the expensive tool for a one time use in my opinion. Capacitors have a finite life span and their age should be taken into consideration before using. I always buy new ones of the correct series for repair projects then check them on the capacitance meter to see if within tolerance. Perhaps someday there will be a more dependable yet affordable replacement for the annoying and problematic electrolytic.
I notice higher end computer motherboards designed for over-clocking are completely void of electrolytic types. Too bad the same can't be said for computer power supplies.
There has been some talk of capacitor ESR so just for grins, I included some of the Panasonic FR series in my last parts order to replenish my parts cabinets. The majority of electrolytics I use are the NHG standard series but wanted to recap one machine in particular with low ESR. As expected, there was no noticeable difference visually or when taking voltage readings. Probably due to the fact that my application is not mil spec or some specialized device. The price difference is not significant so I see nothing wrong with seeking out low ESR caps when available.
But here lies the crux of the problem. It's been my experience that foreign manufactures are only interested in selling products with no attention given to essential items like schematic diagrams, pictorial drawings, parts lists, and trouble shooting flow charts & procedures. Further, when you look at the side of an existing capacitor, you typically only see the capacitance, voltage rating, and temperature. If lucky, some have a logo & series stamped on them and can be found during a lookup. I estimate few electronics enthusiasts even bother with this. If it walks like a capacitor and quacks like a capacitor, we'll just grab an 85 degree from Radio Shack.
Which leads to expensive ESR meters. Quite the expensive tool for a one time use in my opinion. Capacitors have a finite life span and their age should be taken into consideration before using. I always buy new ones of the correct series for repair projects then check them on the capacitance meter to see if within tolerance. Perhaps someday there will be a more dependable yet affordable replacement for the annoying and problematic electrolytic.
I notice higher end computer motherboards designed for over-clocking are completely void of electrolytic types. Too bad the same can't be said for computer power supplies.
Half of the computer problems is caused by bad contacts 
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