User Manual

Project 168
Capacitors
in Series (II)
Turn on the right slide switch (S1). Press
any green key and compare the sound with
the left slide switch on or off.
With the left switch off, the 0.1mF and 1mF
capacitors (C2 & C7) are connected in
series. Turning on the left switch bypasses
the 0.1mF capacitor. Notice that having the
0.1mF included has a big effect on the tone.
Use the preceding circuit,
but swap the locations of
the 0.1mF and 1mF
capacitors (C2 & C7).
Press any green key and
compare the sound with the
left slide switch on or off.
The tone does not
change nearly as much
as in the preceding
circuit. When capacitors
are connected in series,
the smaller value
dominates the circuit.
Use the project 167 circuit, but replace the 0.1mF
capacitor (C2) with the much larger 470mF
capacitor (C5). Press any green key and compare
the sound with the left slide switch on or off.
Now the tone is the same whether the left switch
is on of off, because connecting the large 470mF
in series with the small 1mF has little effect on the
total capacitance.
Swap the locations of the 1mF and 470mF
capacitors (C7 & C5). Press any green key and
compare the sound with the left slide switch on or
off (When the switch is off, hold down the key,
because you will only hear a click every few
seconds.) Now turning on the left switch has a big
effect on the circuit, because connecting the small
1mF in series with the large 470mF greatly
increases the total capacitance.
Turn on the right slide
switch (S1). Press any
green key and
compare the sound
when you remove one
or two of the capacitors
(C2, C5, and C7) and
replace them with a 3-
snap wire. You will only
hear a click every few
seconds if C5 is the
only one in the circuit.
Project 170 More Capacitors in Series
Project 169
Capacitors in Series (III)
Project 167 Capacitors in Series
Think of capacitors as
storage tanks for electricity.
If you place a small storage
tank in series with a big
one, electricity flows into
both at the same time, but
the small one fills up
quickly and stops the flow.
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