Most and Least Reliable Electrolytic Capacitors

The probably with many of the Asian capacitors, and I mean the real ones, as they get cloned too, is that designers often treat all capacitors of the same value/package the same when obviously they are not. When the designer does not consider ripple current, and/or uses generic equations for life, without giving considerations to the specific capacitor, that is where the problems usually arise.

Man Yue (Samxon)
Capxon
Aihua (Aishi)
Beryl
Sam Young (Korea very good, China not as good)

Can make very reliable capacitors if used within and considering their design limits. I can’t say I have had experience with Lelon.

Part of the problem will be prototypes with Japanese capacitors that is then costed down for manufacturing in China without sufficient due diligence on specifications.

w.r.t. Capacitors near heat sinks, that is usually a matter of packaging when using an off the shelf supply. You do want to keep traces short for performance and EMI, but you would prefer the capacitors not jammed against the heat sink. Of course, it also comes down to how the product is specified. If you use the off the shelf power supply with adequate air flow, the life may be quite good, but put in a box with limited air flow and then sit it on top of a hot amplifier was likely not as the original supplier of the power supply intended.