Synergistic Red Fuse ...

Knighifi:

You won't regret the VAC upgrade to SE but mine took maybe 200 hours of break-in but worth it in the long run. I have ordered the AM beeswax for the VAC to compare to the SR RED in it now. The front end should tell some story on the backend with flavor to balance the system without going nuts with everything. These fuses are bargain flavor balancers and SR sure has changers a plenty. OMG what next?

gwalt

Hi Charles:

I only have tried HIFI Supremes so far over stock in the Border Patrol. A nice change for sure but I think the SR, AM, AH will beat them out when I get around to trying. The reason I picked the VAC to try some out is because I can hear the flavor change down the line with just one fuse and decide. The RED in the VAC was quieter and more extended (especially bass) over the Supreme. I am now trying the beeswax in the VAC for the RED. BTW I only paid $20 more for the beeswax than the SR Black. I am just trying one at a time to get the balance and since the VAC feeds everything thought it was the place to start. Jerry at AM thought this is the only way to go. I really don't know what I am wanting until some magic appears in my own room but it will be interesting to watch the results on this forum.

gwalt 

knghifi:

I had a current mark ll and it only took 10 days from receipt at the factory to get it back here in Ne. I will experiment with the beeswax fuse and report making sure it has adequate break in which I heard was long.....30 days. At first I hear it sounds Ok but shines after 30 days.

gwalt

Oregonpapa:

I am glad the RED is working so well for you and did not mean to say it is not working for others....happy for you.

My comments are very real in my situation/system and why we have so many choices in audio. Fuses are just another point of integration along the process of making your musical enjoyment. Simpler put no one fuse is better than another in all situations. Trust your enjoyment and what works for you.

gwalt

Charles:

I agree with your post and is essentially my point. it becomes system matching with just one component out of place. I am going to put more time on the REDS down the road to see if there is any improvement. I have heard the difference in reversal and it was clear that in the VAC the wording should be backwards left to right. My preamp. is on 24/7 during the winter months.

As for now I installed the beeswax fuse last evening and will report what i got down the road with more time.

Thanks,

electrslacker:

When I face the VAC from the back there is a fuse holder that pulls out from the IEC on the power supply. The correct orientation for the fuse to be inserted was left to right reading RS A4T. In other words backwards worded left to right.

Gwalt

From some of the comments I am happy for all of your success with the SR Black fuses. The RED did not work for me and thus it was sold.....this was based on the VAC preamp. I will have to see what the new owner has to say when it arrives for him.

I now have the AM Beeswax fuse in the VAC preamp. and it is by far the best I have heard but I have only heard the SR RED, HIFI Tuning Supreme, Isoclean, and stock. I now have right at 125 hours on the fuse and it is wonderful in tonality and soundstage....actually it seems magic as it gets everything just right with that piece of gear. Overall I would agree that the fuse sounds organic but still very natural. Human voice and instruments just sound very right and they have weight. I am told that it can and does get better out to settling at 300 hours. I will find out as my VAC is on 24/7.

For me I will be ordering more with one piece of gear at a time. The caveat is that there is no trial period to try before you buy. These are hand made for the values ordered and involve some labor intensity to apply the beeswax into the fuse. As with anything YMMV but for me I am just proceeding one step at a time. PS: If considering I would recommend buying direct to save from the retail. Best to all of you.

If I were to guess, I think put at least 150 hours on all of these fuses to allow settling.

The Beeswax seems to me to be gaining in organic quality as time goes on. As with Macdude, I have not experienced any glare in the preamp. left on continually. It just has weight, extension and harmonic texture...I love it. 

This could give The Cable CO. some thought of try before you buy with incremental credit to the purchase. Shipping would be a breeze but you would have the break=in complete with a no-risk trial. Other sellers might follow. All components remain electronically different along with personal perception..

Hi Charles:

Thanks for that clarification....maybe I am reading some things incorrectly into the overall discussion from some of the others but not you personally so don't take it that way. 

For just a little more money and doing one upfront fed component I am in hopes that I will find a best for my taste. That is what I have done all along and it has worked well for my needs in the past so why not? This is no different that experimenting with cables except it is way cheaper and their are hundreds of cables vs. a few fuses.

As I have also said prior I am glad the Black fuse is working out for those involved and yes agreed their are some top fuses out there as I am discovering. I have a couple more to go and then I will certainly know the differences I prefer.

Gwalt

Not to interrupt the SR Black fuse discussion but I sold my RED with 125 hours on it and am enjoying the beeswax immensely. The RED was not a good fit in the VAC preamp. in my situation....it was thin in comparison as I have a very revealing system. Maybe with 300 hours on it that would have magically changed but to late to know.

I just ordered an Audio Horizon fuse to try also and will use whatever works best with the back up after I am done with contenders. For everyone to endorse one fuse as the end all is simply wrong unless you have tried them all in your system.

As in everything audio YMMV.

Hi Audiolabyrinth:

Sorry for the late response as I have not been watching thread for quite some time.

I have not had any experience with the Black vs. Beeswax but only the RED vs. Beeswax.

I sold the RED while I could as a result of the sonic attributes of the Beeswax. The new owner of the RED has had some success so all things differ as you know already. I guess after the RED with limited success I moved away from the Black but I still wanted something to compare.

 I have the Beeswax installed in my VAC preamp. where the RED sounded thin in comparison.  I have since tried a Audio Horizons fuse in the same position with great success. It certainly is directional also. The Beeswax might be marginally better in the preamp. but you will need to put at least 150 hours on it or more to allow it to fully develop. I have heard a couple say they experienced improvement of the Beeswax out to 300 hours. In my case, the Beeswax is the one to beat but there is no trial period as SR has 30 days and AH has a 15 day return. AM claims there is too much labor installing Beeswax into the fuse to allow returns and they have to drill a small hole in the end of the fuse and syringe in the Beeswax along with another electrical process.

The idea of all of these fuses is to reduce noise vibration in the signal path and it has become quite a game in how that is accomplished.

Again I have not tried the Black for comparison but may as time permits but the Beeswax is just so musical so I have figured why bother for now. SR will no doubt have something beating the Black in the near future anyway.

Since there are certainly some great options out there I took it upon myself to just experiment with one component that feeds the system and I have not regretted that move.

If you would like my experience with purchase options on the Beeswax to save some money just shoot me an email at gwalters@charterwest.com.

Ouch Audiolabyrinth with 4 fuses to deal with. I only have 1 Beeswax in my system and it is 4A slow blow but if I had a 1A I would sure let someone try it as it is burned in. I will likely be adding more next to the dac with the one at a time principal. This method takes patience but it is how I like to build my sound with precision.

It is a bummer with the return policy of the Beeswax but all I can say is that it brought everything this thread has mentioned of the Black with the dead backgrounds, staging, extension, resolution, with the exception of having more beauty and weight to the music. The post above from Mapman on the 80/20 rule is dead on and as I said above don't just think there are not other great choices out there. However, because of return policy and number of fuses your faced with a decision based on that. AH does have a return policy and that choice should also be in the mix and you could ask Jerry at AM if with 4 fuses any exception exists?

So far however I am sticking with the Beeswax after allowing sufficient burn in. If it works the same on the next trial component then I will be in more of a comfort zone.

Audiolabrynith:

To answer your soundstage question from above I would say the soundstage expanded only by the notable affect of the blackness so you could see into it much further with the Beeswax and the instruments and voices sounded off with naturalness and body. If I were in your shoes it might be tempting to try the AH and the Black with return policy if you had to have 4 fuses. Even then it would be tough because I believe it takes 150 minimum on any of these to settle so you need to find a component with one fuse to get a better handle. I will echo with Charles post above on all of this being tricky and it is no different than cable shopping but in the end many fewer choices. If you could find one component or had a friend with a one fuse component it would help as the decision is ultimately yours.

I would never load up my system with all one fuse just because I like the first one therefore I am trying the second one in my second component. In my case, I really have only have 4 fuses total to load into components so I have that in my favor. If the second Beeswax works the same then it will likely be game over but I just want to get it the way I like and be done so my experimenting will be a while. Unfortunately, this is a slow method taking patience but being picky has paid off for me. The Beeswax takes 3-4 weeks but rewarded me dearly.

In the end, to each his own, but please don't ever think that one fuse fits all because it simply is not true as in my case but I will agree for certain you need to fine tune with these after market fuses as they just allow a quieter flow of energy but each have their qualities which is for you to decide. The Beeswax should be on your list to try.

gwalt (Gary)

:

Hi Audiolabyrinth:

Absolutely a used market for these premier fuses depending on the values would be my guess.

gwalt