Fuses that matter.

I tried to replace my HiFi gold fuses with the Supreme fuses, and found them worse in just about every way. They were mechanical, etched, unmusical. I could hear the difference in a single fuse. I then reversed the direction and it got worse. I let it settle for a little while (in the correct direction), but it did not improve significantly.

People need to let their ears be the judge, in their own systems. If the 'sucker is born every minute' mentality were true, I would have replaced all my current fuses with the Supreme because they are more expensive and elaborate. Sometime expensive isn't always better. For me, changing fuses to HiFi gold (10 in total) was one of the best improvements for the dollar, for my system. All I can say is, NOT SUBTLE.

Audiofeel, have you given any consideration to a long cold shower?

I replaced the Gold Hi Fi tuning fuses with the Supreme tuning fuses in four components with excellent results. The gold made nearly no difference but the supreme was clearly a step up.

Here are the putative explanations I've been able to find for why a fancy fuse might improve sound quality...

1. Lower DC resistance
2. Less voltage drop
3. Lower microphonics
4. More conductive materials
5. Better electrical contact between fuse caps and fuse wire
6. Better mechanical contact between fuse and clips
7. Better conductivity due to cryo treatment

For the folks who know about these things, do any of those seem plausible?

Bryon

Bryon, If these fuses make "major difference in sound" as Tbg stated then why manufacturer's don't install them in gear they sell - they do install many other expensive parts. Perhaps they feel that the difference in not so "major" (if any) and not worth price increase (even when amp costs $50k). Do you know of any manufacturer, even very pricey one, that installs "supreme" fuses in stock gear?