Fuses that matter.

Tmsorosk, the naysayers are irrelevant. They mainly don't want to try this tweak or they claim they hear nothing. That is their problem. Obviously, I entirely share your experiences. For the last five or six years, I have been concerned with fuse direction and later with the fuse manufacturer. I have had some devices where the fuse direction didn't seem to matter much are where there were multiple fuses or I could not be certain that I had exhausted all the many combinations of direction among them. Similarly, I have experienced special fuses that did little or that actually harmed the sound. I have even tried magnets in place of the fuses, but thought there was no real benefit and certainly hesitated to have no protection.

You either try things or not. If one choses to not try changes, it bothers me little.

Blew some fuses recently so for fun installed hifi tuning supreme.

Maybe it's just my imagination, or could be related to a relatively new digital cable burning in, here's what I notice:

-- more relaxed, liquid, musical
-- more "space" around instruments, more specific placement, less congestion
-- greater soundstage depth/layering

Placebo maybe, who knows. Not sure I care.

Ok, Geoff. That was a good response. Neither polemical nor irrelevant. And I do value the reports of other, especially when they coincide. So you give me very little to argue with at the moment. I have confidence you will rectify that situation.

05-26-12: Tmsorosk
I wonder if the nay sayers here have even given them a try, or is it the old, I know it all so I'll just bury my head it the sand attitude.

05-26-12: Tbg
Tmsorosk, the naysayers are irrelevant. They mainly don't want to try this tweak or they claim they hear nothing. That is their problem.

Gentlemen - The skepticism I expressed over the gushing quote from Stereo Times may make me sound like a 'naysayer,' but it doesn't make me one of the people who "don't want to try this tweak."

At this point, I've bought FIVE fancy fuses and conducted A/B tests that, while not scientific, are nonetheless careful and sincere. The conclusions of my tests make me a tentative Believer, not a Naysayer. Admittedly, I'm not a Gusher. But that is a far cry from "burying my head in the sand."

Bryon

This thread definitely has some legs.

Allow me to point out something I did much earlier (either here or on another thread) where it was apparent to me that the amount of improvement was dependent on the pedigree (level of refinement) of the unit and system the fuse was inserted into.

On my Chinese import Classic 6.1, it took a full 4 days to finally ascertain the sonic benefits, which were more than subtle. Upon insertion of the fuses, it went from sounding like bolts of cheesecloth were layered over the speakers to a total opening of the soundstage, a taming of the highs, extension and tightening of the bass, and a clearer and more distinct layering. A much more realistic presentation.

On my Burson PI-160, it was no where near as dramatic but the improvements were still there. And it only took about two days before I stopped hearing any improvements.

The quality of the components plays a large part in all of this.

I would be willing to bet that if I were to insert my rig into Bryon's house, I would not experience the level of improvement than if he were to insert it into my humble apartment.

In fact, the first reaction at my place would be WTF happened to the sound?

All kidding aside, Bryon's place is already tweaked with better wiring, dedicated circuits, etc. that I don't have so the power is better regulated and cleaner than average and the benefits of better fuses wouldn't be as apparent compared to how it would be at my place. They would simply be more subtle, but still there. A maddening effect if there ever was one.

It's all a matter of degree, synergy, symbiosis (if these were living organisms) and what other levels of improvement and refinement are already in place.

All the best,
Nonoise

Nonoise, I guess I can see this, but again all that I want to report is my experience. I care not at all whether some put no value on it. I can see that you are concerned with why some hear nothing. This is the opposite of the placebo effect. If you don't expect to hear something, you won't.