Review: Create Audio Ultimate gold & rhodium nano fuse Tweak


Category: Accessories

Budget esoterica review magazine
August 2013 issue

Mr. Johnson cleans his swimming pool

Audiophiles, if you will , picture your stereo as a swimming pool. You are sitting in front of your swimming pool and perhaps the pool might be a little murky and muddy. There may be a hazy film on top , with the occasional mosquito. What do you do? You call Vinnie , the pool cleaner to skim the top of the water, drain your pool, and refill it with fresh water and chlorine. In the same capacity you can clean up your stereo swimming pool with an audiophile fuse. If you do this the width and depth of the swimming pool will be easier to see. The ripples in the water will be cleaner and sharper, and it will be easier to see the swimmers in your swimming pool.

Create audio has recently come out with a high end fuse that is called , "ultimate gold and rhodium nano fuse". I purchased the fuse from ebay seller hifiacoustic1 , in hong kong. The fuse sells for a very reasonable price of $4.99 plus $3.99 shipping, which is cheaper than chlorine and just as effective. I installed the create audio fuse in my arcam 8r integrated amp and burned it in for one month. Even after one month it was still breaking-in but my fingers were getting itchy for a review. The results were even more impressive than the other 2 fuse reviews I did.

I listened to Oscar Peterson jazz masters 16 on the verve label, and it cleaned my swimming pool like you would not believe. This recording usually sounds a little muddy, but the fuse seemed to take away a little of the muddiness and actually even seemed to impart a refreshed feeling to the sound. The sound was more organic and "lit up" and almost fooled me into thinking I was listening to my tube amp. There was improved image density and better upper frequency detail. I noticed a livelier sound and the instruments were fuller and had more body.

There are numerous other benefits of this fuse also. I listened to the excellent death cab for cutie cd titled ,"plans". On track number five "I will follow you into the dark", I heard a new found sense of vocal purity. The vocals were also slightly sweet and more emotionally involving. The vocals were stronger and more stable, as well as being rounder and more 3 dimensional. Wow! I also noticed a very good sense of presence on this recording.

Pros

improved image density
improved coherence
fuller sound
better tone/improved accuracy
improved detail
better liquidity/more "lit-up" and tube like presentation
more body
improved presence
better musical overtones
enhances tonal colors/more vibrant
cleaner bass/punchier
purer vocals
increased musicality
livelier and more open sound
clearer and quieter sound
greater precision and focus
faster, more nimble
adds a touch of delicacy and refinement
slight midrange sweetness
opens up the soundstage
more 3-dimensional
decreased muddiness

cons

long break in period

I highly recommend that you try the create audio gold and rhodium nano fuse. It is cheaper than Vinnie's pool cleaning service and the benefits are longer lasting. On a value scale I would consider it the equivalent of buying a $200 power cord for $4.99! Mr. Johnson is a happy man!

Associated gear
arcam 8r integrated amp
denon dvd-1920
madisound vifa studio speakers
virtue audio nirvana ic
WL moonshine speaker cables
Atacama stands
tara labs prism power cord

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honda6
As much as I hate to raise this question after such a thorough review, but is it possible that the fuse you replaced with the Create Audio fuse was installed in the improper direction? I.e., couldn't that explain the difference in sound. And speaking of which, does the Create Audio fuse come with a directional arrow? Thanks in advance.
I don't recall seeing an arrow on this particular fuse. All I can tell you is that audiophile fuses can make a big difference in some systems. I know that my arcam amp has the ability to discern changes in cables , tweaks, and source components to a high degree. You may not get the same results in your system, I can only tell you what I heard in my system. As far as directionality issues go, I only tried the fuses in one direction.
Honda6 - Even Hi Fi Tuning found out, eventually, all fuses are directional. As fate would have it, even for stock, off the shelf fuses, if one reinserts each fuse, one at a time, and listens for a change in sound at each step, it's possible to transform the sound without spending a dime. I happen to agree with you that audiophile fuses are generally superior to stock fuses, however I think it is an important feature of audiophile fuses, like all cables, that they sound better when inserted in the "correct" direction. Some fuse manufacturers mark their fuses with directional arrows but some don't.