2. amps-preamps
  3. 1448317474

Synergistic Red Fuse ...

I installed a SR RED Quantum fuse in my ARC REF-3 preamp a few days ago, replacing an older high end fuse. Uhh ... for a hundred bucks, this little baby is well worth the cost. There was an immediate improvement upon installation, but now that its broken in (yes, no kidding), its quite remarkable. A tightening of the focus, a more solid image, and most important of all for my tastes, a deeper appreciation for the organic sound of the instruments. Damn! ... cellos sound great! Much improved attack on pianos. More humanistic on vocals. Bowed bass goes down forever. Next move? .... I'm doing the entire system with these fuses. One at a time though just to gauge the improvement in each piece of equipment. The REF-75se comes next. I'll report the results as the progression takes place. Stay tuned ...

Any comments from anyone else who has tried these fuses?
128x128oregonpapa
oregonpapa's avatar
oregonpapa OP
4,867 posts
 
^^^ I have a CD player that takes two fuses.  Each one made a significant improvement.  

OP
brownsfan
1,508 posts
 
Butler, this is my post from 3-19-16 below.  The fuse in the "HDD live" slot is the one that made a difference.   I had 2 fuses of the right value in other equipment, so I tried one at a time and then both.  Again, adding the black fuse to the mains live slot pretty much made no difference.  So I just ordered one for that spot and put the 2 I already had back in the other equipment.  

"Knghifi, looking down on the HAPZ1 with the front closest to me, the fuses were installed with the S to the left and the R to the right.  Again, I found the directionality to be rather obvious.  The fuse in the front is labeled HDD live.  The one towards the back is labeled Mains Live.   Look off to the left and towards the back for the label.  I asked Dan Wright a number of questions, including "which fuse serves the DAC."  He didn't answer that particular question.  

It may be that the mains fuse is serving mostly uses such as the display, which would explain that fuse having little or no impact of the quality of sound. "
butler
78 posts
 
Thanks again Brownsfan, didn't realize you actually described all of this in your previous referenced post, I certainly appreciate you posting those results again.......

brownsfan
1,508 posts
 
Butler,  One last thought.  My HAPZ1 is a ModWright version, with a second isolated tube rectifier that provides DC to the analogue section.  This being the case, your results might very well be different than mine.  It might be safest to start with 2 fuses and send one back if you don't hear a difference.  Since we don't really know exactly what these fuses service, it is hard to say if a stock HAPZ1 will give the same results as my ModWright version.
butler
78 posts
 
Good point Brownsfan, I figured when you mentioned Dan that your's was modified, so I'll experiment with 2 fuses to see what is what, thanks for the clarification.  Since you mentioned it, was the MW mod worth it, and do you happen to know the cost for updating an existing unit?

More to discover