2. amps-preamps
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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
 
^^^ Thanks, fleschler. I'll bet it sounds terrific on your system.

I listened to it all the way through during last night's listening session. The band was in the room. How can you go wrong on this CD with this caliber of musicians ready to jump out at you?  

Here's another one that I dug out of the vault last night. If you have it, play cut #14 and crank up the volume. Its a good test of a system's dynamics and the ability to "hold together" while blowing the walls down ... not to mention that its great music a well. :-)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Antal-Dor-ti-Stravinsky-The-Firebird-etc-Antal-Dorati-CD-5LVG-/302233218987?...

Frank
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
I understand the Mercury Living Presence CDs are out of absolute polarity. Can you do me a solid and reverse speaker connections on both speakers to see if one way sounds better than the other? when the CD is in correct polarity it should sound much more dynamic and coherent with huge soundstage. thanks in advance.
oregonpapa's avatar
oregonpapa OP
4,867 posts
 
^^^ geoffkait ...

I have a polarity switch on my pre-amp. I'll check it out and get back to you, although what this disc was doing last night was uncanny. Huge sound stage,  instruments all separated and tonally correct. The brass was incredible and the kettle and bass drums were spectacular.  And no matter how loud I played it, short of my neighbors running after me with torches, it all held together. 

As a side note, two days before this listening session, I switched the amp (ARC REF-75se) from the 8 ohm taps to the 4 ohm taps.  I'm getting a lot more slam and bass response now. Slightly better overall clarity too. 

Frank
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
Thanks, Frank! Of course something else in the system might be out of polarity, that's why I asked to see which way sounded best.  Not to mention the Mercury CDs sound great even out of polarity. 😀

tommylion
874 posts
 

I have a polarity switch on my pre-amp...


IMO, having a way to switch polarity on the fly is a must for a good system. I can readily hear the difference, and, more importantly, so can my wife 😉

The CDs in my collection are pretty evenly distributed as to which polarity sounds best, so switching speaker leads was not a viable option. My amp (Antique Sound Lab Tulip) came with a switch to invert the polarity in one channel for bridging purposes. I had a friend install a switch in the other channel, so I can easily invert both.

oregonpapa,

I also prefer the 4 ohm tap with my Audio Note AN-E speakers. It's definitely worth trying to see which sounds better with one's particular amp/speaker combo.
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