I thought I'd never post this but after almost two years after installing HiFi Silver Tuning fuses in my amp and SACD player, I thought I'd try out reversing the fuses in my SACD player. I was never in the camp of "correct orientation" of fuses but knew that simply using a better made fuse could improve the sound. Replacing them gave me a leg up on what was possible but I never could get the results I wanted. The highs were a bit subdued.
Still I resisted changing the direction of the fuses.
Fast forward to the present: I've been on the lookout for a new pair of speakers that could satisfy my yearnings for what I'd heard with my ribbon super tweeter on my old Tonian Labs speakers. Eagerly I waited for the chance to hear the Elac Adante monitors and they almost had me. Reading up on the Tekton line of speakers got me interested in their monitors which used the patented design of the Double Impacts.
It was after consulting Elliot Midwood of Acoustic Image and picking his brain that I came to the conclusion that it had to be my amp or SACD player since he felt that the Marantz had to be complicit in all of this as he's heard the very same drivers sound better, so it had to be in the application. He's been at my place and heard them and likes them very much but the highs were always a tad recessed.
Thinking it through, I drew down on the only possibility and finally took out and opened up the SACD player. Unlike the integrated, which had a fuse only in line with the AC, the SACD player had four fuses. Looking at the circuit board, I seemed that at least one of them was in the signal path: maybe two. I knew that there were dedicated power traces to the different DACs and clock. but having all four serving some kind of AC distribution didn't make any sense.
I had originally oriented all of them to face the same way, using the logo as orientation. What I did was to flip the fuses the other way and give it a listen.
Case closed.
I'm not interested in getting a new pair of speakers anymore. The highs are back, in spades. The soundstage is now permanently wider than my speakers. The center stage is now up, where it used to sag. The upper mid bass emphasis is reduced and tighter. I no longer use the treble boost as it adds too much. Flat is where it's at. Over two days I've spent about 12 hours listening to familiar recordings and all I can do is shake my leg and head in disbelief to the music.
I could care less to those naysayers who've yet to hear it for themselves. I care not to respond to them as well so go ahead and troll all you want. I am content. Now I can splurge on that new LG OLED on Black Friday for the same money as a new set of speakers. God, I love this hobby.
All the best,
Nonoise
