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What is the science behind audiophile fuses?

There were many threads on the topic of "audiophile fuses" on this forum, and I sure don't want to open old wounds and trench warfare. The fuse on my preamp blew suddenly two days ago, which prompted me to search for a replacement. That's when I came across the term "audiophile fuse" and the fact that they demand far-out prices. Deeper curiosity brought me to several other fora, where users posted glowing praises about their Zero fuses and other exotica. Now I am a scientist, but not a physicist or electrical engineer: so please enlighten me! How can a fuse have an audible influence on the signal, when the signal does not even pass through it? How can a fuse be "directional" when it deals with alternate current? I mean, if I recall my university physics, a fuse is basically a safety valve and nothing more. Am I completely missing an important point here? My scientific field is drug discovery, and because of this background I am thoroughly familiar with the power and reality of the placebo effect. I that's what I am seeing here, or is it real physics? I need objective facts and not opinions, please. I really appreciate your help!

 
128x128reimarc
britamerican
52 posts
 

A quote from Sting/Police,

Another suburban family morning
Grandmother screaming at the wall
We have to shout above the din of our Rice Krispies
We can’t hear anything at all
Mother chants her litany of boredom and frustration
But we know all her suicides are fake
 
Threads like this are why I don’t post much on audio forums. They are all the same. The person screaming the loudest is invariably the one with the least knowledge. Words, lots of words. Never shall a salient point be made. A discussion requires addressing specific points and bringing up new salient points. I guess when you only have one tool in your belt, you will use it all the time whether it works or not.
 
Here is a picture of a very cute kitten. It is as relevant to this discussion as most of the links posted. However, it has the advantage that it may make some people smile and it will induce calm.
britamerican
52 posts
 

@reimarc , I don't know the answer to your question. I don't even know if there is an answer to your question. After reading 80 replies I do know you will not find the answer here.

rodman99999
6,033 posts
 

            The only thing relevant about the last picture post: it’s representative of the kitties on this site, unable to understand or accept FACTS!

                                                PATHETIC!

Post removed 
britamerican
52 posts
 

I don’t know the deep darkest secrets of quantum mechanics and how that effects the covalent bonds of the alloys that make up my car. I am not even sure that is a totally logical statement. I expect the engineers that designed it don’t either. I am quite certain that my capable mechanic knows even less. Whether I or they have this knowledge has no effect on the 0-60 time. Whether I or they have this knowledge will have no effect on measuring the 0-60 time. If I drop a heavy lead ball, it will fall to the ground in a very predictable manner, that I could calculate to a high accuracy if I knew the local gravity coefficient. Well to be honest, I couldn’t calculate it, but I am sure there are others who could. I don’t keep up on the latest research on gravity, but the last time I checked, we didn’t know how gravity works. Imagine that, not knowing how gravity works, but being able to calculate its effects to high precision. Heck I go through my day doing a great number of things correctly without knowing exactly how some things work. No problem though because I know the what. If I do this, I know what will happen. The how is inconsequential. The consequential is what. When someone can take all that how and turn it into a what that matters, I am all ears, literally and figuratively. @reimarc question is looking for a what. All the potential hows in the world don’t make a single what.

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