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Hi-Fi Fuses - SNAKE OIL? - or something in it?

There's a lot of chatter about the benefits of those high prices gold plated fuses with silver conductor etc. etc. all over the web and the consensus ranges from FANTASTIC!!! to much more subtle observations.

It makes sense to me, epseically in light of spending lots of $$$ on good power cables, that having a skinny piece of aluminum conductor in a glass tube (i.e. a cheap fuse), in the power loop would be detrimental to the performance of the components.

I decided to revamp my DIY power supply I'd built for the Cambridge Audio 640p phono stage and DACmagic in order to test this out - and since it's a DIY project there is no UL Certification to void.

First, I bypassed the fuse link completely to confirm there would be an improvement and give me the best benchmark to compare against - YEP - BIG DIFFERENCE - much more this, that and the other :-)

So then I started looking for hi-fi fuses - WOW!!! - talk about pricey.

Two fuses for the power supply was going to cost $120+ AND I thought I'd probably have to buy a better quality fuse block to make the most of those fuses.

Then a moment of enlightenment - most power supplies and conditioners are protected by pushbutton breakers and not fuses.

I found breakers of the required current rating and installed them into the power supply. I imediately noticed that there was no deteriation in fidelity when compared to the same unit with the fuse link bypassed - GREAT!.

On reflection, the fuses I had in place were rated at 3 amps - so they use a pretty thin fuse wire in them. If I had used a fuse of a higher rating, i.e. it uses a thicker conductor, then I believe that there would be less of a difference between the fused and bypassed implementations

SO - do the expensive fuses work?

Well the empirical evidence out there would suggest they do
- I do know the cheap fuses are not good!

I know bypassing them does improve the sound - a lot in my case
- BUT THAT'S NOT SAFE FOR ONGOING USE

I know breakers work as good as bypassing the fuse
- BUT MESSING WITH A POWER SUPPLY VOIDS UL CERTIFICATION - NOT GOOD!
- FYI a couple of licensed technicians I know WILL NOT change the design of a power supply at all.

I believe the amount of benefit is related to the fuse rating
- but don't go replacing 3 amp fuses with a 20 amp fuse - that's not safe either.

Whilst looking for fuses I discovered AMR Gold fuses priced at $20/fuse.

Now that's definately more affordable than most others at 3-4 times their price.

One supplier I know of in the US is Avatar Aacoustics

If you have had experience with quality fuses please share - especially if they are "modestly priced" i.e. $20-$30 per fuse. And please provide a source :-)

Also, can anypne confirm that Slow blow fuses are better than regular?

And Remember - IF YOU AIN'T LICENCED - GET A TECHNICIAN!

Many Thanks
williewonka
roxy54's avatar
roxy54
8,146 posts
 
Willewonka,
Yes, I have found that although the fuses make a small positive difference, the wall outlet made an amazing difference. I am so convinced, that today, even though I can barely afford it, I ordered a Cablepro Revelation power strip, because I know now that my $10 cheapie must be holding back my system like my generic outlet was. I just can't state it strongly enough...get a high quality wall outlet, and you will not regret it. If you do regret it, call me a jerk.
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,682 posts
 
No doubt make sure the power is good first. Then worry about fuses later if one must, once the rest of the major items in the house is in order. Unless one notices a problem with the sound that might be traceable to a bad fuse perhaps. Personally, I loose no sleep over fuses once things are tuned in well and to my satisfaction, but hey a tweak is a tweak. Jusr make sure the primary fuse function (protecting the gear from power surges) is in place properly as well.

Also, for some real entertainment, check out the fuse chip thread that has been actively going on here for awhile. Those guys, being worked into a frenzy by the king of sci fi tweaks, GEoffkait, have come up with some real creative places to stick their fuse chips despite it seeming that noone there seems to know how the darn things work :^)
williewonka OP
3,110 posts
 
Mapman - Interesting - but it appears you need lots of them - speakers, fuses, caps, power supply...

It would cost a fortune to cover a complete system.

I also think the amount of improvement is relative to the quality of the components you are using, since it appears that the chips enhance electron flow. If you use high quality components and cables this is already at a premium, but improvements may still be attainable.

My own experience with upgrading cables on more budget components (i.e. a considerable improvement in fidelity), would suggest to me that using these chips on them might yield similar improvements.

However, I prefer to trust in good old physics, so right now, until the science is explained, I'll give it a pass :-)
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,682 posts
 
Willie,

I hadn't thought about the chips like that....kinda a band aid of sorts? OR maybe more like a nicotine patch?

That's fine but I am not a fan of blindly applying performance enhancing tweaks all over the place, especially potentially expensive and/or poorly understood ones. I still have too many other important things to spend my time and money on. :^)

OF course, proponents of the chips might argue that they take even a highly optimized reference system even further perhaps? I kinda doubt that, but ya never know.

When I read about trusted agoner's or other audio buffs that own widely recognized reference systems and that clearly have no vested business interest in esoteric tweaks reporting good things about applying chips, I might take more notice.
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
I suspect other WA Quantum Chip customers will agree with me that the chips are much more than band aids, inasmuch as they obviously reduce noise and distortion in audio systems. Better analogies might be variable valve timing, cryogenically treated piston rods and pistons, low mass wheels and low profile tires.
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