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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
pack
14 posts
 
No offense boys, but do you really think that if the quality of a fuse was a factor in the sound and performance of a high end amp that the designer of that amp would have addressed it ? Did I hear ....BONEHEADS!!..............
charles1dad's avatar
charles1dad
10,250 posts
 
Pack,
Some manufacturers encourage their customers to try higher quality fuses. This is no different than customers who are given the green light to roll different tubes from a builder who used cheaper stock tubes in the component. Most builders can't offer the best available tubes due to cost and target price point considerations. Same is true of capacitors, wire and resistors, it's easy to upgrade these parts to achieve better sound, again manufacturers have cost restraints to factor in terms of final product cost. So a 20 dollar fuse will lose out to a 20 cent fuse with overall final cost comes into play.

Unless a component is cost no object, there will be inevitable compromising to stay within a predetermined price range
pack
14 posts
 
You don't seem to get the point, When Nelson Pass designs an amp, every consideration is taken into account in the circuit layout. Ya they cost some bucks,but check out the rail fuses. Pass would laugh at your mumbo jumbo as I do, you tweak guys should pay more attention to physics than some sales "pro". There seems to be no end to the lunacy out there .
lacee
811 posts
 
You can read up on all the physics you want and until you experience what a fuse upgrade can do, you are just book smart.

Mumbo jumbo physics,which is limited to what can and cannot be measured and mumbo jumbo tweaks are no different.

The followers of either can be fooled by what they have read and by preconceived notions.

Be a real man of science,embrace it's ethics and "do the experiment" and varify with your own ears and post your own findings.

Don't rely on the opinions, experiences of others ,in order to pass the physics exam you have to do the test,do the experiments, not just read the book.

Most of the folks who build this stuff refuse to admit that their offspring can be coaxed into even better performers.

I'll give Pass credit, he never stops at one design,he keeps working on different ways to skin the cat.
If he were stunted by just the findings of the physics that came before, he would never have progressed to where he is now.
Would you call this the behaviour of a lunatic?

Perhaps his designs are so great that an upgraded fuse isn't necessary.
But how many amps are as good as his?

No sales pro forced me to try upgraded Designer fuses, only 30 years past experiences with bypassing fuses with DIY wire, gleaned from reading about the sonic impact fuses can have from the old Audio Critic Peter Aczel.

The lunacy to my way of thinking, runs both ways.
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,198 posts
 
"Mumbo jumbo physics,which is limited to what can and cannot be measured and mumbo jumbo tweaks are no different.

The followers of either can be fooled by what they have read and by preconceived notions."

Mumbo jumbo is hard to bank on in any case.

Especially in the case of a decision based on mumbo jumbo, a money back guarantee to go along with it should be provided. Otherwise, I will pass personally in most cases.
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