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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
lacee
811 posts
 
Blowing both "upgraded"fuses sets off some red flags for me.
First,were they the correct ratings for your amp?
Sounds silly, but I confess to mixing up the spots where the 5 amp fuse was with the .5 fuse.Of course the .5 amp fuses blew.

That's been the only time I've ever had a fuse, upgraded or stock ever blow in over 35 years of using them in hifi and as a professional musician.

For you to have two "upgraded'fuses blow can't be just random bad luck.

Something is wrong somewhere.
If they were upgraded fuses, send them back for a refund or replacement,it's worth a try, but again two malfunctioning fuses may pose a problem.

I would appreciate, as others,what was the manufacturer of the "upgraded"fuses?

Since you haven't had any of the stock fuses blow, that suggests the fuses were not up to spec.
lacee
811 posts
 
GVasale,have you never read about how the sound is so much better in the wee hours of the morning when there is less demand on the grid?

If not, then here is a very simple and cost free experiment for you to try.

If you are allowed,stay up and listen around 2 AM to your music.

You may not hear any difference, some folks don't due to a number or reasons like bad hearing, low resoulution systems,inability to discerne differences at any time of the day with anything "new" introduced into the system, or you don't trust your ears.

On the other hand if the system sounds fuller, you feel less stressed and the music is more smooth,you may then discover that the power that drives your system does influence how it sounds.

And from this you might even conclude that anything, even a simple fuse,that is in the signal path can also have an effect on your sound.

The next step if you hear the system sound better late at nite is to try an upgraded or treated stock fuse late at nite and listen if it makes more of an improvement.
If so, then it will be doing it's job during the normal times you listen,but may not be as audible.

I have never stated that an upgraded fuse is 100% guaranteed to improve everything it's plugged into.

I can only state that it's never failed the test for me.

Why some folks are so reluctant to try is beyond my comprehension,some fuses offer money back trials, so there's nothing to lose.
Or lend them to another audio friend who has the same voltage requirements, let him have a listen and evaluate them.

It would be nice to pass some of these fuses around,but they are fragile, and if someone got one that was damaged in use or transit and it took something out, that wouldn't do anyone any good.
So let's not go there.

There was a time on another forum when these fuses first came out that I offered to buy and send an IsoClean free of charge to a sceptic and post his truthful findings.

He declined the offer.
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
Lacee wrote,

"There was a time on another forum when these fuses first came out that I offered to buy and send an IsoClean free of charge to a sceptic and post his truthful findings. He declined the offer."

Geez, you'd think it was Invasion of the Body Snatchers or something.

Shirley Temple to J. Edgar Hoover: "I don't go all the way."

J. Edgar Hoover: "I don't go all the way, either."
gvasale's avatar
gvasale
99 posts
 
I'm allowed to stay up as long as I see fit :)

My present fuses are well broken in...having been used & never replaced since they were new, pre 1973. I know you didn't ask about that. Surley, can't be of high quality having lasted that long...

My old Marantz gear probably doesn't have the sensitivity to be able to show any significant difference when played on my Altec speakers.

I am amused quite frequently by the hysteria one can infer from the intense subltlties often in discussion on this board, but I do come here to learn as well.

Once in a while, no, more than that, there are really things that aren't in the twilight zone of this hobby.

One thread on this board simply said "it's about the music."

Is eqipment the end or the means to the music?

My hearing hasn't been tested in probably 4 years or less, and my report always says it is normal for a person of my age (64) and I hope because I'm 64 doesn't mean that I'm no longer capable of enjoying this hobby.

I don't have any insecurities, an axe to grind, nor lust for an I-phone.

There are just some things to me which truly seem like snake oil & this is one more of them.

The next thing will be "audiophile" service entry cable, "audiophile" main & branch breakers, etc., etc. I alreacy know there are "audiophile" wall outlets & interconnecting cables & connectors.

"Audiophile" q-tips & "audiophile" earwax removal aids.

Can anyone tell me where the weakest link is?

Charles Rodrigues was on to something.

Who sells "audiophile" fuses?

Without malice, I appreciate your reply...I hope you appreciate my skepticizm.

mitch2
3,969 posts
 
My present fuses are well broken in...having been used & never replaced since they were new, pre 1973.
That raises an interesting question, if OS fuses sound so good maybe we should be looking for NOS fuses :>)

Also, Geoff says
There is also the fuse holder to contend with, a silver plated cryo version appears to be a good place to start.
That has been one of my issues with not only fuses but also connectors on equipment, etc. What is the weakest link? I believe Acme and Furutech both offer upgraded fuse holders if you want to try them.
Actually, I have listened to several of the upgraded fuses including two HiFi Tuning types and the Furutech fuse. I used to have the standard HiFi Tuning fuses in all my gear. I honestly can't say I heard a big difference, especially compared to changing out electronics, or even cables. I have no problem with folks hearing a difference and spending their money to attain that difference, but for me the stock fuses seem to do just fine.
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