OK, so I have to ask. Is this real, or is this a joke?

Only a complete idiot would claim a product doesn’t work without ever trying it.

You do realize of course you are talking about mapman, mijostyn, georgehifi, and at least a dozen other highly "respected" members?

What holds me back is I have concerns as to how to remove it afterwards if I do not like it.

It wipes off with ordinary alcohol.

I don’t want to end up needing to replace tube sockets, power receptacles etc.

Then don’t put it places it can’t be removed until you are sure. Try on spades, bananas, where it is easily removed. Which once you hear it I doubt you will. But that is always the safest way to go about it.

Welcome to Audiogon. If you find this strange, you don't know the half of it.

Amazing, isn't it, what one can accomplish when willing to try?

tksteingraber-

After reading the 1260 review and my QSA fuse revelation I am a believer the right tweeks make the most significant impact to sound enhancements for those of us that can’t afford or justify spending thousands on component upgrades. Tubes, cables, fuses now enhancer ordered.  Sound above it’s price point!

tksteingraber by Jove I think you've got it! Once you have your basic system components then by far the best thing to do is to tweak it out with stuff like this. Haven't tried 1260 but pretty much every inch of my system is treated with something similar, and the QSA fuses are for sure a better use of funds than just about anything else you could do. Until someone comes along with something even better. Which they always do.  

At Chuxpona 21 https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/the-first-ever-chuxpona-is-a-wrap Brandon brought his Bel Canto power amp. Before hooking it up I treated all the tube pins with Total Contact. Later, when Brandon got home, he was floored and wondering why his amp sounded better now- until he remembered the TC treatment.  

That was just a few tube pins on just a few tubes. Imagine if we had done his whole system. Maybe we will, when I go there Saturday. Only takes a speck of the stuff after all. Mostly it is time to do it.  

Time, and effort. Congratulations tksteingraber for making the effort. Too many carp and opine without ever even trying. Welcome to the world of those who do. Say goodbye to the world of those who do not. Leave them behind, and never look back. 

I’ve done all that stuff, and more. Way more. The $71 QSA blue fuse is better than any $500 power cord, interconnect, Pod, spring, panel, you name it. By all accounts this holds true for Yellow and Violet, etc. If you heard the Blue you would not be making such comments. This stuff is good enough I will be trading in my Blue towards a Yellow for the Herron, a Violet for the Blackhawk, and one set of each of the three stones for wherever they work best.

Of all the stuff demo’d at Chuxpona 21 the one I wish the most we had compared was the QSA fuse. It is easily the best tweak for the money, and this is coming from a guy who knows his tweaks.

Mike at tweekgeeks.com says the same on his site. He knows what he’s talking about. We both do. Best $71 you will ever spend. Period.

I don't know why it is people are so willing and eager to believe every new box is worth five grand more than the last box, yet refuse to entertain the possibility something new can be even better. Oh well. Too bad. It does me not the least bit of harm. Personally, I rather enjoy having a system that walks all over much more expensive rigs, for reasons nobody can understand. I get a real kick out of it. 

It is the poor souls who fail to try because they fall for these comments from those who do not know. Those are the ones I feel sorry for. Oh well. As it has been, so shall it ever be. Until you yourself decide otherwise.

Ever heard of Q-tips? Probably not. Apparently never heard of keeping toddlers away from electronics either.

Don’t get me wrong, my sound is worth more to me than the lives of my friends’ children, but I just don’t want to have to deal with the fallout afterwards.

Wait- what? So either you’re a towering sociopath, or a terrible troll. Or both?

The only come back to that is leave the amp on and they will not be pulling tubes. Trust me.

When you have no case, don't argue the case, argue the man. In this case that means insult the ones who know this stuff works. If that is what you call great stuff, then I feel sorry for you.

Yes, it is real. There really are audiophiles who assume nothing unusually expensive or hard to understand can actually work.

And yes, it is a joke. That such as that think of themselves as audiophiles.

Look at it logically. If you truly are an audiophile then sound quality is incredibly important and you will pay dearly for it. So a high price in and of itself means nothing.

Also if you are an audiophile then you know the extreme high end of quality always involves pushing the performance envelope into new areas of development. So it is the norm for novel products to come along from time to time.

They say having to explain it takes the humor out of the joke. So be it. Still a joke. Just always better to be in on it.