I just wanted to share my excitement with my SR Blue Fuses. I installed 3 in my Anthem I225. Its been probably 100 hours of burn in time now and I really am beside myself in the difference. The bass is really full, my highs are nicely extended and my soundstage is huge. Just today, my soundstage became ridiculous. If you are happy with your current amplifier / preamplifier and intend on keeping it for awhile I highly recommend replacing the fuses with SR Blue fuses, if not the Orange fuses. I got my Blues for 30% off. It is quite possibly the best tweak I have done aside from room treatments.
It takes awhile to burn the fuses in but once they are, it’s pretty awesome the difference they make. I was pretty skeptical about this mod and thought it was a lot to spend but now that I have, it was the best $400 mod I have done. It made more of a difference than my upgraded power cords and actually probably made a more of a difference than going from my signal cable silver res speaker cables to my ap solo crystals.
Highly recommended if you already love your amp/preamp and intend to keep them for awhile!
Don’t know why people who favor fuses are so thin skinned.
They feel guilty and have to continually justify them selves, over their snake oil beliefs they are trying to spread, or they work on a quota system with SR.
Actually I was a salesman for a good 4-5 years way back (Tech Hifi, Radio Shack, Lafayette Radio...many fuses sold/installed/replaced) and I did not denigrate salesmen. Salesmen are properly named and just doing their job which is to sell stuff.
Don’t know why people who favor fuses are so thin skinned. Can you imagine if everyone jumped the shark here whenever someone else had a differing opinion?
Any how, I have nothing new to add about fuses that has not already been said so off to greener pastures......
"Not to mention those who function primarily as salespersons. Whoever they might be. No way to know for sure except they quack like a salesman."
Here we go again with the denigration of salespeople. Interesting that those who show such a lack of respect for those on the front line of the economy, those who make the capitalistic system rock & roll, have never spent one day of their lives in the shoes of a professional salesperson.
I think I'll be trying a good bottle of Mezcal. I'll look for one without the worm.
On a side note ... are we Italians considered to be "Gringos?"
Conclusions with no science or facts to back them up are merely opinions and everybody has one of those. Especially audiophiles when it comes to what sounds good, better , best. Not to mention those who function primarily as salespersons. Whoever they might be. No way to know for sure except they quack like a salesman.
Half of our country believes in conspiracy theories. Audio is no exception. Conspiracists are, by nature, insane, driven and proselytize, trying to convert and grow their following.
Those who always decry any expense above what they can afford seem to be, for the most part, of that camp. Threads here are full of them. Some even admit it and constantly refer back to it. Some state they've been to various other sites before settling here and in the end, after they've taken over a thread, turn it into some form of human centipede or a circle jerk, celebrating their accomplishments.
What they seem to forget or overlook, is that being an audiophile is a personal and selfish endeavor. It doesn't need approval, just acceptance. It is that difference that seems to elude the conspiracists since they require acquiescence and the true audiophile doesn't abide.
Yup, what Frank said. The SR fuse line brings a new level of resolution and realism as a final touch to a good system. I must say though, a couple of PPT E+ mats brings out even more of the same. If you missed out on the PPT products and/or don't have the better SR fuses, you aren't hearing the potential your system has to offer.
Having gone through complete sets of SR fuses ... the Reds, the Blacks, the Blues, and now for the past year or so, the Orange fuses, I can say unequivocally that each step along the way has brought new levels of resolution, improved realism, and a more relaxed presentation to my system.
Of course it did, especially after you ate the worm.🥴
Thats correct. The worm in the bottle thing was a marketing gimmick that was used to get tourists who didn’t know any better to buy cheap Mezcal (producers of good Mezcal do not put worms in the bottle) that was of poor quality and perhaps as some have speculated a ploy to get gringos to eat worms. Talk about a genius idea, which in the context of this thread is both ironic and amusing.
Hi millercarbon. I find rotating the fuses in their holders makes an even larger difference. For pre- and phono-amplifiers I rotate mine 42 degrees anti-clockwise, looking at the fuse from the input side. This followed a great deal of experimentation. I found multiples of 42 degrees also an improvement. But for turntable motors 161 degrees is the best, although strangely 262 degrees made no discernable difference. Give it a try! In the lockdown we have had plenty of time to spare.
The same negative class of naysayers jumps readily to the bait, spouting the same worn-out bromides every time after-market fuses are brought up in these forums.
Having gone through complete sets of SR fuses ... the Reds, the Blacks, the Blues, and now for the past year or so, the Orange fuses, I can say unequivocally that each step along the way has brought new levels of resolution, improved realism, and a more relaxed presentation to my system.
millercarbon...just when I was going back you on the SR fuses (they do make a difference) you have to go and show your a.. by insulting not only someone's knowledge of audio, but also their ignorance of alcohol. It was completely uncalled for, but your base will jump to your defense. Where is the outrage? When someone says something that is considered insulting towards millercarbon the base attacks them. But when millercarbon insults someone little is said. It's like some people treat him like a senile old man. Be nice to him, he's not all there.
A curious audiphile may want to peal the sticker on his SR (or other "audiophile" fuse). Then look for the same fuse on Amazon. You'll be surprised to found that it cost 4$ and was made in Russia. An instructive video about fuses here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHl7Dsln19Q
Del Maguey Vida Single Village artisanal Mezcal is superb...loosen that MAGA hat Millercompost...also "special" fuses are nonsense as they can’t, and won’t, do anything except possibly explode as one SR fuse did when I tested a pile a while back. Thinking magic fuses are sonically relevant is like claiming your gas cap makes your car faster...it never would and never will, regardless of how much hyperbole and bloviation is applied.
Much like Scotch and Bourbon, high-end Mezcals are primarily enjoyed by discerning adults as opposed to exchange students. Also one not need bother discussing artesian spirits with a guy who drinks kiddie cocktails (which he appears to be claiming he invented) with cheesy names.
04-04-2019 6:00pm. millercarbon5,374 posts Shot of sloe gin, double shot of Southern Comfort, with orange juice. Like a screwdriver, sort of. I call it a sloe comfortable screw.
Audio Magic Super Fuse Bees Wax Ultimate seems to have very positive reviews. If I recall correctly, I believe one reviewer believed it was better than the SR Blue for his particular audio component/chain.
If you can’t hear the difference between a Buss fuse and a SR Blue fuse then your audio system is not that resolved ,or have a hearing Problem !!
Naaaaa, ya gotta get this right, it’s more that you don’t have any expectation bias because it wasn’t you that paid >$150 for a 50cent fuse, but your gullible buddy who owns the fuse did poor sod.
And just to add before it comes, "AC mains fuses are not directional", as the mains changes it’s direction 60 x a second that why the US it called 60hz mains frequency, in Australia it’s 50hz.
Lol! Artisanal mezcal. The four Mexican exchange students who lived with me, I will have to tell them. If ever I see them again. They would get a good laugh out of it for sure.
+1 @nitewulf On mezcal. For @millercarbon to exclaim "There is no good mezcal" is perhaps the most spirit-ignorant comment ever uttered in history. Mezcal is so complex and made using much more labor intensive techniques that require time in pits or even underground creating crazy molds within the agave. Quaff a glass of Del Maguey Tobala Mezcal and you will be in gorgeously smokey and sweet mezcal heaven. It may even make a fuse sound good!
There is stuff I just don't argue with. I try it, and listen. If there is that much of an improvement, I'll give it a shot. I have an amp or two that are prone to pop a fuse every now and then. I'm a tight ass, no doubt, I need to use one less prone to popping fuses. :-)
Of course my current, shining star, was acting up a bit, blowing fuses. I think I got it calmed down, filter caps were bad. . If it will hold a fuse for 3 months I'd give it a shot. Month 2 right now.. running 20% cooler. We'll see after that.
Maybe a pair of class D, with the fuse, bypassed, a pair with stock fuses and a pair with SR fuses. Those thing NEVER blow fuses. I suppose there is a break in time, and are direction prone. I'll check it out.
Similar to @mapman I tried a SR Blue fuse in an integrated tube amp a year or two ago. It did no harm to the sound but I can't say I heard an improvement. I kept the fuse (they do offer a generous return policy) thinking someday perhaps I will move it into a different component (as perhaps it will make a difference there? - I'm very open minded), but I don't think I'd buy another unless it proves to make a material difference in a future component.
I can hear the differences that is made in cabling, use of cable risers, and even HFTs but as much as I strained I just couldn't hear the fuse difference. I would not be shocked if it works in some systems or with some components but didn't make a lick of difference in mine.
I'm afraid the Apocolypse will come before any of these ongoing debates will ever be settled, only to continue down you-know-where for eternity. (seem's like an eternity already:) I'm glad that I'll be out of it. 😇
It always comes back to that on these fuse threads.
Very predictable......
No more from me. Nothing else to be said that has not been beaten to a pulp already. Bring on the next gen Syn. Kaleidscope fuse which is even more peachy keen. The question will still always be which other fuses might be even better?
The improvements from SR blacks and then SR blues have been clearly shown for several years now by hundreds of reports right here. It's not even open for debate anymore. Crying "snake oil!" does not disprove high-performance fuses---no dice. George, I appreciate your expertise on digital, by the way. Have you even tried SR's?
MC I did the same with a Synergistic Red fuse given to me to try in my Audio Research pre-amp after reading a lot of hype about that one at the time.
Little or no difference. Nothing I could bank on. It’s sitting out now as a spare if needed.
Maybe if I paid money for it, it would still be in there, but I prefer the one I have which at least I know will do the job of a fuse properly. How do I know? It came from the vendor. Also I can see the innards and that it is a very well constructed. Likely a slow-blow which helps but not sure.
Maybe I will dissect the Red Fuse someday to see what is in there. It's hidden from sight otherwise.
Of course every case could be different.
But it is not smart to just drop big bucks on a fuse, especially one where limited information on how it works and what exactly makes it better is made available, without making sure to cross one’s I’s and dot one’s T’s first.
Maybe if the money does not matter which may well be the case with some.
As various knowledgeable folks here have suggested when the topic comes
up over the years, it’s a no-brainer for anyone to first try to just
reseat the existing fuse or if need be replaced first try a new good
quality standard issue fuse like Littlefuse or others that will not set
you back much to try before dropping big bucks on anything else. Then if
you hear a difference you can more reliably associate it with the
reason.
I’ve reseated or replaced many fuses for myself or others....that alone can make the difference.
Which is exactly why the first thing I did when I got my first Blue Fuse was to pull the factory fuse, clean the fuse and holder, and replace it. No difference. Why would there be? Only if it was dirty. Which it was not.
Then the Blue Fuse went in. Obvious huge difference. Also- read my review- also obviously wrong. Within minutes it was clear the Fuse was in the wrong way. It sounded better but not right. Flipped around, wow, much better!
Its simply no contest. Not only easy to hear the difference the Fuse makes, easy to hear the difference the direction of the fuse makes. People posting derisive comments should stop being disingenuous and openly declare they have never tried these things and therefore have no idea what they're talking about. Now that would be fun to see.
As various knowledgeable folks here have suggested when the topic comes up over the years, it’s a no-brainer for anyone to first try to just reseat the existing fuse or if need be replaced first try a new good quality standard issue fuse like Littlefuse or others that will not set you back much to try before dropping big bucks on anything else. Then if you hear a difference you can more reliably associate it with the reason.
I’ve reseated or replaced many fuses for myself or others....that alone can make the difference.
And here we go, wondered when the "SR snake oil" band wagon would start a rolling again
Substitute "naysayer" for "SR band wagon" and you'll see a perfect example of projection. The very first response left no doubt about wondering when it would happen.
I heard a difference I liked when putting a SR Blue fuse into my PrimaLuna integrated. I got more detail but mostly more "ease" to the presentation. The fuse was worth the money to me. I find it very difficult to hear any "differences" from power cord swap outs so I'm lucky I don't need to spend serious money in that area.
So what is the deal? Is there some sort of super conductive stuff on/in
these fuses? What makes them so good. I use ACMEs with graphene and a
few other paste concoctions, I've whipped up. I also polish the heck out of the contact areas and clean clean clean, before application.
I've never heard a difference, but I was doing it as a preventative, measure, nothing else.
DIY concoctions sometimes work, sometimes don't. Every once in a while DIY concoctions work as well or better than professional products. Not often however. Usually because the pros keep at it trying a thousand times more than you. That for sure is what Ted does. If you try a Blue or Orange Fuse I will be surprised if you don't hear a huge improvement.
As to "what is the deal", there's the theory, the marketing story, and the results. Two completely different things. The theory and marketing story can be fake as all get out, all that means is we don't understand something. Or the guy who does understand something doesn't want to give his secret away. Either one could be true. All we know for sure is how it sounds. These things sound great!
The theory and marketing are that running extreme high voltage with a Tesla coil, what he calls quantum tunneling, improves the conductor somehow. Then he slaps a dab of some magic gray goo on there. This is probably key because he says Do Not Remove the gray goo. Also there's TC which is also gray goo and a dab of that will produce similar effects as an Orange Fuse. Ted uses the same gray goo on his Blue and Orange outlets. Same Quantum Tunneling. So there's at least a couple things going on there.
ECT and HFT work on a different principle, dither. I've x-rayed all this stuff and can tell you there's definitely things going on in there. Does not sound like snake oil. Does not look like snake oil. Sounds and looks like ingenious technology.
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