Synergistic Red Fuse ...

While on the subject of fuses not sure how many of you are aware that Synergistic Research also sell a quantum tunneled breaker. You send them a stock breaker in the rating needed for your fuse box and they send it back to you for a charge of as I recall $50 or less.  Now as I had this installed in a new room build I cannot speak to the before/after but maybe one of you all on this thread want to give it a try? Who knows maybe they'll have a graphene enriched version soon :-)

Hello David,
Thanks for your kind comments. I'm glad that you gave these fuses an audition. Given the very high quality and resolution of your audio system I believed that you'd extract the full performance potential of the Black fuses. 
Take care, 
Charles, 

Hi all,
After reading all the wonderful threads about the SR fuses initiated by Oregonpapa I felt I had to get some black fuses myself. After some very helpful advice from Charles1dad and waiting for break into occur, I was totally overwhelmed by the improvements these relatively inexpensive tweaks could have on my system.
I originally placed them in myCoincident Frankenstein amps.
Transparency, dynamics, visceral impact , organic realism, depth width, everything ; You name it ,it improved.
Charles recommended that I also get a fuse for my Coincident Line Stagecoach .
After some break in ,as before , the results were overwhelming
The improvement in the CSL had an even greater impact. The musicality and realism were just taken up another notch.
The idea of a fuse having such a profound impact on improving an already satisfying sound system was mind boggling.
I now am waiting on my fuses for my Coincident Dragons, as I biamp my Coincident Pure Reference Extremes with the Frank's on top and the Dragons on the bottom.
The sequential replacement of each component's performance improvement has been nothing short of dramatic.
If anyone is still on the fence after reading through this multi page multi month wonderful thread , I encourage them to get off the fence and try these incredible fuses.
I have spent many dollars over many years on other attempts to upgrade my system only to realize that some of them were no improvement at all and some even had a negative impact. In those case I was forced to sell them,barely used, at a heavily discounted price.
The fact that SR is willing to offer a 30 trial period makes this no leap of faith or guess. It's a no brainer and has no financial risk.
This , honestly, imho, may be the best tweak in audio ever. The bang for the buck factor is unreal.
I know there will always be doubters and skeptics in life, and that may actually be good and healthy , but even they , in this situation have nothing to lose by trying these wonderful fuses.
A big shout out and thank you to Frank, Oregonpapa, for taking us along in his journey of evolution of his system with these fuses and sharing this with us all so that we too can benefit and get closer to receiving an even greater sense of pleasure from our wonderful hobby.
And to Charles, thank you once again for your guidance and excellent advice, as usual.
David 

Being technologically still in Kindergarten ... well, maybe in the sixth grade, I couldn't care less HOW something works, only that it does. I don't know graphene from aluminum foil. All I know is what its done for my audio system.

I had what I thought to be a very revealing system prior to trying the first SR Red fuse that began this entire thread. Little did I know where the fuse path was to lead. Eventually, I had placed the Red fuses throughout the system and just figured I'd call it a day and enjoy the major improvement given by these fuses. Then ... the announcement of the SR Black fuses.

With each component sporting a new Black fuse, that component was brought to a new, much higher level of musicality and realism.  This was really brought home during last night's listening session.

I had moved a broken in Black fuse from the CD player into the phono amp, replacing a broken in Red fuse. After re orientating the fuse to the proper direction, the end result was truly amazing. I have NEVER had such realism from spinning vinyl on the turntable. As good as the digital system is now, the analog system is another league better in natural organic sound.  

As many of you know, I'm using an AT ART-9 cartridge. As good as this cartridge is (a real sleeper - and thanks again to Pani),  I was only hearing about  half of what it was capable of with the SR Red fuse.  The sense of realism and a "you are there presence" has been taken to a whole new level. I've heard vinyl rigs costing many times what I have invested in mine and I don't hear from them, what I'm getting now. 

Graphene, aluminum foil, witch doctors, magic spoof dust ... I really don't care. What needs to be said is ... I have upgraded my vinyl rig by many  thousands of dollars for the cost of a $129 fuse. 

Anyone who continues to question these fuses in the face of all of the positive comments in this 18-page-long thread is like Cleopatra .... In De Nile.  :-)

Happy listening, friends ... 

A Nigerian Price explained that, as a result of a blood sacrifice under a full moon, Zeus was inspired to Taser the SR Black Fuse so it would have a profound impact on audiophile systems. I was skeptical, but tried one anyway. It was a significant and immediate improvement. For those unwilling to pay $120 for a fuse, I understand. I paid a nickel for the fuse. The remaining $119.95 was for the improvement to my DAC.

BTW, African royalty do not worship ancient Greek gods, so I know he was lying.

At some point I will also join the black fuse fun.  An audio club member has been installing the reds and now the blacks.  He is always looking for effective cheaper tweaks and has indicated a positive effect.  In the end you can analyze this stuff to death and the only "tool" I trust is my ears.  Does it sound better or worse.

Skeptics need to use their ears and quit thinking so much...

Turn on, tune in, and drop out, I say!

Something interesting that Caelin Gabriel of Shunyata Research commented on about audio that seems to sum it all up for me... (Read the last three paragraphs of his last comment at the end of the article/interview as I cannot reprint it). The whole piece is excellent, yet his last words ring so true to our pursuit and of our experience.

http://www.theaudiobeat.com/visits/shunyata_visit_interview.htm

I personally don't derive my pleasure from specs, logic (per say), nor numbers. My joy in this hobby/pass-time comes via my ears and I believe the critic who doesn't use his ears is wasting a grand opportunity for true pleasure.

Davidpritchard - Thanks.  I am back towards the greed side of the fear-greed continuum.  I will do a little more research, but right now, I am leaning towards the SR black fuse, if they offer the value I need.  In for a penny, in for a pound!

Let’s declare this thread a Mexican standoff. Both sides are repeating the same arguments as infinitum. I hate to judge before all the facts are in but this whole thing, with the fuses, with directionality, with the Graphene, with demand for explanations, while not completely without merit, appears to be at impasse most probably resulting from the Backfire Effect. Besides I thought the whole world loves a mystery. There is no real reason even it were an intellectual pursuit which I’m not actually convinced it is why all these various questions have to have answers. Mysteries are cool. No one even understands how electricity works so I don’t really see the big deal.

THE BACKFIRE EFFECT

“”What should be evident from the studies on the backfire effect is you can never win an argument online. When you start to pull out facts and figures, hyperlinks and quotes, you are actually making the opponent feel as though they are even more sure of their position than before you started the debate. As they match your fervor, the same thing happens in your skull. The backfire effect pushes both of you deeper into your original beliefs.

—You Are Not So Smart - The Backfire Effect[1]

The backfire effect occurs when, in the face of contradictory evidence, established beliefs do not change but actually get stronger. The effect has been demonstrated experimentally in psychological tests, where subjects are given data that either reinforces or goes against their existing biases - and in most cases people can be shown to increase their confidence in their prior position regardless of the evidence they were faced with.

Hello andynotadam, 
Your comments are logical and well stated. This thread is approaching 4 months and 900 postings with the experience of the "actual listeners" profoundly positive. As many have noted, it seems that the primary effect of the Black fuses is a lowering of the noise floor. I would agree with that impression. Why? With a lower noise floor there's increased nuance retrieval, dynamic contrast, inner detail and improved delineation of instrument textures and tone. The sense of venue environment is further revealed,  all of this equates to increased realism and inevitably more emotional involvement /connection with your music. It's remarkable that these Black fuses provide this level of sonic and musical improvement. 
Charles, 

I have absolutely no idea how audiophile fuses "work," but long personal experience with them tells me emphatically that they do. With one recent exception, I have not blown a fuse in a piece of audio equipment in over forty years, which takes us to the bad old days of amplifier output fuses when, back in my high school and college days, we most often "repaired" the fuse with a bit of aluminum foil just to keep the party going.

Since then, I have never had a piece if audio gear fail due to a faulty fuse. I have never had catastrophic damage from lightning either, but I use Shunyata Venom Defenders to minimize that possibility, though living in the SF Bay Area, an earthquake is more likely to take me out than a lightning strike. The last and only fuse that failed on me was a Synergistic Research Red Fuse of factory rating installed in a well designed music server at start-up. An uprated replacement served me well until I upgraded it to an SR Black Fuse of the same uprated value a few weeks back. And yes, the Black sounded much better than the Red.

All of us are different in myriad ways, having, for example, different risk profiles and degree of need for objective certainty versus, perhaps, trust in subjective experience. For product liability reasons, I would never expect a manufacturer to approve my use of non-UL rated audiophile fuses so I have never asked. I accept the slight risk that some tweak I might employ in my continual quest to get just a little bit closer to the original performance encoded in my beloved recordings might lead to component damage. Having said that, I do have my limits: I'm not likely to buy a rechargeable hover-board any time soon either.

I don't know anything about electronics, but I feel like my rather simple question above was not addressed, except partially by Al.  It is how can a fuse that voltage passes through, but not signal, impact or rather improve the sound of a system, unless it is acting as a filter and in some way removing impurities from the current?  Not unlike a power conditioner?

Really just wondering.  Also, Maplegrovemusic +1

Night of the Living English Majors 

Now for some good info for Mapman. Several days ago I did a Google search for Graphene. I now subscribe to Graphene-Info.com and get frequent E-mails about the latest in the world of Graphene. I think the time was well spent. Graphene's electron density is explained at multiple sites.

Samsung has allocated One Billion Dollars this year to Graphene research and product development. The University Of Manchester- England (where Graphene was isolated) has sixty million invested this year in Graphene research.

I have rather meticulously compared stock fuses to Isotech, Furutech, Synergistic Research-20, Synergistic Research RED, and Synergistic Black fuses in both directions.

I found the sonic changes in rank from best to least to be:
Synergistic Research Black-Best in all ways, Synergistic Red significant improvement, Synergistic -20 some improvement, Isoclean and Furutech mild improvement with careful listening, and in last place stock fuses.

To those who would rather know why one fuse sounds better than another and yet not want to hear the difference so be it. 

To those who are interested in improving the sound of their systems, I hope you will suspend any fears , or prejudices and try the Synergistic Research Black fuses.

David Pritchard

Thanks for the heads up Mapman . I always thought Geoffkaits' posts were a little off. Now i see why after visiting the machinadynamics website . Good info Mapman .

Amusing quotes from the movie 12 Angry Men:

12 angry men quotes

Juror #2: It's hard to put into words. I just think he's guilty. I thought it was obvious from the word, 'Go'. Nobody proved otherwise.
Juror #8: Nobody has to prove otherwise. The burden of proof is on the prosecution. The defendant doesn't even have to open his mouth. That's in the Constitution.

Juror #8: It's always difficult to keep personal prejudice out of a thing like this. And wherever you run into it, prejudice always obscures the truth.

Juror #3: That business before when that tall guy, what's-his-name, was trying to bait me? That doesn't prove anything. I'm a pretty excitable person. I mean, where does he come off calling me a public avenger, sadist and everything? Anyone in his right mind would blow his stack. He was just trying to bait me.
Juror #4: He did an excellent job.

Mapman ...

If your inquiring mind wants to know if Graphene is 8 million times more conductive than copper, or if that is just a wild marketing claim made by the sales department of SR, why not solicit an answer from SR? Surely they have a white paper they can show you as to how they came up with that claim.  

If you remember, I contacted SR via their Facebook page when one poster had a blown fuse and worked out a solution for him. He came into this thread with what was nothing more than a customer complaint against the dealer who sold him the fuse that failed. My reward? I was accused by another member of having some kind of working relationship with SR. You have to realize that this kind of crappola gets old.

As for me, Mapman, I couldn't care less about such claims. And lest you think I'm being naive, the ONLY reason I tried the first RED fuse that started this entire discussion was because of the 30 day return policy. Same with the BLACK fuses. Had there not been a return policy, I most likely wouldn't have made the purchase. 

Honestly, and I'm not trying to push your buttons here ... how you can muddle through 18 pages of positive results by folks who have had outstanding results from the SR fuses and still be a skeptic is beyond me. Not saying that you're wrong ... just that I don't understand it.

Take care ...

For the record I don't consider Al a skeptic, rather I view his interest as an attempt to understand or explain the possible mechanism of action. Unlike others I believe that All would accept the offer of a premium fuse and simply try it and report back his genuine impression. Al has acknowledged that there are numerous  posters on this thread whom he respects and trusts  their listening results. In my opinion you buy audio products with the intention of improving the sound quality and thus the enjoyment of your system. These fuses offer this to occur. 

It would be nice to know why and how a device works, no argument. This knowledge isn't necessary for one to recognize an obvious improvement in one's system and music reproduction. The latter is my priority. 
Charles, 

bondmanp:
Indeed a "bully" did throw your baseball in the lake.
This particular manufacturer states that a fuse can not affect the sound of a system in a positive way. The Black Synergistic Research fuses have improved the sonics in my three systems.
 
1. Art Audio PX-25 amp- Marantz SA11S1 player- custom Horns.
2. Emotion Type 45 tube amp-Antelope DAC-Terasonic speakers.
3. Eddy Current Zana Deux headphone amp- Marantz SA11S2 player- Sennheiser 800 headphones.

In the Terasonic system the original fuses were compared to already burned in Black fuses and both directions were tried. The Black fuses had an immediate improvement in sound - in both the DAC and the amp. 

The Present of PS Audio has stated that aftermarket fuses can have a significant sonic effect on his equipment.

I hope you will try a fuse. I think you will have a satisfying improvement in sound. If not send it back. Listen to the fuse for a 100 hrs. and if your fears about replacing fuses still persists
send it back. 

Do not let the "Bully's win!

Enjoy music.
Enjoy improving your system.

David Pritchard










             





speakers                                     

For those without a skeptical bone in their body, there is this Machina Dynamica product line of Geoffkait's that has your name wrtiten all over it.... :^)   Find out what artificial atoms can do for you.

Papa, I also explained above why I am not really interested in even a free fuse. I am interested in understanding how or why they work though. It matters to me.   If I understand how something does what it does, I am more likely to jump.      That’s just me though.  There are many things I do not buy into even though I know they are good and other I do not buy into because I just don't know why I should.   People report positive changes in their systems here everyday for myriad reasons.    Gotta be selective.     For every fuse one buys there is some other good tweak out there that they are not buying.

Papa I’m referring to the technical marketing claim that the Graphene is 8000000X more conductive which seems highly unlikely. What I have read about graphene indicates the increased conductivity is a much much smaller yet still quite significant number. Someone in marketing appears to be telling a flat out lie there.   Sorry.

It has nothing to do with how much better anyone says it sounds. There is no factual basis to question what someone says they hear, other than how they know the difference is due to teh fuse, especially when claimed the change takes time to happen. As Al has pointed out many times both here and in other threads, many things hard to detect can change over time yet the tendency is to associate the change with the last known change.

Inquiring minds want to know.....

Whew! Now that I have that off of my chest, I'd like to comment on why manufacturers won't recommend after market products. It a matter of liability. We live in a very litigious society. If something goes wrong, and if there is even a chance that it could remotely be blamed on the manufacture recommending an after market product, guess who gets sued??

A good example would be all of the Audio Research owners who kept inquiring of the factory about swapping out their KT-120s for the then new KT-150's. Everyone kept getting the thumbs down by the factory, even though there were those of us who took the plunge anyway and reporting the great results we were getting.  I know for a fact that ARC tested the KT-150's in their factory test amps for over 5000 hours without even one failure before they gave the okay. This is what any company would do that has intelligent employees working for them.  And now look where the ARC REF amps are today ... all being shipped with KT-150's. 

So, bottom line ... just because a builder won't recommend an after market fuse doesn't mean "don't use the fuse." It means ... "don't ask me, I don't want to get sued." 

And by the way guys ... I decided to swap out a fully broken in Black fuse that I had in the CD player for the RED fuse I had in the PH-8 last night. Holy Smokes! Now this was a clear test of exactly what these Black fuses can do.  This is the  most relaxed musical presentation I've ever gotten from my vinyl setup. There is something special in the way these Black fuses cause the system to have a particular sense of "quiet" about it. Its not exactly like "lowering the noise floor." Its more like the natural, non-aggressiveness of live music. Interestingly enough, with the new SR PC's the system is so revealing that I could clearly hear right off the bat that I had put the Black fuse in backward. The sound was diffused. Very similar to the system being out of phase. Turning the fuse around caused everything to instantly snap into focus.  Simply an amazing product.

Happy listening ...  

Mapman sez:  

" Al also I am interested in you technical assessment of use of Graphene in a fuse, as claimed. In a powercord? That latter in particular would seem to have a lot of potential upside despite some of the seemingly exaggerated marketing claims I have seen"

How in the world would you know if a claim is "exaggerated" when you've never heard the product in your own system, or anyone else's system for that matter??

I have replaced all of my power cords (four of them) with SR's Level 3 Atmosphere PCs using the Graphene technology. I can say with no doubt, now that these cords are broken in, that these cords are simply amazing. And, the PCs I was using before were no slouches either. And to boot ... SR has just come out with very cost effective RED and BLACK PCs using the Graphene technology that start at $299.

Mapman, if you think the fuses are amazing, these cords are totally the bomb! But then, how would you even know that the fuses are amazing when you wouldn't even take the offer of a free RED fuse to try at no cost in your own system. Even the shipping wouldn't have cost you anything. I say BAH! Damn, I deplore stinkin' thinkin.'

You seem to have not acknowledged that we are having this discussion because a lot of people we respect on Agon have noted they had positive results with the fuse. 

Some of us were just trying to figure out why and how.  It seemed to be somewhat of a polite back and forth, until, as usual..........

The determined skeptic can find all sorts of arguments why something cannot possibly work even in light of the fact that everyone who has actually tried the thing reports positive results. Geez, talk about not accepting evidence! Do you actually believe that some law(s) of physics are being disobeyed? Without trying too hard I can think of at least four or five perfectly logical reasons why aftermarket fuses SHOULD definitely sound better than stock fuses. Many of those reasons are the EXACT SAME REASONS why some cables sound better than others. I don’t think this is rocket science. Could ten thousand audiophiles be wrong? Not bloody likely. The statistical probability that there is some mysterious error that everyone is making or that there is mass hysteria or mass hypnosis or the placebo effect or expectation bias is about the same as your winning the big lottery. The only logical conclusion one can really make in the Case of the Aftermarket Fuse is that there must be SOMETHING GOING ON, not that there is NOTHING GOING ON. Next topic, "How small can something be and still make a significant improvement to the sound?"

HiFi had a third party actually measure fuses' performance - their fuses, competitor’s fuses, cryo’d fuses, standard fuses, backwards and forwards. And the data is there for all to see. Hel-looo!

Yup.  And as you may recall I commented on those measurements extensively in various posts in the long-running "Fuses That Matter" thread.  Most notably in my post dated 5-14-2012  11:24 a.m., wherein I summarized my technical comments by saying:

I applaud HiFi-Tuning for providing these measurements. However, IMO they provide the basis for a good case as to why fuse upgrades shouldn't make a difference, or at least a difference that is necessarily for the better....

I don't exclude the possibility that a fuse change can make a difference, but once again the explanations that are offered in support of the existence of those differences do not withstand quantitative scrutiny.

Regards,
-- Al
 

The skeptics are out in full force today. Is it a full moon?

HiFi had a third party actually measure fuses' performance - their fuses, competitor’s fuses, cryo’d fuses, standard fuses, backwards and forwards. And the data is there for all to see. Hel-looo! I hate to judge before all the facts are in but it certainly appears fuse technology evolves just like everything else in this hobby.  The skepticism is charming, no problem there.

ALL. Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn, and caldron bubble.

WITCH. Fillet of a fenny snake,
In the caldron boil and bake;
Eye of newt, and toe of frog,
Wool of bat, and tongue of dog,
Adder’s fork, and blind-worm’s sting,
Lizard’s leg, and owlet’s wing,—
For a charm of powerful trouble,
Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.

Those are interesting thoughts, Mapman. While fuse seating/contact integrity and changes in fuse parameters occurring over time would seem unlikely to result in significant sonic differences, any other conceivable explanation would also seem to be unlikely.

But in particular, regarding possible increases in resistance and consequently in voltage drop that might occur over time, keep in mind that while increased resistance would result in increased voltage drop, it would also result in increased power dissipation in the fuse, and therefore in increased internal heat, and therefore probably also in premature failure of the fuse. Also, degradation of performance over time would seem to fly in the face of the general consensus that hundreds or (some would say) thousands of hours of use is likely to improve the performance of a component, not degrade it.

A couple of experiments that would be of interest, though, if anyone is so inclined, would be to (a)replace an older stock fuse with a new inexpensive Littelfuse or Cooper Bussmann fuse of the same rating; and (b)temporarily, for experimental purposes, replace a stock fuse with an inexpensive Littelfuse or Cooper Bussmann fuse of MUCH higher current rating, which in terms of resistance would be essentially equivalent to eliminating the fuse altogether.

Regarding graphene, I have no particular knowledge.

Best regards,
-- Al

Almarg,

Would it be correct to say that your technical assessment of the potential impact or not of fuses in various applications cited apply only to properly functioning poosibly brand new fuses that are also installed cleanly properly?

For example, fuse might be an electronic bottleneck if not seated in-line properly (poor connection or connections) or if partially or mostly even but not fully blown perhaps, although I have no idea the likeihood of a fuse actually being found in such an intermediate state.

Al also I am interested in you technical assessment of use of Graphene in a fuse, as claimed. In a powercord? That latter in particular would seem to have a lot of potential upside despite some of the seemingly exaggerated marketing claims I have seen.

My assessment based purely on my days as a sales tech who replaced blown fuses in customers gear when needed is that if sound was not good, re-seating the fuse usually resolved the problem. Replacing the fuse when no sound at all of course always resolved that issue.

I never even thought about how one properly installed and working fuse sounded versus another. Not to say there were not differences just nothing that jumped out at me to even consider such a thing, though I always felt it better soundwise to use slow blow fuses when possible which tended to have more robust and likely more conductive filaments but I could not even say conclusively that I actually heard a difference.

Bondmanp,
As David pointed out,  there certainly are manufacturers who recommend and  encourage using premium fuses. I've had no equipment issues with upgraded fuses ever and suspect that is true for the overwhelming majority of happy users. Do only what your comfort level allows. I can only say that the SR Black fuses are an  extraordinary value. I really don't care about how they do it,  just that they do 😊
Charles,  

... the fuse design can only have 3 possible outcomes:

1. Allow the unit to operate as designed;

2. Starve it of current or voltage lowering its performance;

3. Raise the amount of current that can pass through the fuse, which would damage the unit if an internal short were to occur (but have NO effect otherwise, as an electrical circuit operating normally will only draw the amount of current the circuit uses, no matter how much might be available).

All of the quantitative specifications I have seen in my examinations of technical datasheets for garden variety fast blow and slow blow fuses support the conclusion that for the kinds of fuse ratings that are used in audio components the voltage losses and current limiting that may be introduced by the resistance of garden variety fuses are so low as to be negligible, and to leave little or no room for improvement. And even if that were not so, at least in the case of mains fuses any such losses would be completely swamped by differences in AC voltage among various locations, and probably even among different outlets at the same location. And it seems safe to assume that the limiting effects of whatever infinitesimal amount of inductance a fuse may have on abrupt changes in demand for current would also be negligible.

As someone who knows his way around a circuit board, to use your words, I have no idea how these fuses may work their magic, although I remain open-minded given the overwhelmingly positive results that have been reported by members I consider to be particularly credible.

Best regards,
-- Al

davidpritchard: Since the communication I quoted was private, I redacted the name of the manufacturer, and will stick to doing so. My preamp is out of warranty, so no worries there. The UL/CSA thing kinda freaked me out a bit. However, I am not saying I won’t upgrade the fuse. I was actually ready to go ahead with an upgrade fuse when I got that email. So now I am a bit confused and uncertain. The fear/greed ratio just tipped abit toward the fear side. I guess I am looking for reassurance from Agon members who have done this tweek, as well as assurances from folks who know their way around a circuitboard, unlike me.

"Starve it of current or voltage lowering its performance;"

That's the one thing I know of that a fuse might do to affect sound.

To replace or not to replace?  Simple risk versus reward.   YMMV.   If gear is under warranty and maker says no, I would not do it.    For example my Bel Canto amp manual clearly warns against user changing the fuse.   They are not under warranty though so less to loose if something goes wrong.

I can only speak for me.   I am satisfied with any properly functioning fuse of known good quality.    Devices shrouded in mystery by the maker make me nervous, especially when they are there mainly to do a common and simple job, like a fuse.   So many ways to tweak and improve a system otherwise as needed.   

If people want to hate on me or call me a troll for that, so be it.   Its a position rooted mostly in common sense I believe and worth noting.  

Again, I have nothing against those who apply fancy fuses successfully and are happy with the results.   More power to ya'll!

bondmanp:

What Preamp manufacturer are you talking about. I am glad my equipment is not under warranty. I know of no instance of a Synergistic Research fuse failing to blow. In fact they may  blow quicker than the 10 cent fuse.

Twenty one Black fuses in three systems ! I could not be happier. Plus I am no loner afraid to touch my components. I can open the top to a Marantz player faster than a Nascar Pit Crew can change a tire.

I have talked directly with Craig Uthus   of  Eddie Current and Moth amplifiers and he has no problem with me using Synergistic Research fuses.

David Pritchard

    

I have followed this thread from the beginning, and I am also considering ordering a couple of blacks, based on this thread, so I do not consider myself closed minded.  But I see the logic of bondmanp's manufacturer comments above, and it makes me wonder how any fuse can actually improve the music. It seems that the fuse is not like a cable that has a signal flowing through it, we know that the cable metal conductor & covering can impact the signal?

It just seems a fuse can either allow more or less voltage to pass through, and/or somehow "filter" something bad out of the current passing through.  Is the latter the case here, that the fuse is filtering out something bad from the current?  I have read about the "special" properties of the fuses metal filament.  I have read all the testamonials and am not disagreeing, just wondering what is the source of the improvements.
Thanks,
George

A Dilema:

Okay, so I have been slogging my way through this thread with interest. I am not a big tweeker, but the praise for upgraded fuses on this thread and elsewhere is so overwhelming, and it is such an affordable tweek, that I am considering it.

However, when I contacted the manufacturer of my preamp for some fuse value details, I got this in return:

"On ‘super’-fuses:

[Manufacturer] de-recommends using aftermarket ‘super-fuses’ whose construction varies from the standard fuse provided by [manufacturer] and their use will void the warranty.

The units are designed for use with a standard fuse and any that varies from the electrical characteristics of a standard fuse may be a risk to the equipment or user, and invalidates the safety certifications of the unit from agencies like U.L. and C.S.A.

In addition, the clearly defined laws of physics would indicate a different fuse cannot possibly (positively) affect the sound of the unit, the fuse design can only have 3 possible outcomes:

1. Allow the unit to operate as designed;

2. Starve it of current or voltage lowering its performance;

3. Raise the amount of current that can pass through the fuse, which would damage the unit if an internal short were to occur (but have NO effect otherwise, as an electrical circuit operating normally will only draw the amount of current the circuit uses, no matter how much might be available)."

When it comes to anything having to do with electricity, I am a scared little bunny. I don’t doubt what you all are hearing with your fuse upgrades, but the email from the manufacturer scared the carp out of me. What do I do? I feel like a bully just threw my baseball into the lake.

Charles,  I am thinking that getting a pair of 3 A slo-blo is up next.  Both the Franks and my HAPZ1 take 2 3A slo's,  so it is almost a slam dunk that one of those will benefit substantially.   

Bill I'm glad that the Black fuses worked out for you,  I was confident they would be beneficial in your system. You'll likely experience further improvement up to the 150 hours mark. I believe that you'll be happy with these fuses in your Frankenstein 😊

Charles, 

I'm guessing I've got 80-100 of burn in on the Black that is in my Coincident CSL.  Tonight I did an A/B with the stock fuse.  Replacing the Black with the stock fuse made an immediately obvious difference.  Everything just went flat.  Very 2 dimensional, loss of dynamics, loss of harmonic richness.  Put the black back in and everything went back to what I have been hearing recently.  Amazing, how can a fuse do this?  I think I will be buying more.

The SR black fuses (2) in my preamp and phonostage are burning-in nicely, starting to relax with each listen, just as you have been saying oregonpapa.

My system has ceramic drivers in the Coincident PREt’s and can present a bit edgy or harsh if everything is not just right, and they did a little but that is easing away and things are just opening up. Very nice.

I have tried flipping the fuses and the difference was clearly evident, also as reported by the pioneers on this thread. I had them in right from the start.

Thinking about two more for the scd-xa5400es now, imagine that.

^^^ jwm ...

Glad you're getting the results from the SR Black fuse. Its a terrific tweak for a very modest outlay in cash. 

I only go to one show a year now ... and that's the Newport show. I used to go to CES in Vegas every year, but I've grown to really detest that place. It takes a week to get the tobacco smoke out of my sinuses after attending the CES.

The listening session last night was the best ever.  I have two more SR Red fuses to swap out for the Blacks. One in the phono and another one in the amp. Look out ... more improvements to come. 

I finally received my black SR fuses today. I replaced the stock fuse in my DAC to the black and the difference was eye opening as most people here already know. Pace and rhythm to another level, organic mids increased, relaxation and less harshness a big plus. I would say at least 40 to 50% improvement. I then replaced the red SR fuse in my preamp to the black and could not believe how much better the black is to a well broken in red fuse. The combo of preamp and dac together was something else. I was so involved in the music. I am not getting any harshness or brightness that other people are observing with the early break in stages of the black fuses. My next change will be the fuses in my amplifiers. The direction on the black fuse in my preamp was not the same as the direction of the red fuse. I am wondering if anyone else had this happen. I am wondering if SR applies their treatment to any direction and the lettering on the fuse really does not serve as a direction at all. Thanks Papa for this thread you have brought pleasure to my system that I can't thank you enough. It would be nice to meet you, but I don't think you are going to Axpona. Will you be going to Rocky Mountain this year?

Charles, I reversed the direction last week and the difference was quite obvious.  I had the correct direction from the beginning.  I am eager to do the A/B tonight, and based on the results, will make a decision on buying additional fuses.

Bill,
That good to know, it seems you just needed the required burn-in hours. If you haven't done so yet, be sure to reverse the fuse direction. It may not result in a "dramatic" (the degree of effect appears to vary with component/system) difference but one direction will be preferable to the other. I look forward to your upcoming comparison.
Charles,

^^^ You're welcome Charles. I knew you'd like it. That bass solo has become my reference to measure how far into the basement these SR Black fuses have driven my bass to. With the addition of the SR power cords, Ray Brown's bass goes right through my chest and vibrates off of my spinal column. :-)

Hi Frank,
Thanks for the recommendation of  Milt Jackson "Memories Of Thelonious Sphere Monk".
It's very good and the Ray Brown bass solo of "Round Midnight" is a  con arco treat.
Charles,

Charles,  I may be getting there.  Things are sounding pretty fine tonight.  I may do some a/b with the stock fuse tomorrow night.

It really is nearly absurd how a fuse change can have such a dramatic effect.  It's like having a water hose reduced to a pin-hole opening, allowing the smallest of water stream.   Replacing with the SR Black is like enlarging the hole enabling greater flow.  Maybe the filament size is a factor.

Hi Bill (Brownsfan),
With additional hours on your Black fuses have they improved or is your experience different from most other users?
Charles,