High Quality Fuses: Real Gains?


All:

I'm generally suspicious of "tweaks" but I had an interesting conversation with a service representative from one of the major audiophile companies about the potential benefits of replacing stock fuses with higher quality ones like the HiFi Tuning brand. I thought he would dismiss the potential gains of using an "audiophile" fuse but he affirmed that they might actually produce audible improvements since all the current must travel through this junction. He also admitted that the stock fuses they use are pretty ordinary throwaways. So, have any of you used these and if so what were the results? Are there brands other than HiFi Tuning that are worth considering? I should have probably checked the archives so if this has been debated already sorry to bring it up.
dodgealum

Showing 1 response by bob_bundus

I changed from glass body to ceramic power fuse by default because I only had the correct value on hand in ceramic. I forgot all about it and didn't even run the rig until several days later.
Initially I could tell the rig sounded different even when cold, but went outside to do yardwork leaving the tuner playing. After a couple hours came back in and was *really* wondering what was up because the musicality was better overall with clarity and bass definition especially notable. Couldn't figure out why it sounded better although there was plainly a significant improvement.
It wasn't until a week or so later that I remembered the fuse change, so I reverted to glass and sure enough that was the proof. Restored the ceramic again and it's been better sounding ever since. So there you have it; I had done my own blind listening test without even realizing it.
Have never tried the really fancy fuses myself, but wouldn't be surprised if they are even better yet based upon this interesting experience.