Sony XA5400ES fuse directionality...

Oh Boy!

Oh Boy!
Rrog

Dang Rrog, you beat me to it. Although my thought was, oh brother.
So now I'll make a suggestion. Try the fuse one way for a week, listening critically of course for the differences/improvements the fuse makes. Then switch the fuse around and repeat the procedure.
Once you've got the results you can start another thread explaining the results. I'm on pins and needles.

It looks like the fuse in on an AC line which means no matter how you install it it will be in the right direction 50% of the time.

There are two fuses in the unit, and I was hoping to find someone who was familiar with it before I had to test the directionality by ear, which I have done before with my amp and it's single fuse. It seems to take a about 100 hours for the fuse to "break in". The latest Hi-Fi Tuning fuses DO make a sonic improvement to my ears, and I feel they are worth the $50 price tag. I know that there are some doubters out there when it comes to fuses, AC cables, speaker wires etc... but I am not one of them. They certainly won't make you think a drastic improvment has just occured by upgrading to one, but these little 5% improvements all add up and contribute to the overall sonic "picture".

They can make a difference around 4k hz. Some people like that.

They make no difference. Try to return them if you can.

I appreciate the input guys. I did hear an improvement in clarity and improved background details with the one I put in my amp. It was a bit bright at first, but smoothed out after a couple of weeks. I also tried the new Nano Liquid fuse, and it really rolled the highs off substantially. The dealer said the Liquid fuses have "smoother, analog sound", but to my ears it sounded like everything above 10khz was rolled off. I sent that one back right away for a refund!

"Best way is to try both, and the one way which sounds clearly better is the right one."
are u serious? or joking?

fuse is a fuse - it does not make a difference in sound? also, direction does not matter, unless the glass enclosure will pickup some frequency....someone should check it...

kind of same as changing the power cords - did you ever looked inside the equipment and check what kind of wires the manufacture use between "super hi end $2000 power cord" and the rest of components inside???

Hak, it's best to leave the fuse people alone. I tried reason once.....like how IS ac directional again? to no effect but getting people POd. And yes, they'll have you believe in all sorts of weird stuff. Fuse Microphonics and diode effcts. Break in of a fuse. All the rest.
Leave it be for the sake of 'peace in our time'.

Sorry to have opened up such a can of worms here... I was hoping not to ruffle the feathers of the "non-fuse believers". Yes, standard fuses are non-directional obviously, but the Hi-Fi Tuning fuses are suppose to be installed in the direction the arrow indicates toward ground. We are not crazy, we are audiophiles that can actually hear slight changes, both bad and good. If I can clearly hear differences between brass and copper binding posts, wire terminations, AC outlets, AC cords and interconnects, it would make sense that I could hear the difference in a half-inch long fuse that is made from silver and ceramic instead of glass and various less conductive metals. When you think about it, the fuse is your "weakest link" between the incoming AC and your power supply. It is not too far fetched for audiophiles to think this way. If your system is very resolving and your ears are not too far gone that is....

Such claims SHOULD be testable.

That's what your ears are for. I did also test the Hi-Fi tuning fuses with a resistance meter just for kicks, compared to the stock fuses, and yes, they did consistently show less resistance on the meter.

You were able to consistently measure such low resistance? What kind of meter are you using?

This is how littlefuse approaches fuse resistivity:
http://www.littelfuse.com/data/en/Technical_Articles/TB98-004.pdf

Here is the data for a 2ag, 5 amp fuse, which should be in the 'normal' range for power supplies of larger amps.
NOTE: resistance, measured cold, is <.02 ohms.

http://www.littelfuse.com/products/Fuses/2AG+(5x15mm)/208/0208005..html

Now, I have a cheap-o meter which is of low resolution. I'd like the bench meter I had at work years ago which had 8 or 9 digits of resolution.

My meter tests out to 4 digits, and it was quite a significant difference. Here is a test done by HiFi Test magazine in the same fuses:
Measuring technique: If there is a marked difference in the listening test, you should be able to measure it, or so I thought. However,
I could not measure any differences with our measuring station - neither in the frequency response, nor in the distortion response, nor in
the pink-noise – except in one aspect., - During the measurement of the damping factor of our integrated amplifier test candidate using
the Supreme3 fuses, the damping factor increased from around 350 to 500. (Reminder: The damping factor is a measurement of the
internal resistance of the amplifier and usually reveals something about its‘ control over connected speakers; the higher the damping
factor, the higher the control – at least in theory.) But here I had clear proof of the effect of the damping factor, e.g. the substituted microfuse,
on the sound. How could this be? To find out, we devised an elaborate new measuring system, to analyze the electrical properties
of the fuse.. We measured the voltage drop over the fuse (see measurement diagram), which is three times lower in a Supreme3 than in
a standard fuse. Significantly more voltage is lost at a higher current flow through the standard fuse, which is then no longer available to
the amplifier circuit.. The result would have to be dynamic loss and slower impulse response, which we experienced in the listening test.
The Berlin HiFi-Tuning manufacturer’s own explanation reads slightly peculiar for non-techies, because his explanation is a cryogenic
treatment (ultra-deep cooling) and 24-hour quantum-level treatment. What convinced us much more is the use of special silver/gold fuse
wires and a complex soldering of the fuse wire with the head cap made of fine silver. This would explain the lower electrical resistance of
the Supreme3 fuse that we measured., For example, a 250 mA fuse measured at around 1.2 Ohm (as opposed to 3.5 Ohm for a
standard fuse). It is also possible that the polyolephine wrapping of the fuse element (known as shrink tubing) is a sonically effective
"trick" of the manufacturer for resonance suppression; however, we couldn’t determine the difference "with and without" without
destroying the fuse.

I hear better when the moon is full.

Are you talking damping factor change for a power supply fuse or in the protection part of the output?
One makes a little sense, the other none at all.
Sine the max current draw is isolated from the output by (presumably) a fair amount of capactitance and the max draw thru the fuse is during 'recharge' that is a little......strange.

What is the alloy of the fuse in question. I believe Littlefuse uses a Zinc alloy which this test beforehand so they get the final fuse resistivity correct per amperage.

I've used test equipment called a 4-point probe. 2 tips used to force a voltage, the other 2 tips used to measure. VERY precise readings of resistivity are possible by this method. Repeatable and process capable (in the most rigorous technical sense) such a metrology tool is used in the semiconductor industry for process evaluation.

Wouldn't wrapping the fuse element in ANYTHING result in it changing the characteristics of the fuse?

I have suggested, in the past, a test to be used for microphonics. Put the test piece in an enclosure with a speaker. Have the same circuit OUTSIDE the enclosure. Using a dual trace scope, do with / without sound subtraction of the signal. Microphonic effects should show up very easily.

If there is a distinct difference, don't let me know about it. I hate throwing up, and besides; what one does not know cannot hurt him.

If a $50 fuse makes a difference, then why not bypass the f'ing thing altogether with a piece of pure copper, silver or gold. Ferchrissakes, if that much disinformation were available to my ears I would have all the watches,clocks, pets, cars, trucks and children in the neighborhood banished before listening.

I'm afraid the above idea would cause a LOT of problems in the neighborhood, AND void my 5 year warranty!
I thank those who stuck to the idea of this post and actually offered some helpful advice. To the others...
at this point I think I am going to have to throw in the towel and call it quits because I have no strength left to fight. I confess.... I just pulled out a Q-tip for the first time in 20 years, and discovered my ears have been filled with peanut butter all this time. I can't hear anything above 100hz, and I'm selling everything but my subwoofer...but you can bet IT will have an upgraded fuse in it! :^}

I thank those who stuck to the idea of this post and actually offered some helpful advice. Bigshutterbug

Really? Which ones were those?
You do have a well thought out system though. So if swapping fuses turns you on, enjoy.

Look, I KNOW there are hundreds of things regarding music playback that have NOTHING whatsoever to do with Ohms Law, measured performance or even rational thinking. Every time I dismiss something out of hand, then hear it for myself (and notice a difference) I feel the fool, but fuse polarity has no more bearing than the North-South orientation of your system in regards to Magnetic North....(believe me there was an Apple 22 inch High Res Color monitor that had to be degaussed with it oriented N-S or it got psychedelic!!! (so even this parameter need be taken into consideration as we have lots of magnetic devices in our systems, but that is another detail I cannot worry about).

I apologize for offending your original post's spirit, and since I refuse to micro analyze my system anymore (it's awesome and I plan to enjoy its awesomeness and listen to the music), that does not mean others can abide such dismissal, and cannot further reduce miniscule weaknesses.

Enjoy your journey for further truth and disregard us old curmudgeons (I have accepted the limitations of my system/room and just love the tunes. Stevie Ray Vaughan on Pandora One as we type).

Thank you Mcintech, and enjoy your Stevie Ray as much as I do.... I think it's time for some "Texas Flood" to spin in my system too. His playing was beyond compare!