Would you use audiophile grade fuses?
- Thread starter brutal
- Start date
The fuse element isn't that much smaller gauge than the magnet wire in your power transformer's primary winding. I haven't looked at a circuit breaker data sheet in a long time; is the voltage drop at rated current actually that much less than you'd get with a fuse of the same rating?
To bentpencil and DonQuixote99: Fuses such as the Bussmann AGC series typically used in audio electronics are designed to withstand continuous current at twice their rating for 120 seconds before they blow. If the equipment designer selects the proper-sized fuse for his application, fuse fatigue should not be a factor except possibly in very extended use (think decades, not years).
If a person is going to go that far"gold-plated OFC copper end caps, and a pure OFC copper fuse element. They also feature foam damping around the element, a non-resonant ceramic case, and are cryogenically treated."
I would simply ask the question, why only the fuse?
What about all the other AC components in line that aren't
"so called" audio grade.
usedto
Lunatic Member
The element in a fuse that carries the power is also engineered to be the "weak link". In a circuit breaker, the "weak link" is the tripping mechanism, not the contacts themselves. Theoretically, the contacts in a 1 amp breaker could be made out of 1lb silver blocks if they had a sensitive enough trigger and strong enough springs.
I agree.
If that holds true, then I'm reasonably sure that the same engineers have explored the possibilities of using exotic metals in the fuses, and determined that there was no advantage. Some people obviously feel differently about that,
Like the plain old nichrome plated fuse holder?
Yep
Mr. Lin
Lunatic Member
I'm not so sure about that actually. The added costs for a possibly small improvement in the sound would be past on to the customer, and I'm sure most designers would consider the standard fuse "good enough." These things aren't cheap to buy, I doubt they're particularly cheap to design and make either.
usedto
Lunatic Member
In the case of "common everyday" components that are designed merely to produce sales, I agree 100%. But once you get into the higher quality pieces, I would think that it would be counter-productive to use the best caps, resistors, transformers etc., but then toss in a piece of garbage that won't support the rest. Not to say that it can't or won't happen, but I would think that the designers/engineers would take that into consideration.
When the pencil was first invented, it was used for God knows how many years before someone came up with the brilliant idea of putting an eraser on the end. All pencil designers/manufacturers saw the obvious advantage, and built their pencils accordingly. Not only was it something the customer wanted, it was also useful and practical - advantageous. A little more expensive, but well worth it.
I would think that the higher-end electronic mfgs. have examined and/or tested the possibility of a "general consensus" improvement using some of these products, and have come up short in their findings.
Lwrs10
Super Member
here is my opinion.....not to be taken as an insult to anyone...
A/C or power line fuses affecting audio quality to me sounds like a big crock. I have never heard of "audiophile" solder, solder traces, heatsinks, power transformers, fuse sockets, or anything else usually in the power path. i honestly think people are only tricking themselves that they hear a difference...
BUT.....if a fuse is in the speaker path, then yes I do believe you would hear the difference. Same as different speaker wire, interconnects, ETC. But I would still never pay 30 bucks for a fuse I can get for 5 cents....the difference is just not big enough for me to justify it.
A/C or power line fuses affecting audio quality to me sounds like a big crock. I have never heard of "audiophile" solder, solder traces, heatsinks, power transformers, fuse sockets, or anything else usually in the power path. i honestly think people are only tricking themselves that they hear a difference...
BUT.....if a fuse is in the speaker path, then yes I do believe you would hear the difference. Same as different speaker wire, interconnects, ETC. But I would still never pay 30 bucks for a fuse I can get for 5 cents....the difference is just not big enough for me to justify it.
DonQuixote99
just give me some truth
Here's the difference. You can sell an 'audiophile fuse' becuase just about any buyer can easily change it out with the existing fuse. You can't sell an 'audiophile fuse holder' because few potential buyers would feel willing/able to switch out such a part.
Mr. Lin
Lunatic Member
Actually the two I've highlighted do exist and area widely used by the DIY community. They're not usually called "audiophile," rather audio-grade, or something like that, or it's just been discovered that one type is superior to another. Power transformers are critical to the sound of some components. Probably fuse sockets too but I'm not sure about that.
But that aside, it doesn't matter if the rest of the components match the quality of the fuse. In some components, certain connections and points in the circuit are more important than others, and based on experience I don't believe that one small tweak is completely negated by anything else in the system.
kevzep
Its all about the Music
Well I got one of these..........http://www.vhaudio.com/isoclean-fuses.html
It has made absolutely no difference to the sound of my amp. Sansui G-7700, It has been in for a few days, and yep nothing.
Maybe they are only effective on higher end equipment, I would have thought the Sansui was fairly high end.............DC coupled incredibly low distortion etc etc..............
I do have critical ears, I have been a professional sound engineer for 25 years, to be honest I was expecting something...................
So to answer the question "would I use an audiophile grade fuse?" the answer is not again.........
Being a technician I was a little skeptical, but hey some things with audio are mysterious so I tried it..............
It has made absolutely no difference to the sound of my amp. Sansui G-7700, It has been in for a few days, and yep nothing.
Maybe they are only effective on higher end equipment, I would have thought the Sansui was fairly high end.............DC coupled incredibly low distortion etc etc..............
I do have critical ears, I have been a professional sound engineer for 25 years, to be honest I was expecting something...................
So to answer the question "would I use an audiophile grade fuse?" the answer is not again.........
Being a technician I was a little skeptical, but hey some things with audio are mysterious so I tried it..............
Mr. Lin
Lunatic Member
That sucks, sorry to hear that. Like I said (I think), one of the things I tried the Hifi Tuning fuses in was an hybrid integrated amp I have, and I could not hear any difference whatsoever. But in my CD player and headphone amp I'm quite certain there was a difference, especially the CD player. I don't doubt at all that someone with your background would be able to hear what I'm talking about in the latter two components, which makes me think these things probably just aren't effective in everything out there.
Mr. Lin
Lunatic Member
Use? Yes.
Buy? If the same price as regulars.
Don't hold your breath on that one.
kevzep
Its all about the Music
Im not sorry, I the kind of person who put my money where my mouth is..........
I tried it, and obviously my gear doesnt respond to the fuses, no biggie.
Interesting what you found with the CD player, headphone amp........CD player with a small powersupply with sensitive digital electronics on the other side of it........could be something in that.........
Mr. Lin
Lunatic Member
And in fact I replaced two fuses in the CD player. One was the standard fuse in the IEC socket, the other was directly in the power supply, hidden in a little black plastic box I had to pry open with a tool.
I also put a little of the Mapleshade Audio "Silclear" on all the fuses. It's basically grease with microscopic silver platelets. I can't tell you if that was responsible for part of the improvement, but I figured it certainly couldn't hurt.
shelly_d
Not An Audiophool
Let us remember what the fuse is and whet it does. It is a short length of precisely sized wire that heats up and melts at a certain current. It is required to meet very exacting standards for safety reasons. Its all of 3/4 to 1.25 inches long. No matter what it is made of, the audiophile fuse still must get hot and melt at the same current as a standard fuse.
So I ask, how can a length 3/4 to 1.25 inch length of wire in the power supply (often in front of the power transformer) affect the performance of an audio circuit?
Shelly_D
So I ask, how can a length 3/4 to 1.25 inch length of wire in the power supply (often in front of the power transformer) affect the performance of an audio circuit?
Shelly_D
Mr. Lin
Lunatic Member
We've already debated this here, the answer is we don't know, but according to the experiences of many who've actually tried these fuses, they do work in some components.
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