[Neobenedict]

Lol sorry to say this but changing a *mains side fuse* is nothing but snake oil. This is almost as stupid as those "audiophile network cables".

 

[Hypops]

Lol sorry to say this but changing a *mains side fuse* is nothing but snake oil. This is almost as stupid as those "audiophile network cables".

The instant I see someone use the phrase "snake oil," I know not to trust their opinion. Makes it even easier to dismiss your opinion when you add insults. If you can't say something nice... you get put on my ignore list.

 

[Neobenedict]

It does need to be brought up, otherwise people get tricked into sending their money to people who are effectively scammers. But hey that seems to happen a lot with "audiophile" equipment.

There is no benefit in an "audiophile fuse". None whatsoever. Do not waste your money. It will not make your gear sound better. Any difference you are claiming to be hearing is simply your imagination and the placebo effect.

There is a reason in medical science they use double-blind trials. I guarantee if you had a double-blind experiment with fuses nobody would be able to tell them apart.

Same applies to mains cables, and any cable that transfers a digital signal such as USB, digital coax, Toslink, ignoring the really shoddily made chinesium cables that are out there that will obviously cause issues.

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/impact-of-ac-distortion-noise-on-audio-equipment.25501/

 

[Middy]

More fuel for the fire
I've tried 2 fuses in my old singxer as well as the jumper.
My thoughts on fuses from actual experience.

Hideously expensive.
Some wouldn't be safe as a cheap bussman.
They do change the sound and it kills me to say so. It shouldn't do anything..
3 kilometres of power lines transformers and your neighbours houses ect...
I've bought audio fixers and gadgets from well known brands and done very little or nothing but the few fuses I tried Audophile made a change.
Those changes are noticeable immediately and over time subtlety.

The rub is do you like this change? does it give you an improvement or just something different ?

I work with Aerospace electronics engineers and a few that tried cannot explain to me why.

People here aren't flat earthers conspiracy nuts or fools or shills.
We've all jumped down hype holes and been disappointed or felt let down.
But we do try and experiment within our limits of knowledge and budget.
I tried one for the hell of it and it did what it said... and kicked in within 2 hour time frame which freaked me out a bit.
Find somewhere that do returns and loose the P+P and try....

If you buy one it will sell straight away as people sell they old ones to move up a level for These deluded QAnon type audiophiles love snake oil and spending thier money for no reason...

It was fun trying the experiments and was well worth the extra, cash time and experience.... Half the fun if you are that way inclined.
Always be sceptical but never totally dismissive....
Happy rabbit holes all....

 

[raif71]

Not sure what the fusse is all about

 

[Neobenedict]

Against my better judgement, I went and bypassed my fuse in my SA-1. Surely no fuse whatsoever would be best, right?

There is no difference in the audio, as I expected.

No idea why you guys think there is one, you are probably changing other variables or smoking something rather strong.

Seriously, do a blind trial. Get someone else to change the fuse and also not change the fuse (keep it the same between runs, just pretending to change the fuse). Tell them if you think you can hear a difference. Then see what the actual changes were.

Make sure you do not unplug any cables (obviously turn it off at the wall though) and do not take off your headphones between runs.

 

[Hypops]

More fuel for the fire
I've tried 2 fuses in my old singxer as well as the jumper.
My thoughts on fuses from actual experience.

Hideously expensive.
Some wouldn't be safe as a cheap bussman.
They do change the sound and it kills me to say so. It shouldn't do anything..
3 kilometres of power lines transformers and your neighbours houses ect...
I've bought audio fixers and gadgets from well known brands and done very little or nothing but the few fuses I tried Audophile made a change.
Those changes are noticeable immediately and over time subtlety.

The rub is do you like this change? does it give you an improvement or just something different ?

I work with Aerospace electronics engineers and a few that tried cannot explain to me why.

People here aren't flat earthers conspiracy nuts or fools or shills.
We've all jumped down hype holes and been disappointed or felt let down.
But we do try and experiment within our limits of knowledge and budget.
I tried one for the hell of it and it did what it said... and kicked in within 2 hour time frame which freaked me out a bit.
Find somewhere that do returns and loose the P+P and try....

If you buy one it will sell straight away as people sell they old ones to move up a level for These deluded QAnon type audiophiles love snake oil and spending thier money for no reason...

It was fun trying the experiments and was well worth the extra, cash time and experience.... Half the fun if you are that way inclined.
Always be sceptical but never totally dismissive....
Happy rabbit holes all....

Indeed. There's really no substitute for firsthand experience. There's a reason that good scientists are skeptics by nature. They're just as skeptical of data as they are of observation. I've said it many times elsewhere, but it clearly bears repeating: science is built on the discrepancy between measurement and observation. If observation doesn't agree with the measurement, a good scientist doesn't dismiss the observation (and vice versa). Investigating that contradiction is, in fact, where science happens.

 

[Friskyseal]

Was just looking into some of these, but I'm clueless when it comes to choosing the correct fuse type. All I can see on the original fuse is that it's rated at 2 Amps for 250V and a quick measurement tells me it's small in size (5x20mm). But nothing visible tells me if it's a fast or slow blow. Not sure how much the difference matters. I also see that you've used one that's a bit lower than the stock fuse (1.6A) which would make it more likely to blow, yes? No idea how wise or safe it is to go lower tolerance than the original (but I can guess that going higher is a very bad idea).

You pretty much figured it out for yourself. You want 2A Small Slow-Blow.

The Gustard fuse (which I don't ultimately recommend) doesn't come in 2A; some people in this thread figured out that the 1.6A version is close enough and works fine. Maybe this introduces some form of risk, I don't know, but I used this fuse in my amp for months without any issues. I've found that if a fuse isn't compatible, the amp won't power on (the red light in the switch won't light up and the amp just won't turn on). Maybe this change is why, while the Gustard sounds good to me and better than stock, it ultimately sounds "weird" to me in how it presents soundstage but it may just be a coincidence.

Supposedly fuses are power-directional and sound different depending on what direction they are installed in. The advice is to install it one way, listen, and then try the other way to see what sounds best. Some manufacturers orient the direction of the logo or marking on the fuse to match how it should be installed. When you look at the metal endcaps of the fuse, on one side there is a marking that to me looks like an arrow. I think this might indicate the direction the power flows. The Singxer is a bit different in that the fuse is installed vertically not horizontally (the power cord goes in "sideways"). From my testing, the proper direction is for the writing/logo/arrow to point UP. If you take out the stock fuse, you should find this arrow marking on the cap that was pointing up.

 

[Friskyseal]

Against my better judgement, I went and bypassed my fuse in my SA-1. Surely no fuse whatsoever would be best, right?

I don't understand this, because if I take the fuse out of my Singxer, the amp will not power on?

 

[Riverflow]

I have had my singxer running on a gustard 1.6a audio fuse for the last few months and meant to swap back for comparison and to be honest forgot about it.Then reading this has prompted me to change back to the original fuse today and will listen.
I did remove the lid on the box and put the scope on the fuse output to compare the two fuses there was no obverse difference but I will give it a good listening.

 

[rjacko01]

The fvuse expressed here are subjective lest anyone like myself rush out and purchase the ultra transparent chord fvuse that elimates even the headphone amp itself, leaving you to enjoy a noise floor so low that even with music playing there is a Depeche mode moment of 'enjoy the slience'. Truly a moment to behold, when you can hear nothing through your cans enjoy that nivarna moment and rest assured you have attained that rare moment of audio bliss. On a more serious note, amp is running perfectly on stock fuse, for a long time now, and would explore a change of amp first, which might give more immediate results..

 

[Hypops]

The fvuse expressed here are subjective lest anyone like myself rush out and purchase the ultra transparent chord fvuse that elimates even the headphone amp itself, leaving you to enjoy a noise floor so low that even with music playing there is a Depeche mode moment of 'enjoy the slience'. Truly a moment to behold, when you can hear nothing through your cans enjoy that nivarna moment and rest assured you have attained that rare moment of audio bliss. On a more serious note, amp is running perfectly on stock fuse, for a long time now, and would explore a change of amp first, which might give more immediate results..

The appeal of replacing a ($30) fuse versus upgrading to a new amp (>$800) would be obvious, I hope.

 

[Hypops]

You pretty much figured it out for yourself. You want 2A Small Slow-Blow.

The Gustard fuse (which I don't ultimately recommend) doesn't come in 2A; some people in this thread figured out that the 1.6A version is close enough and works fine. Maybe this introduces some form of risk, I don't know, but I used this fuse in my amp for months without any issues. I've found that if a fuse isn't compatible, the amp won't power on (the red light in the switch won't light up and the amp just won't turn on). Maybe this change is why, while the Gustard sounds good to me and better than stock, it ultimately sounds "weird" to me in how it presents soundstage but it may just be a coincidence.

Supposedly fuses are power-directional and sound different depending on what direction they are installed in. The advice is to install it one way, listen, and then try the other way to see what sounds best. Some manufacturers orient the direction of the logo or marking on the fuse to match how it should be installed. When you look at the metal endcaps of the fuse, on one side there is a marking that to me looks like an arrow. I think this might indicate the direction the power flows. The Singxer is a bit different in that the fuse is installed vertically not horizontally (the power cord goes in "sideways"). From my testing, the proper direction is for the writing/logo/arrow to point UP. If you take out the stock fuse, you should find this arrow marking on the cap that was pointing up.

Quick follow up. I ordered a couple of fuses to try (the Acme fuse and a discontinued/discounted Synergistic Research one), but in the meantime I decided to check out what, if anything, happens when you reorient the direction of the stock Singxer fuse. I fully expected to hear no difference. But I... did. One orientation was distinctly brighter (some might call it "more detailed"). Went back and forth a few times just to be sure. How in the world could orientation matter? I even tried cleaning both ends as well as the socket connection just to be sure. I mean, it's a simple coiled filament between two conducting ends. I'm totally stumped. It's as silly as saying a cable or wire has an ideal direction. And yet...

Also: the marking(s) on the endcap of the fuse are the various global standards and approval markings (reference). There are a few that look like arrows. The stock fuse in my Singxer has one marking from "Verband Deutscher Electrotechniker" ["Association of German Electrical Engineers"] that looks like an arrow with the initials "VDE" inside it. It's not an orientation marking (but it did happen to coincide with the brighter-sounding orientation).

 

[Friskyseal]

Quick follow up. I ordered a couple of fuses to try (the Acme fuse and a discontinued/discounted Synergistic Research one), but in the meantime I decided to check out what, if anything, happens when you reorient the direction of the stock Singxer fuse. I fully expected to hear no difference. But I... did. One orientation was distinctly brighter (some might call it "more detailed"). Went back and forth a few times just to be sure. How in the world could orientation matter? I even tried cleaning both ends as well as the socket connection just to be sure. I mean, it's a simple coiled filament between two conducting ends. I'm totally stumped. It's as silly as saying a cable or wire has an ideal direction. And yet...

Also: the marking(s) on the endcap of the fuse are the various global standards and approval markings (reference). There are a few that look like arrows. The stock fuse in my Singxer has one marking from "Verband Deutscher Electrotechniker" ["Association of German Electrical Engineers"] that looks like an arrow with the initials "VDE" inside it. It's not an orientation marking (but it did happen to coincide with the brighter-sounding orientation).

Oh, cool. That's pretty clever. Thanks for clarifying. You're right, I was thinking the VDE logo might be an arrow. But! For most of my testing, I went by the orientation/direction of the logo or text on the body of the fuse. For the HiFi-Tuning/SR/Gustard fuses that's pretty easy, but the Acme one doesn't have any logo because of the coating so you'll have to test it both ways and report back. Also, I'm pretty sure the VDE logo always matched the logos as far as what I determined should be "up" or "down".

You seem more knowledegable in this area, but from my understanding it's not the same as an audio cable; the filament is designed with a particular directional power flow. I think it has to do with matching what is the positive or negative charge on the power plug (like the two prongs of the power plug are not exactly the same? Hence why some plugs only fit into sockets one way?) -- but I'm really out of my depth here so I'm not making any claims!

 

[Hypops]

Oh, cool. That's pretty clever. Thanks for clarifying. You're right, I was thinking the VDE logo might be an arrow. But! For most of my testing, I went by the orientation/direction of the logo or text on the body of the fuse. For the HiFi-Tuning/SR/Gustard fuses that's pretty easy, but the Acme one doesn't have any logo because of the coating so you'll have to test it both ways and report back. Also, I'm pretty sure the VDE logo always matched the logos as far as what I determined should be "up" or "down".

You seem more knowledegable in this area, but from my understanding it's not the same as an audio cable; the filament is designed with a particular directional power flow. I think it has to do with matching what is the positive or negative charge on the power plug (like the two prongs of the power plug are not exactly the same? Hence why some plugs only fit into sockets one way?) -- but I'm really out of my depth here so I'm not making any claims!

By design, there shouldn't be a difference in orientation. They're bipolar. But I cant ignore what I hear. Could be that because of the rounded endcaps each side has a slightly different connection within the circuit. Could be that the fuse settles into the socket slightly differently each time I take it out and put it back in. Could be some other silent variable. Dunno. I've even read folks saying that Synergistic Research fuses sound better "backwards." Who can say. Like you, I'm out of my depth here.

As with cables and interconnects, I mostly just follow my ears since the science (such as it is) is all over the place. It's the thing I value most about this hobby: first-hand experimentation.