[Mike Gillespie]

Any one know the Fuse type or the 1.7i?

4A Large Fast Blow?

Any one try the Hi-fi Supreme or Gold etc?

Any one try the Synergistic Fuses?

Much difference noted?

Thanks.

[barrows]

I had Hi Fi Tuning Supreme silver/gold fuses in my DAC and amplifier, and then I had a chance to try the Synergistic Red fuses for free.  The Synergistic Red fuse is better in both components, and this was not just a difference, but an improvement; most noticably more ambience retrieval/better sense of space around images.  This is maddening to me, as these are just AC input fuses in these two cases!  But I cannot deny the improvement.
In a speaker application the fuse is in series with the signal, so I would suspect a big improvement.  If it were me, I would go Synergistic Red for sure...

[Mike Gillespie]

Thanks, Barrows.

[raindance]

Why waste your money on a so-called audiophile fuse? Just bypass the fuse. It costs nothing. You'd need about a gazillion watts of square wave distortion to blow the speakers anyhow. I tried a few options on my 1.6's and bypassing the fuses (very simple mod, just move a wire from one side to the other on the rear of the fuse holder) yielded more ability to "hear into" the recording than did anything else.

[steve f]

Most if not all boutique fuses aren't certified as fuses by any safety standard. A waste of money, and could be dangerous to your equipment, or you.

I also agree that removing a speaker fuse is likely to do nothing except void a warranty. Few speakers use them.

[Davey]

I find it disturbing that an "Industry Participant" would actually advocate and/or recommend this type of dubious safety device.

steve f is absolutely correct with his comments.

Dave.

[louie3]

Right on Steve F.  +1

[barrows]

I find it disturbing that an "Industry Participant" would actually advocate and/or recommend this type of dubious safety device.

steve f is absolutely correct with his comments.

Dave.

Dave, have you ever heard of any aftermarket fuse causing any problem in any piece of equipment?   Are you aware of what the "safety certification" actually entails (for instance, UL)?
Do you understand what an AC input fuse really does?

I have used, and continue to use, Furutech, Hi Fi Tuning, and Synergistic fuses with complete confidence.  My own testing indicates that these fuses actually have a tighter tolerance than a standard Littlefuse or Buss product.  If there is any difference, the high end audio fuses actually blow a little ealier (at the same A rating) than their mass market counterparts.

Although here we are talking about speaker fusing, which is a little different (I cannot think of any fire risk associated with a speaker, the voice coil, or ribbon will just disintegrate long before there is any risk of actual flame production) where we do need to consider problems is with AC input fuses.  The sole purpose of an AC input fuse is protect the component from bursting into flame (or the chassis becoming connected to AC hot) in the event of a catastrophic internal failure.  A fuse does not protect a component from damage (for instance, over voltage surges) a fuse only stops a component from bursting into flame when it experiences a drastic internal failure: if you need a fuse to blow, it does so after the component has already failed.

Do you really think that a high end fuse such as we are discussing here will continue to conduct current for long enough for a component to burst into flame in the event of a catastrophic internal failure?

Additionally, beyond fuses alone, are you aware that most high end audio components sold in the US are not safety rated by UL at all?  Do you have such components in your system?

[Davey]

I have used, and continue to use, Furutech, Hi Fi Tuning, and Synergistic fuses with complete confidence.  My own testing indicates that these fuses actually have a tighter tolerance than a standard Littlefuse or Buss product.  If there is any difference, the high end audio fuses actually blow a little earlier (at the same A rating) than their mass market counterparts.

Have you done testing to confirm that?  All indications that I've read regarding these boutique fuses is that they open at higher currents relative to equal current rating standard fuses.  But, nobody appears to be interested in actually testing these fuses to failure and documenting the results.  At the price, I can understand! 

The rest of your post is just flame-bursting rhetorical nonsense.  Give us all a break, please.

Dave.

[Roger Gustavsson]

The fuse holders are the weak point (and all the internal connections around the crossover/connectors). You can use fuses that have solder tags. The fuses are not really protecting the speakers very well anyway...

[steve f]

Industry great Roger Modjeski condemned boutique fuses. He wrote that they did not operate properly. Roger has probably forgotten more about electrical engineering than this entire forum knows. Sorry, but boutique fuses are indefensibly wrong. Safety must not be compromised.

No flame warriors need apply.

[louie3]

"Industry great Roger Modjeski condemned boutique fuses."   and paid the price for his views right here in the Circle of Audio, I believe.

Roger begged, pleaded, warned people not to use these fuses in Music Reference gear.

And still does.   The  Fuse guy could not or would not provide Roger with any testing information.  If we were talking about something else, say a new special drug, no testing information would indicate something being amiss, would it not?   While hardly in the same league as a new drug, untested or untestable fuses smell like snake oil to me.

I am embarrassed to admit I tried them in a pair of Classe monoblocks, could absolutely no change, other than when one of them blew for no apparent reason.   I replaced it with a Littlefuse and continued to spin records.

But hey, I am an admitted Luddite...I let cables lie on a concrete floor without the benefit of cable risers of any kind. 

[I.Greyhound Fan]

You have to be nuts to bypass the fuses in speakers.  I accidentally blew the fuses in my 1.6's and my speakers survived the accident without any further damage.  I would be leery about replacing the stock fuses without knowing if the aftermarket fuses worked as well.

[Davey]

You have to be nuts to bypass the fuses in speakers.

No, you just have to understand the risks.
Much depends upon the protection circuits utilized in your power amplifier, and how it protects itself and the load in the event of failure.
Most likely your 1.6's would have survived just fine. The quasi-ribbon tweeter is more fragile than the woofer, but not significantly so.  Either could be damaged with significant current over significant time.  Yet Magnepan does not fuse the woofer.

It's unfortunate that these boutique fuses are judged (by some users) entirely on their subjective aspects, with no interest in their objective performance.  I find that highly puzzling.

Dave.

[SteveFord]

I've blown enough fuses in Magnepans over the years to make me glad that I never bypassed them.
I can't help the OP with the question of Synergistic or Hi-Fi Supreme as the price tag of "audiophile-grade" fuses just seems ridiculously out of line considering what you're getting in return.

[SteveFord]

Josh brought up a good point in an email - people might be hearing differences when the contacts are inadvertently cleaned when the fuses are replaced.

[Davey]

Josh brought up a good point in an email - people might be hearing differences when the contacts are inadvertently cleaned when the fuses are replaced.

Yeah, maybe.  But if contact resistance might be a significant portion of audibility improvement, then what does that say about the "sound" of the fuse elements themselves? 
There's nothing about these fuses that makes any sense from an objective viewpoint.  It's disappointing to see people wasting money on this type of nonsense.

Dave.

[barrows]

I've blown enough fuses in Magnepans over the years to make me glad that I never bypassed them.
I can't help the OP with the question of Synergistic or Hi-Fi Supreme as the price tag of "audiophile-grade" fuses just seems ridiculously out of line considering what you're getting in return.

Steve: are you in product development, marketing, and sales?  Have you developed and brought to market products in a loe economy of scale industry such as high end audio?  I ask, because people who have experience doing these things understand how expensive it can be to run a business where the potential sales numbers are very low.
When I worked for PS Audio we distributed AHP (German made) fuses in the US.  Fuses are a particularly expensive accessory to produce and stock, because so many different values are necessary (all those values tie up cash flow, something which is a constant problem for any high end audio company).  We ordered fuses from Germany in bulk, paying up front (this costs the business in cash flow, and usually interest), then we sorted the fuses on receipt, and then sent them out for cryo treating.  After cryo treating, the fuses were sorted and stocked by value and size.  When a fuse was ordered (and these were usually orders of one or two fuses and nothing else) we individually tested the the fuses for continuity, individually packaged them, and shipped them.  I think even someone who does not have any experience in a business which manufactures, markets, distributes and sells products can see how the costs to the business start adding up.  Believe me, at PS we did not make much profit on our fuse sales.

[barrows]

Josh brought up a good point in an email - people might be hearing differences when the contacts are inadvertently cleaned when the fuses are replaced.

Absolutely, the same is true for audioning new cables.  I always recommend cleaning all contacts first, putting back in the old fuse/cable, listening, and then replacing with the new fuse/cable for auditioning.

[SteveFord]

barrows,
It seems you feel that audiophile grade fuses offer something that a regular old fuse from Radio Shack can't provide.

In your experience, exactly what constitutes an audiophile grade fuse? 
What would make it special?
Was there a reason for the cryo treating? 
What sonic benefits can the end user expect?
Did you do A/B or blind testing and did the results make you decide to go ahead and carry these fuses?

I've been wrong before so learn me somethin' as they say.
This is not an invitation to be ridiculed, these are honest questions.