[Wayne1]

I did have a short moment to listen to the Furutech fuse compared to the ACME Audio fuse in a SqueezeBox power supply.

It DOES sound a bit better. It is NOT worlds better but it does remove some harshness and glare.

Compared to the cost of some tweaks, the $45-50.00 for one of these fuses is worth the money.

Don't be expecting the second coming, but it should smooth out your sound.

I will see about offering these as upgrades in future mods. In the meantime, I believe TweekGeek.com would be able to get them for you.

[Pez]

Interesting... I got a chance to see the fuse, no listening though. I will say it looks interesting, it's one of those tweaks I am not 100% sold on, but perhaps I'll do a little comparison myself with the Acme audio vs a standard rat shack.

[cliffy]

I did have a short moment to listen to the Furutech fuse compared to the ACME Audio fuse in a SqueezeBox power supply.

I hope you remembered to remove the Furutech before you shipped out the power supply

[Wayne1]

It was in one of my personal power supplies 

I will put in another unit and let it run for a bit before I make my final decision.

$45-50.00 for a fuse does seem like a bit. Especially if you have 5 or more fuses in your system.

Jason, If you are sure your amp isn't going to eat the fuse, you can borrow it for a bit.

[Pez]

I'll have to run down to rat shack and get a quick blow 2A to make sure. I know my amp does fine with a 2A slow blow. 

[Wayne1]

Jason,

The Furutech is a 2 amp slo-blo fuse. The ACME is 2 amp quick. Home Depot also has a decent selection of fuses. Easier to find than a Rat Shack that carries parts.

You are welcome to stop by to take a listen here to the two fuses and to borrow the Furutech.

Stop by late afternoon. Bring beer 

[Pez]

Stopped by Wayne's beer and baby in hand. We did a quick comparison. It was pretty apparent when we put in the standard 2A fuse, but less so when we listened to the furutech vs the Acme. Wayne was kind enough to let me borrow the furutech to compare in my own system against the Acme. I'll post my impressions once the Acme is broken in.

[Wayne1]

It was a different power supply and a different source than I used before.

There was a MAJOR difference between a standard BUSS 3AG quick blow fuse and the ACME Audio silver plated fuse. The standard fuse influenced the sound to the extent it was almost unlistenable.  Icepick in the ears kind of screechy highs.

The ACME Audio fuse was smoother in the presentation. More natural. In comparison, there was not as much difference going to the Furutech. I am sure if we did not use the standard fuse we would be able to hear greater differences between the ACME and the Furutech.

If you have not tried any of the Audiophile fuses, I do suggest you give the ACME a try. They are about 1/4 the price of the Furutech and deliver at least 85% of the sound of the Furutech, in comparison to a standard BUSS fuse.

More evaluation is needed, but like most things, the final 2% of performance costs 90% more.

[Pez]

Just reread my post.  Yeah what I meant to say is that the buss fuse was pretty bad in comparison to the other two, though I will say (as silly as it may sound) I am going to put more hours on all three fuses and hear what the effect is. It may take some time as the furutech is the only one with any kind of time on it. Should be fun.

[Pez]

Ok I have allowed ample break in for all fuses here are my impressions.

Between the cheap fuses I had a 2A fast blow Bussman and a 2A slow blow Ratshack.  Between the two the Ratshack seemed to have better cleanliness in the highs. The Bussman was noticeably bad while the Ratshack didn't have any heinousness.

The two "audiophile grade" fuses I had are the Acme fast blow and the Furutech slow both 2A. I have to say both were a marked, albeit small improvement in the refinement of the treble region and slightly so in the mids noticeable on vocals. I found that the Furutech was very nice, but while it cleaned the highs up and the mids it did so in a somewhat sterilizing way. Nothing that made the music more enjoyable, just less artificial. The Acme on the other hand cleaned up the highs a bit while not making it sound less lively.

Again I want to emphasize that the furutech and Acme were definite improvements over a stock fuse, the Furutech is very much not worth the extra money when considering whether to go with it or the Acme especially since the Acme was better IMO. Go Acme!

[Pez]

Just another note I wanted to add. I listened to some tracks that were recorded with a ridiculous amount of air. I'm talking stuff like Enya (I know terrible right?) the goal was to find out if under any circumstance the Furutech was better. And low and behold, it was. If your system errs on the side of too much treble energy or if you listen to a lot of material that is airy then perhaps the furutech is the way to go. I could see this being a good thing in solid state gear or gear with a lot of silver wiring. I sometimes would swear the furutech had a slightly more solid image, but either it was so slight I couldn't really be definitive or my ears/system are not capable of picking it up. Either way, my nod goes to the Acme for overall price/performance and I acknowledge that I may have jumped the gun saying the furutech isn't all that. And before you ask, no one called me and threatened to beat me if I didn't amend my results. 

[OzarkTom]

Since I see that Furutech does not make fast blow fuses, how safe is it to replace a stock fast blow with a slow blow Furutech?

[Wayne1]

Since I see that Furutech does not make fast blow fuses, how safe is it to replace a stock fast blow with a slow blow Furutech?

It depends on what gear you are talking about. It is fine for one of the power supplies I built to use a slo-blo of the same value. I would not use a slo-blo in any gear without checking with the manufacturer.

[Pez]

Tom, you could avoid the whole issue and just buy some AMR fuses. They are cheaper and better than the furutechs IMO. 

[OzarkTom]

Is that the Acmes, Pez?

[Pez]

No high end cd player company. Check out this tread. http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=102819.0

[Mike B.]

Thanks for trying the Acme fuses. The philosophy has and remains to offer big bang for the buck. I wish someone would try and find a suitable alternative to the common fuse. Think of it this way. On the AC in, you are placing the equivalent of a small value 1/2 watt resistor in series with one leg. The problem increases as the the demand for current goes up.

[OzarkTom]

I know it is suicide, but over the years I have seen a few audiophiles put a solid copper bar in the place of the fuse. I am sure that they had a huge problem with that at one time or another.

[Pez]

That is always an option. Not a very good option, and certainly not one any manufacturer would be ok with.  but hey, if your only goal is great sound a copper pipe or just jumper wiring the fuse holder all together are both 'solutions'. Just like cauterizing a paper cut will stop you from bleeding.