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Hi-Fi Tunig Fuses & Parasound A21

Hi,
Have any Parasound A21 owners replaced the stock fuses with the Hi-Fi Tuning fuses in their amp? I understand that there are four 8A slow blow internal fuses and one 12A slow blow fuse on the rear panel. This is a awesome amp as-is. Just my curiosity.

Please share your experiences.

-Thanks,
milpai
wolf_garcia
4,650 posts
 
Still, no proponents of the Magic Fuses and their ability to make cellos sound better have EVER offered up any reasonable explanation for this…good, simple Littlefuses that cost maybe 6 bucks do the job just fine (failing if need be…that’s the job), and the entire premium fuse market is simply the "lets get a tiny item cheaply made in China for big bucks…small and easy to ship, make up a technology and provide the myths, and sell ’em to the unwary." Excellent business plan…and it works! If you think you and your system are sensitive enough to allow you to hear what premium magic fuses supposedly do, you may actually need these things to validate yourself. Otherwise, do what actual music and sound professionals and amp designers do…ignore the nonsense of silly and fraudulently marketed psuedo tweaks.
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
14,147 posts
 
wolf_garcia
2,673 posts
11-19-2016 1:46pm
Still, no proponents of the Magic Fuses and their ability to make cellos sound better have EVER offered up any reasonable explanation for this..

That’s simply not true. Repeating that line a hundred times actually doesn’t make it any less false. There are none SO blind as those that will not SEE.

almarg's avatar
almarg
8,673 posts
 
Geoff, note that he said "reasonable explanations."

First, as I have explained in detail in various fuse-related threads here, measured differences that have been reported among various fuses are too small to account for the sonic benefits that have been reported.

Second, as I see it the other kinds of explanations that have been proffered by you and others, such as reduced susceptibility to the effects of vibration, reduced susceptibility to RFI/EMI, exposure to what has been misleadingly referred to as "quantum tunneling," etc., are descriptions, not explanations. They describe some of the physical characteristics of the fuse, or how it has been manufactured.

But in the case of a mains fuse, for example, they do not explain how differences in those characteristics relative to say a Littelfuse or a Cooper Bussman fuse would affect the AC in a manner that would improve the sonics of a component, much less the sonics of a wide variety of components that are completely different in design and perform completely different functions. They also do not explain why those differences would not be totally swamped by the corresponding effects of everything else that is in the path, including circuit wiring and wiring in the power transformer, which involve far greater lengths. They also do not explain why in cases where the fuse upgrade does in fact make a difference why that difference is always for the better, regardless of the design of the component, the function of the component, the system it is used in, the AC voltage that is being provided, and regardless of whether the application involves AC or DC currents.

And they certainly don’t begin to address the effects of the fuse in a manner that would provide any kind of quantitative perspective. To clarify what I mean by “quantitative perspective,” in an automobile-related forum no one would assert that the weight of a paper map placed in the glove compartment would dramatically affect the acceleration or the gas mileage of a car, due to the obvious insignificance of its weight, relative to the weight of the car. We all have a quantitative understanding of that. But in audio quantitative matters and matters of degree are less obvious. So as I said in a post in the SR fuse thread:

… audio is somewhat unique in that there are countless technical variables that can be cited for which it is not readily possible to define a quantitative threshold separating what may potentially be audible in some systems from what is unquestionably insignificant. In the absence of that kind of quantitative perspective there is essentially no limit to what a perceived or claimed sonic effect can be attributed to. Or misattributed to.

Consistent with your comment just above, repeating a hundred times that explanations have been offered does not make it so. At least when it comes to "reasonable explanations."

Regards,

-- Al


georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
4,966 posts
 
There are none SO blind as those that will not SEE.

There none so blinded with their own voodoo, that "they can’t see the forest through the trees".

http://www.machinadynamica.com/

Cheers George
auxinput
1,538 posts
 

relating to this quote:

"Otherwise, do what actual music and sound professionals and amp designers do…ignore the nonsense of silly and fraudulently marketed psuedo tweaks."

I would like to say that amp designers have a completely different set of requirements to work against. They are working against limitations on cost and manufacturing processes. They need to weigh the availability of individual components when the equipment is actually manufactured or assembled. The idea that a Hi-Fi Tuning fuse can actually improve the sound is valid, but when it comes time to have these amps/equipment built on time and on demand so that they can ship to their distributors/retailers, the available of individual components becomes critical. What happens when a set of fuses are not available for weeks? A company like Bryston/Classe is not going to be able to wait to ship 20-50 units.  Also, cost of every single component adds up and the company's goal is always to use the cheapest components that allow them to meet a certain threshold (difference between a $4 Littlefuse and a $60 Hi-Fi Tuning becomes significant).

However, we also have companies like Audio Note or Audio Research who do focus on actual individual components (even down to what kind of carbon resistors are used or the type of solder). However, their manufacturing output is a lot less and item cost is a lot higher.

Music and sound professionals have an entirely different set of responsibilities and don’t have time to be critical about every single piece of equipment. I’m sure recording studios have something like 2-5 million dollars of equipment (tons of devices - racks and racks of equipment) and need all their time to focus on recording/mixing/effects/etc. They need equipment that is good enough to meet the bottom line, but they are not going to spend another 1-2 million and hours of time when "off the shelf" equipment is going to be decent enough to produce their product. In their industry, time is money. Unless your Cookie Morenco, who has tremendous focus on how individual components and wiring affect the sound. However, that is a very small niche market.

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