Best fuses for under $50?

Thanks! for sharing that with everyone kosst.

Uncle Fester may be able to help with the power issue.

Dave

I've turned my equipment on and off as much as anyone here and I've never had a fuse blow on me. Maybe you should have someone take a look at your equipment if it's blowing fuses once a week. 🤔

I recently got my Quad II amps restored. They appear to be quite early, from the era when the amps were made and used in mono, though I haven't verified what year. Through a stupid move on my part, one of the fuses cracked-(the fuse holders are original- they conceal the end of the fuse but don't fully protect it). When I managed to extract it, and pulled the fuse from the other amp, they had the markings of the original fuses supplied with the amps- Belling Lee. I speculate that those fuses may have been in the amps since the '50s, when they were built. 
I replaced them with Littelfuse pieces of the original spec--I guess they aren't "original" in the purist sense, but it's a good quality fuse. A five pack was $1.68. 
I suppose, like anything else in this hobby, you can look for any slight improvement - current passes through these things, so it is part of the power supply, and just like other things, may yield an improvement, I don't know. (I do know that some audiophiles advocate "audiophile" fuses but never crossed that bridge simply because other things were more important). For example, with these amps, I sought out a matched quartet of original GEC KT-66 tubes, along with other period tubes. That, to me, was money well spent. The amps sound glorious on the Quad ESL. (Second system). 

I’ve turned my equipment on and off as much as anyone here and I’ve never had a fuse blow on me.

This is what happens to a fuse over many switch on surges. Same fuse 5 different ageing periods, it hardens, carbonises, distorts it’s straight (new) shape because of flexing and will blow in the end.
And it’s the only reason a fuse can sound better when changed. Is that when you change one that’s on the right that’s seen many switch on surges for just a brand new one of the same.
https://i.stack.imgur.com/0uqWX.jpg

Cheers George

Kosst_Amojan 8-15-2017
I tend to blow one once a week if I power it off and on again too fast while messing with connections.

Georgehifi 8-15-2017
This is what happens to a fuse over many switch on surges. Same fuse 5 different ageing periods, it hardens, carbonises, distorts it’s straight (new) shape because of flexing and will blow in the end.

I would add that depending on the specific design even a brand new fuse might blow if a component is turned on too soon after being turned off. DC voltages that are supplied to various parts of the circuitry may still be in the process of decaying, resulting in uncontrolled and unpredictable behavior if the component is turned on while that is occurring.

IMO it’s never a good idea to turn any electronic component on until sufficient time has elapsed from when it was turned off to be confident that all of its circuitry is no longer capable of functioning in any manner, controlled or uncontrolled. That may mean a few seconds or a few minutes, depending on the specific design.

Regards,
-- Al