Will there be any 'Arrow' mark in a Fuse holder?

If neither the skeptics nor the believers are willing or able to confirm with a easy blind test, then, does the subject discussed really matter at all?

Just a thought. But it seems so many topics in this hobby fall into this kind of elusive category.

The subject matters to the "skeptics" only to the extent that it's another opportunity to suggest that blind tests would *prove* the damned thing doesn't work. "Skeptics" automatically assume the damned thing doesn't work. How scientific is that?

Geoffkait: "The subject matters to the "skeptics" only to the extent that it's another opportunity to suggest that blind tests would *prove* the damned thing doesn't work."

Actually, in my case I'm looking for proof that it does work. There's nothing that I have seen to suggest to me that changing the direction of a fuse will change the sound. Based on that I think it makes perfect sense for me to automatically assume that "the damned thing doesn't work" as you put it.
My integrated has a fuse holder at the back, so I can access the fuse without opening the case. Tonight I'll swap the fuse around and see if I hear a difference.

Are you guys talking about the AC mains fuse?

Sid, my feeling is that a blind test would be unlikely to accomplish anything.

Most blind tests that have been reported in the past, involving things that would seem more likely to make a perceivable difference than fuse orientation (such as cables and even amplifiers), have resulted in a finding that no differences were perceivable.

Assuming that would be the outcome, the believers would allege that the skeptics did not hear a difference because of negative placebo effect (i.e., they did not expect to hear a difference so they did not). They would also claim, perhaps with some legitimacy, that they themselves did not hear a difference due to lack of familiarity with the sound of the system, or due to listener fatigue that might develop during the course of the tests, or due to other aspects of the test conditions.

Also, I would not characterize conducting such a test as "easy." Eliminating the possibility of differences being caused by extraneous variables, such as the ones I mentioned in my earlier post, would require very careful control of a lot of things. And at least several test subjects would have to be involved, to eliminate the possibility that the test result might be the result of guesswork (while not requiring any individual listener to go through an unreasonable number of trials, that might lead to listener fatigue). The inclusion of several test subjects again raising the issue of lack of adequate familiarity with the sound of the system.

Sebrof, yes we are talking about the ac mains fuse on the component. My suggestion would be that if you think you hear a difference, go back and forth a couple of times to confirm (allowing a few minutes for warmup between each reversal).

Best regards,
-- Al

I find it's harder to be skeptical if there is a rational hypothesis provided that's at least loosely grounded in the physics, acoustics, or material sciences.

How a fuse that's conducting AC, especially one that's not in the signal path, can have a real affect the sonics escapes me.