how much for a fuse,

[booja30]

Have you noticed that the only foo parts out there are ones that can be popped in by the end user? If the mains and tiny fuse wire were so important, surely you’d want to also replace wire between the IEC and transformer, maybe the transformer itself, the power switch. But for most people this would require a repair person. So instead we mostly see fuses, cables, mains distribution b(ol)locks, mains regenerators, etc.

And then you have magic jumper cables for biwire speaker terminals (vs the wire inside the speaker). Hifi isolation furniture (trophy shelves) that are supposed to ‘open up’ solid state devices. Really? Sure, turntables, valves and phone stages... But treating your solid state equipment like The Princess and the Pea? Why not? It’s easy to install and looks cool(?), so it’s easier to sell than items that actually make a big difference but aren’t plug and play.

 

[chartz]

Exactly! That was my point.
I buy my fuses € 1 for a box of 10.
But they have no blue and gold stickers on them, they are not delivered in a wooden box, they were not deep frozen (I think).

 

[Mr Pig]

I once bypassed the fuses in the mains plugs and soldered a brass bar into a short extension lead, which was f-in hard to do by the way, and it sounded better. I only used it for a few days, as I found the notion of not burning my house down appealing.

 

[chartz]

I once bypassed the fuses in the mains plugs and soldered a brass bar into a short extension lead, which was f-in hard to do by the way, and it sounded better. I only used it for a few days, as I found the notion of not burning my house down appealing.

Excellent! I’ll laugh about it tomorrow.

 

[Mr Pig]

Excellent! I’ll laugh about it tomorrow.

Pretty stupid thing to do but I was young and curios.

 

[narabdela]

Let’s be serious about it.

Good luck with that!

 

[sq225917]

Those who can, do. Those who can't, foo.

Isn't it time we started reporting importers and vendors of products that haven't received electrical safety certification, likes foo fuses?

 

[booja30]

Isn't it time we started reporting importers and vendors of products that haven't received electrical safety certification, likes foo fuses?

My guess is that at least some of the foo fuses are just ordinary ones that have maybe been polished to a mirror finish and then have a classy sticker applied around the glass and go in a nice box. It would certainly be cheaper than making them. Maybe they even go in the fridge for a week?

I came across a similar practice 10 years ago when we had a boat. I was installing a shore power system and needed receptacles. A big manufacturer of boat electrical systems (panels, breakers, plugs/sockets had these 'marine grade' 110V receptacles that were supposedly more resistant to corrosion and had removable screws on the terminals so you could use crimped ring connectors instead of copper so they wouldn't come free from vibration. I bought one just to see (about $45) and opened it up. Inside was a Leviton ($6) GFCI receptacle that wasn't even disguised as anything else -- just the packaging. And the terminal screws weren't even removable as shown in the product photos. Nice mark up!

 

[Sue Pertwee-Tyr]

Those who can, do. Those who can't, foo.

Isn't it time we started reporting importers and vendors of products that haven't received electrical safety certification, likes foo fuses?

Is it?

Are there other things you think people should report to the authorities, too?

 

[Discopants]

Surely a ring mains circuit has a dedicated earth?, or are you meaning a dedicated “hifi” only outlet/circuit wired to the rcd consumer unit?.

I think a dedicated consumer unit for your hifi with hard wiring for each component is going to give you very good performance to cost benefit.

No fuses , good basis for grounding and good basis for protecting your system from the noisy domestic devices elsewhere.

 

[Ian G]

No fuses ?

 

[Discopants]

You have dedicated breakers per component

 

[pocketkitchen]

I think there are pretty tight regs in the UK about the make up of mains consumer units for very good reason. Install a dedicated earth rod, install separate radials or even separate consumer units for the Hifi by all means but arsing round with stuff that could invalidate your insurance or do much much worse for your health, wealth and happiness seems like a bad idea to me. I’m not one to decry those who use audiophile mains products but we have very good safety standards here and hard-wiring each components goes directly contrary to those.

 

[mansr]

My guess is that at least some of the foo fuses are just ordinary ones that have maybe been polished to a mirror finish and then have a classy sticker applied around the glass and go in a nice box. It would certainly be cheaper than making them. Maybe they even go in the fridge for a week?

That's probably true. However, some manufacturers of fooses, by their own admission, take standard fuses, drill a small hole in the end and fill them with unspecified substances. Since these substances most likely conduct heat better than air, the fuse current will be increased from the original specification. That could be dangerous. Moreover, some of those fooses are filled with beeswax, a flammable material. Doesn't seem like the brightest of ideas to me.

 

[mansr]

Unlike the standard posters here:

An artisanal fuze may well offer a small but meaningful improvement in the context of an audiophile system.

Do make sure it actually works as a fuze.

Interesting choice of spelling. I thought fuses, in this context, were supposed to _prevent_ things exploding.

 

[chartz]

My guess is that at least some of the foo fuses are just ordinary ones that have maybe been polished to a mirror finish and then have a classy sticker applied around the glass and go in a nice box. It would certainly be cheaper than making them. Maybe they even go in the fridge for a week?

Probably yes.

 

[narabdela]

No fuses , good basis for grounding and good basis for protecting your system from the noisy domestic devices elsewhere.

Oh ffs! This thread is getting silly.

(and dangerous).

 

[Sue Pertwee-Tyr]

Fuse threads always do.

 

[mansr]

This thread is getting silly.

What did you expect? It's a silly topic.

 

[Mike Reed]

I think a dedicated consumer unit for your hifi with hard wiring for each component is going to give you very good performance to cost benefit. No fuses , good basis for grounding and good basis for protecting your system from the noisy domestic devices elsewhere.

Quite, as per mine. Not sure what you mean by 'good basis for grounding', though.

You have dedicated breakers per component

And RCDs if you go the extra mile to RCBOs. If connected and certified by a registered sparks and appropriate supply components are selected, no danger.

Oh ffs! This thread is getting silly.

Fuse threads always do.

It's because they're directional and gravitate towards silliness. Mind you, the thread is about fuses, not dedicated radial circuits etc. Our ring main system requires fuses; radial systems for domestic supply in the States and just so many other countries don't employ fuses, except possibly in different/unusual applications; surely there's no need to duplicate protection.