Synergistic Research Plug Fuse

Anavrin posted:

It’s odd that it has a black blob on the side and that’s directional, and the blue SR sticker rapped around it to disguise any original markings.

 There’s clearly more going on than a graphene coating, maybe an electrical component inside like a diode and some kind of drain for noise, Tomorrow I will take it to work if I remember, did I mention I work with x-rays!

These have all the signs of being just a little non-compliant;   do SR claim they are approved for BS1362 ??  Pertinent question as the fuse does not show any amp/heat rating info or any BS indicators,  the www blurb does not give any info on amp rating that I can find.    And another alarm is they are a US company & wonder if they know about this stuff.  

I’ve had a look Mike and unfortunately I can’t find any ‘audiophile’ fuses that are BS1362 approved. 

Finkfan posted:

I’ve had a look Mike and unfortunately I can’t find any ‘audiophile’ fuses that are BS1362 approved. 

Indeed,  much as I have found Finkfan.   There is a tiny bit more to UK plug fuses than most peeps know.  The BS stuff is not as the initials might hint & its all done for a reason  - safety - see my previous post on testing & counterfeit fuses. 

 A 13A BS1362 rated fuse is not designed to actually blow at 13 amps, the rating specifies the heat of the fuse at that current. The wire inside a fuse heats up when its carrying a current; the more current the hotter it gets. BS1362 specifies a maximum heat dissipation of one watt from the fuse when its is carrying the rated current. The actual current that a BS1362 rated fuse will blow is about 1.7 times the rated value, so for a 13A fuse this will be around 21 to 22  amps.        Another BS1362 specification is that whatever the current that causes the fuse to blow, 25amps or 100 amps or a dead short, the fuse itself must remain intact. The ceramic section is a sand filled tube is designed specifically to contain rapid heat expansion, molten metal & fire flash.

Whatever,  how people use these fuses is up to the individual, its a free country & there is no law that says its mandatory.     But your home insurance company might be a little less forgiving.

That picture reminds me of a plug I bought many years ago from Woolworths.  It melted through the top side when I used it on a fan heater (with the appropriate fuse).  The fuse holder part of the live pin was exposed through the top of the plug.  Not a great design.

The exploding plasma ball from the 5A fuse is quite impressive - it just shows what a clever design a BS1362 fuse is to contain that amount of energy in such a small space.

From a safety aspect, fake (and other non BS1362) fuses are seriously scary, as are other imported fake mains electrical items such as plugs, sockets and leads, wall warts and particularly personal electrical appliances like hair-dryers.

Yes, I wouldn't want one in the consumer unit.    In all my life I have never ever experienced an exploding plug, but have many times needed to change a cartridge fuse.

I also just only wear a belt, and I don't feel I need to wear braces as well. 

Mike-B posted:

 

That's one way of burning in an Audiophile fuse.   

There’s certainly no claim that the SR fuse’s meet any particular safety standard, they don’t even display a rating label, for safety I would suggest using them in plugtops that are plugged into an extension cable, which has a regular 13amp fuse installed in its plugtop, this will protect the other cables plugged in to it.

I’ve melted a few plugtops and sockets in my time, I do a bit of home brewing and running a 3kw element on 13amp fused plug for hours at a time isn’t good, these days I use a 16amp leasure connector, like you get on caravans/boats etc.

Plus I have a triac controlled power regulator, so I can run powerful elements at a much lower power.

They are CE marked not BS.

Without expert understanding I would be very wary of replacing a fuse - which is a functional safety device - of any given rating with one of unspecified rating, unless there is further protiction of an adequate rating further up in the mains supply (e.g. breaker in the distribution board) - and adequate means low enough to adequately protect whatever the original fuse was protecting.

As for connecting an extension lead in line with a standard fuse in its plug, doesn’t that rather defeat the object, as the supply is still going through a 13A (or whatever) standard fuse? (Unless someone is suggesting that an inch of graphene or graphene-coated substrate can improve sound quality of whatever is fed through it, compared to direct unfused connection through plain mains cabling?)

Innocent Bystander posted:

... (Unless someone is suggesting that an inch of graphene or graphene-coated substrate can improve sound quality of whatever is fed through it, compared to direct unfused connection through plain mains cabling?)

That's exactly what SR are claiming! 

A CE mark indicates nothing w.r.t. a specific electrical compliance or test standard.   A CE mark means that the manufacturer is declaring & has documented how they are made & that they conform to a European standard.   If indeed they do conform to the BS standard & its specifically for use in a UK standard product,  why bother with CE marking & why not just include the BS number.      The CE mark is much abused & there are many cases of products made outside the EU with a "CE" mark stuck on somewhere,   just like the false manufacturers names, BS & Kite marks on the auction site counterfeit fuses.   

I got caught up in a similar heated exchange on whether it's ok to charge up an iphone from an iPad charger.

CE = Legal requirement

BS - Standard is voluntary

Huge posted:

Innocent Bystander posted:

... (Unless someone is suggesting that an inch of graphene or graphene-coated substrate can improve sound quality of whatever is fed through it, compared to direct unfused connection through plain mains cabling?)

That's exactly what SR are claiming! 

I thought their claim was in comparison to just under an inch of fusewire, 13A rating or maybe less, rather than the mains cable.

Obsydian posted:

CE = Legal requirement

BS - Standard is voluntary

A BS1362 mark constitutes a claim to meet the requirements of the BS, meaning that it is claimed to conform to the current-rating and blowing characteristics applicable to the declared rating, and indeed Is required ro declare the rating: so, to sell a fuse declaring BS1362 without also both declaring the rating and conforming to the required characteristics, is likely to contravene Trade Descriptions legislation. That of course doesn’t make any difference to counterfeiters (..until they are caught!)

A CE mark means it is claimed to conform to all relevent EU standards - there  might or might  not (I don’t know as I haven’t looked) be one that specifies fuse rating marking and particular failure characteristics, however I am certain that there is none specifying failure characteristics for an unrated fuse.

Obsydian posted:

CE = Legal requirement         BS - Standard is voluntary

Just so,  but you are missing the point.    CE means it complies to one or more various EU standard(s)  & as a whole is declared by by the manufacturer to conform & is therefore legally approved to be used in EU & EEFTA.    BS1362 is specifically applied to the UK standard 13amp plug fuse,  a single item.  To apply a CE Marking to a UK plug type fuse is pointless as it must first have compliance to BS1362. 

Of further interest on the BS vs CE thing is something I have found on t'intertweb

"  CE Marking is NEVER appropriate for domestic (UK)  mains plugs and sockets.  The CE Marking scheme is a self-certification scheme to indicate that a product complies with the relevant EU Directive.  There is no such thing as “CE approval”.  Domestic plugs and sockets, such as those conforming to BS1363, are controlled by national standards, not EU standards, and must not therefore have a CE Marking applied to them.  (  See page 7 of Guidlines on the application of Directive  2006/95/EC  )    " 

Mike-B posted:

These have all the signs of being just a little non-compliant;   do SR claim they are approved for BS1362 ??  Pertinent question as the fuse does not show any amp/heat rating info or any BS indicators,  the www blurb does not give any info on amp rating that I can find.    And another alarm is they are a US company & wonder if they know about this stuff.  

I just had a look at the Future Shop  website, selling these, and they clearly say 13A fuse, and have a photo of a blue cartridge fuse-like object with 13A 240V on it, so it appears they do have an amp rating, even though possibly nothing else to qualify it like a BS  number - or did I misunderstand what you meant by amp rating?

Innocent Bystander posted:

.............  a photo of a blue cartridge fuse-like object with 13A 240V on it, so it appears they do have an amp rating, even though possibly nothing else to qualify it like a BS  number - or did I misunderstand what you meant by amp rating?

I'm obliged IB,  I was referring to the SR web site in my post.     I don't think anyone's misunderstanding about the "rating",    its generally accepted that 13A is 13 amps although it actually means the fuse (to BS1362) will emit 1 Watt of heat at 13 amps.     However 240V is a teeny bit non-compliant,   the EU Norm (& that includes UK pre & post brexit) is 230V.    

Interesting they do not sell or give a UK plug option, I assume as MIKEB says that would have to be BS compliant, or does the CE Trump that, assuming it's legit, which I had the distributor share when questioned prior to purchase.

Practically every chinese electical device seems to  CE on it, but its a slightly odd font, and nothing to do with a CE mark.

Obsydian posted:

Interesting they do not sell or give a UK plug option, I assume as MIKEB says that would have to be BS compliant, or does the CE Trump that, assuming it's legit, which I had the distributor share when questioned prior to purchase.

With BS, Trump and CE all in the same sentence, I feel you may be getting close the the crux of the problem here ????

I am intrigued by this but with Obsydian giving an enthusiastic "night and day" reaction to the difference it makes and Anavrin giving a lukewarm response to it I am a bit wary, despite the 30 day money back offer. I realise that Anavrin hasn't had the fuse for very long and therefore enthusiasm may well increase. I am watching this thread with anticipation.

All this compliance, BS, CE,  is it or isn't it,  is all very interesting;  but I'm feel guilty about starting all this grief.  The thread was started in good faith about the sonic gains of the SR fuse,    As far as I can find none of the 'audiophile' fuse brands appear to be claiming they comply to anything,  which is maybe a positive in a way.  With other stuff on the market falsely claiming to be to BSI standards,  including the IEC320 'kettle' leads,  wall sockets & fuses, it maybe is better to just go with these fuses.  They claim to be a fuse, which they are,  & rated at whatever amps it says on the fuse.   The question is do they or don't they ??? in the absence of BS1362 conformance, there's only one way to find out.    Maybe time to listen & judge if the SQ change is worth the money.