Reconnected and fired up the Gryphon Apex tonight. I have everything wired up except the Vivid Spirits. That will most likely happen tomorrow. After testing two sets of Active Speakers, now it is time to revisit the baseline system. Fun.
Just had a great dinner at Omakase by Korami in Manhattan. The sushi was exceptional for the asking price.
It was so good that I used the money saved to order a holographic fuse for MU2â
Iâll get a confirmation tomorrow since itâs kind of late in the East Coast.
I put different fuses in my MU2. I donât recall any making an impression. I look forward to what you discover.
I hope it will make a little difference. MU2 uses a fast blew fuse so I cannot move it to another component in my system. The Pink fuse was just getting comfortable there but it may soon be kicked out, or not.
I had an AM2 fuse in the MU2. I donât recall a difference, but I wasnât listening for one. Like Stack AUVA isolators, the fuse upgrade was a ânecessaryâ part of the componentâs installation based on positive experiences with many other devices.
This full fuse âloomâ exists in my system as do the AUVAâs. Both companies have proven their worth. Bigger fish to fry with bigger system units.
Oh, the AM2 in the MU2 was gifted to forum member. Maybe he will chime in someday.
AM M2 fuse also made little difference in my MU2, but it made more noticeable improvement on my other devices. It is possible the improvement from it is similar to the characteristic of MU2 itself already, and therefore itâs less apparent or effective on MU2.
I heard more improvement from the Pink fuse than M2 since it has a more analytical effect which actually made MU2 sounding cleaner with better details, and not reducing its lifelike presence.
It will be interesting to see what Holographic fuse will do.
My wife is bugging me to get back to vacation
There are a few AM2 fuses in my system because in those cases there was a noticeable change that I liked.
But in one of my First Watt amps, it sounds worse than the stock fuse. My guess is that the low wattage amp was precisely voiced with the glass fuse and the AM2 changes itâs character for the worse.
I expect a thorough comparison to the mighty XP-27, Ron. 
TonyâIâll have to live with it for a few weeks before I decide which stays. But here are some random thoughts:
I love itâs looks. Display is nice.
RIAA is all I need. The other curves are of no value to me.
XP27 offers more loading choices from the front panel. For more precise loading ARC, one must open it up and fart around with resistorsâno thank you.
ARC needs 45 to 60 minutes warm up after which it bloomsânight and day warm up difference.
Bass is not as deep as XP27 although I forced it to tell me about bass with Ray Brownâs âSoular Energyâ and bass is realistic and satisfying.
Mid range (what I care about most) has more harmonic richness.
Image separation is more defined than XP27.
That said about imaging, it seems to have less inner detail than XP27.
XP 27 highs are crisper, airier (cymbal trails, etc)
Piano seems a bit smoother than XP27; both gorgeous but smoother.
Overall, the music coming at me âfeelsâ better with the ARC. Donât ask me to explain that because I canât. But itâs nice.
Thanks Ron. This pretty much aligns with what Iâve heard from ARC phono stages. My friend has a Ref 3.
The high end character is one of Passâ âgrab you by the collarâ strengths⊠but Iâve wondered of late if itâs âmore personality than realityâ. When I was trying different phono stages I started noticing how that airy, crystalline high end from my XP-17 was always there, the same way - on every recording that had a cymbal or triangle or a bell. Oh, it sounded gorgeous though!
Let us know if you try the MM input with SUT
After listening for a few days, I went back to the XP27. I prefer it on the high frequencies.
And hereâs a weird one: The ARC reveals amplifier differences much more than the XP27. Those are the X260.8âs, First Watt SIT3, F7.
But the ARCâs midrange is making me very tube happy.
Sounds like a âoneâs not better than the other, just differentâ. No surprise with great gear. Always comes down to the personal choice. Keep both! 
Tough decision so far. I donât like having a really good thing just sitting idle. One will stay. But it will take time to decide and Iâm not in a hurry.
btwâI spoke to ARC Service today. On par with Pass. Excellent, enthusiastic, knowledgeable.
The BHK preamp is going in to Psaudio for a full checkup before I put it up for sale.
I shouldnât spend any money on audio, but am sick and tired of switching a FRR interconnect from onix sacd transport to mu2 versus from blu-ray player to preamp.
Came back home last night from NY, and I didnât have time to listen to music but it was on standby. Roon was working so that was a good thing. This morning I switched two power cables between Gryphon PowerZone and D333, so ZenWave PSR11 went to PZ and Stealth Dream 2020 went to D333. Why? because I may like this arrangement better. PSR 11 has that ultra silking treble and smooth midrange that I always love, so this way more components will hear it, and D333 may like Dream 2020 also.
It is too early to tell because I had to bend both PCs from their original curvature so it could take a few hours to settle.
I hope I will get a SQ upgrade without spending a penny.
Too bad there is no used FRR XLR for sale that I could find, I may have gotten the last one.