QSA : My take on their expensive products

[ssfas]

I agree with you that something seems off with those observations. I had never seen anyone say that QSA treated products don’t need burn in to sound best. I’m aware of people even mentioning that patience is needed.

I’m generally of the opinion that burn-in is measured as the time needed for psychological adjustment to come to terms with the latest cash-dump.

I also think there is some truth in the rule that the quality of a product is inversely proportional to the amount of b/s required to sell it. As QSAL sets the standard for b/s, something which I can only admire, there is zero chance of my ever indulging in them.

The QSA pixie dust is apparently a burn-in process. Two sources of evidence:
- A video the Hong Kong audio salesman (Chang?) who first punted it posted a video of it on YouTube 5 or 6 years ago.
- The UK distributor assured me, in writing, that the process is totally non-invasive. (If it was invasive, it would make their 13A fuses illegal.)

But, hey, this is audiophilia, so nothing surprises me. Well, not quite not nothing. For a product constantly claimed to be transformational, other than two people at Stereo Times, no one seems interested. After a deep dive into Stereo Times over the last 5 minutes, they gush effusively over anything that crosses their threshold. Maybe the audio industry just aren’t interested because most of the products are rebranded versions of other people’s stuff.

 

[treitz3]

@ssfas- Just one question. Do you have any direct experience with any QSA product?

Tom

 

[kennyb123]

@ssfas- Just one question. Do you have any direct experience with any QSA product?

The amount of text he spews tends to be inversely proportional to how much experience he has with a product.

 

[ssfas]

@ssfas- Just one question. Do you have any direct experience with any QSA product?

Tom

I have the donor speaker and ethernet cables from Belden Blue Jeans. I asked QSAL for a loan speaker cable but he insisted on payment up front. I have a 5m pair. I would have had to pay VAT to get delivery (about $1,000 on his 2m pair) which is not refundable if the cable is returned. A stupid waste of money given the donor cables cost me (and QSAL) $200. I was planning of doing a blind test comparison.

The UK audio business is generally "try before you buy" and I never buy from overseas sellers. QSAL have no UK distribution, so it is not possible to experience them.

QSA (not QSAL) have UK distribution. The distributor, even though I've been a customer for years and is 10 minutes away, refused to do a blind test of a QSA fuse *.

Anyway, I checked these QSA guys out and nothing stacked up. The Hong Kong guy appears to be a long-time audio dealer (Lieder International) with a non-relevant degree (something to do with digital processing). Anas Lanedri did computer science, an MBA, Prince2 and most recently MiFiD, which is financial regulation. Nothing engineering or scientific at all, but a lot about business processes.

I use speaker cables by Dr Joakim Juhl (extremely low inductance), Belden ethernet, and signal cables by Neotech, Dr Sean Jacobs and Dr Anthony Swiss (all OCC or cryo silver). They are all engineers or metallurgists and need little if any marketing.

* Although I asked to try a 2A fuse for my streamer, the UK distributor wanted me to try 13A QSA fuses. I did not want to because the donor fuses look like Chinese fakes. I presume he did so because we use lots of 13A fuses, one per component, and was trying to sell me lots of them. I only have on replaceable component fuse in my hifi system.

 

[ssfas]

The amount of text he spews tends to be inversely proportional to how much experience he has with a product.

There is a separate thread for people who have bought these QSA / QSAL products.

QSA/QSAL don't seem to want you to try them before paying for them, which speaks volumes. It is not how the audio market works here.

I see it as a complete marketing scam. I will happily be proven wrong, I have donor cables here that I could compare loan cables.

I asked AL about his credentials, if he has any engineering training, no response. He talks about research and a laboratory. You couldn't make it up. Well, you can make it up. I work in financial and fraud investigation. It's dead easy to do the basic checks on people these days. Checking credentials takes seconds:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/anas-lanedri-78680824/

Tsang yick man (steven) - lieder int co | LinkedIn

mat technology is to bring audio and video products quality to top level in short… · Experience: lieder int co · Education: The Chinese University of Hong Kong · Location: Hong Kong SAR · 500+ connections on LinkedIn. View Tsang yick man (steven)’s profile on LinkedIn, a professional community...

www.linkedin.com

Here is the "metal Active Technology" in action.

steven tsang yick man

Share your videos with friends, family, and the world

www.youtube.com

Particularly:

 

[kennyb123]

There is a separate thread for people who have bought these QSA / QSAL products.

QSA/QSAL don't seem to want you to try them before paying for them, which speaks volumes. It is not how the audio market works here.

I see it as a complete marketing scam. I will happily be proven wrong, I have donor cables here that I could compare loan cables.

I asked AL about his credentials, if he has any engineering training, no response. He talks about research and a laboratory. You couldn't make it up. Well, you can make it up. I work in financial and fraud investigation. It's dead easy to do the basic checks on people these days. Checking credentials takes seconds:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/anas-lanedri-78680824/

Tsang yick man (steven) - lieder int co | LinkedIn

mat technology is to bring audio and video products quality to top level in short… · Experience: lieder int co · Education: The Chinese University of Hong Kong · Location: Hong Kong SAR · 500+ connections on LinkedIn. View Tsang yick man (steven)’s profile on LinkedIn, a professional community...

www.linkedin.com

Here is the "metal Active Technology" in action.

steven tsang yick man

Share your videos with friends, family, and the world

www.youtube.com

Particularly:

None of these words explain how you are qualified to comment on the performance of products that you haven’t tried yourself.

 

[highstream]

None of these words explain how you are qualified to comment on the performance of products that you haven’t tried yourself.

My understanding is he did try a couple of QSA goodies — outlet and something else — but they didn’t provide instant gratification and were thus pulled (returned?).

 

[kennyb123]

My understanding is he did try a couple of QSA goodies — outlet and something else — but they didn’t provide instant gratification and were thus pulled (returned?).

If that was so, I suspect he would have mentioned it in post 624 above.

 

[highstream]

If that was so, I suspect he would have mentioned it in post 624 above.

Go back to 614:
"Got Orange QSA LAN and IEC... Put them in system - immediate worsening of sound. Waited 24 hours with running signal - no improvement at all...
Deleted them - the good sound came back! What a relief..."

 

[kennyb123]

Go back to 614:

I confused the QSA detractors. Yeah you are correct about him. Thanks.

 

[ssfas]

My understanding is he did try a couple of QSA goodies — outlet and something else — but they didn’t provide instant gratification and were thus pulled (returned?).

I tried a fuse from Synergistic Research in my streamer. I could not hear a difference.

I will be ordering a QSA fuse next week. My game plan is as follows:
- Install it in my $50 office heater to make sure that it doesn’t blow instantly or cause any damage.
– install it in my coffee machine, which draws a fair amount of current and is on most of the time. Effectively, this will be my burn in. I will leave it there a few weeks.
- install it in the plug of my streamer, which is where the distributor wanted me to try it in the first place. See what difference if any it makes to the sound.
– I then intend to remove the labelling to see who made it. I was told it was made by Bussman, but the caps look different. Also the visible labelling underneath the QSA wrapper looks different to Bussman.

 

[highstream]

Sounds

I tried a fuse from Synergistic Research in my streamer. I could not hear a difference.

I will be ordering a QSA fuse next week. My game plan is as follows:
- Install it in my $50 office heater to make sure that it doesn’t blow instantly or cause any damage.
– install it in my coffee machine, which draws a fair amount of current and is on most of the time. Effectively, this will be my burn in. I will leave it there a few weeks.
- install it in the plug of my streamer, which is where the distributor wanted me to try it in the first place. See what difference if any it makes to the sound.
– I then intend to remove the labelling to see who made it. I was told it was made by Bussman, but the caps look different. Also the visible labelling underneath the QSA wrapper looks different to Bussman.

If an SR fuse also didn’t make a difference…Sounds like hearing might be in play for you. I don’t mean that caustically. Some people’s hearing makes them unable to detect sound differences others can. They are often unaware of it and can become very strongly opinionated in heir unawareness. In that context, impatience based on experience is understandable.

 

[ssfas]

I confused the QSA detractors. Yeah you are correct about him. Thanks.

To be honest, besides my natural curiosity to investigate snake oil, half the fun is watching people try and defend this stuff.

I buy audio products like most people. I bought a phono stage last week - a Mofi Master Phono. It met my specification requirements - at least two inputs, high gain, no tubes, lots of setting control and all the controls on the front, not the back. Most importantly, it must come in black. The Phasemation EA-350 was a close call, not available in black. PS Audio have announced one, not yet available, more expensive. The designer is apparently legendary, I'd never heard of him, but it resulted in a lot of reviews that were both sensible and good. I bought from a UK dealer I know (got my Gryphon amp from him) from UK stock and I knew I could send it back if not happy. I'm very happy, in particular with the transimpedance input and the balanced input/circuitry that reduces the noise floor considerably for a particular cartridge (SoundSmith Zephyr MkIII MI).

As to fuses, people in the USA seem to soak it up, here in the UK it's a really hard sell. The usual audiophile fuse is about $10, some a little more, a few people gold-plate Bussmann fuses. https://www.mcru.co.uk/product/silver-plated-bussmann-fuses-2/?v=79cba1185463

The fuse thing generates a few fuse threads on the forum I occasionally read (PFM), most people have a bit of fun and get bored after a few days. Our audio community seems to completely ignore fuses. I've never seen a single review of one (reputation management?) and they are only really mentioned for amusement or derision. I gave one a try and passed on it. Will look in to the QSA fuse.

As I said, I have the Gamma Infinity speaker cable donor cables here. I have a 5m pair with 9mm spades. I also have a 2m cable (pictured) as I wanted to try and see if using 2m+5m as a pair made any audible difference. It didn't. I would happily receive a loan pair and to host a blind test comparison here in London, there being several members in the area. The comparison would be between cables costing $142 (donor) and $7,200 treated (once VAT is paid). My cables are Oephi Immanence.

The proof of this QSA malarkey is a blind test of the treated cable vs. the donor cable. Nothing else matters, none of the claims about them being transformational, superconductors and all the rest of it, and the infomercials (or so they seem) spewed out by Mr Perry and his friend and neighbour Mr Voth. No one else seems prepared to stick their head above the parapet. If these products were sold in the normal way, like Mofi, then a normal consumer home loan test would be easy. If you think I'm stupid enough to shell out $7,200 for a $140 cable based on some marketing, then you misjudge me.

 

[highstream]

To be honest, besides my natural curiosity to investigate snake oil, half the fun is watching people try and defend this stuff.

I buy audio products like most people. I bought a phono stage last week - a Mofi Master Phono. It met my specification requirements - at least two inputs, high gain, no tubes, lots of setting control and all the controls on the front, not the back. Most importantly, it must come in black. The Phasemation EA-350 was a close call, not available in black. PS Audio have announced one, not yet available, more expensive. The designer is apparently legendary, I'd never heard of him, but it resulted in a lot of reviews that were both sensible and good. I bought from a UK dealer I know (got my Gryphon amp from him) from UK stock and I knew I could send it back if not happy. I'm very happy, in particular with the transimpedance input and the balanced input/circuitry that reduces the noise floor considerably for a particular cartridge (SoundSmith Zephyr MkIII MI).

As to fuses, people in the USA seem to soak it up, here in the UK it's a really hard sell. The usual audiophile fuse is about $10, some a little more, a few people gold-plate Bussmann fuses. https://www.mcru.co.uk/product/silver-plated-bussmann-fuses-2/?v=79cba1185463

The fuse thing generates a few fuse threads on the forum I occasionally read (PFM), most people have a bit of fun and get bored after a few days. Our audio community seems to completely ignore fuses. I've never seen a single review of one (reputation management?) and they are only really mentioned for amusement or derision. I gave one a try and passed on it. Will look in to the QSA fuse.

As I said, I have the Gamma Infinity speaker cable donor cables here. I have a 5m pair with 9mm spades. I also have a 2m cable (pictured) as I wanted to try and see if using 2m+5m as a pair made any audible difference. It didn't. I would happily receive a loan pair and to host a blind test comparison here in London, there being several members in the area. The comparison would be between cables costing $142 (donor) and $7,200 treated (once VAT is paid). My cables are Oephi Immanence.

The proof of this QSA malarkey is a blind test of the treated cable vs. the donor cable. Nothing else matters, none of the claims about them being transformational, superconductors and all the rest of it, and the infomercials (or so they seem) spewed out by Mr Perry and his friend and neighbour Mr Voth. No one else seems prepared to stick their head above the parapet. If these products were sold in the normal way, like Mofi, then a normal consumer home loan test would be easy. If you think I'm stupid enough to shell out $7,200 for a $140 cable based on some marketing, then you misjudge me.

View attachment 150030

It’s clear that you are far more i interested in flexing your ego than in sound. You don’t belong here, but over at ASR. Here you’re doing nothing but trolling.

 

[ssfas]

Sounds


If an SR fuse also didn’t make a difference…Sounds like hearing might be in play for you. I don’t mean that caustically. Some people’s hearing makes them unable to detect sound differences others can. They are often unaware of it and can become very strongly opinionated in heir unawareness. In that context, impatience based on experience is understandable.

My neibghbour was the leading ENT surgeon in London. He tested my ears about 5 years ago when I got mild tinnitus. It comes and goes, usually to do with stress and sleep. Currently it's gone. It never really bothers me. It was really strange, it came on overnight, and we'd just been out for dinner a few days before.

I was in the expected range for someone aged 55. Couldn't really hear anything above 10.5khz. Otherwise fine.

When you can't hear some claimed benefit of a product, it's usual for people to say your hearing's shot, your stereo is rubbish, your room is no
good. Something else always to blame.

The fact is we all hear differently as our hearing is increasingly impaired and in different ways. It rarely takes away the enjoyment of listening to music. The last proper music I heard was on Friday night, a comic opera called Pimpinone by George Telemann, a double act with a small baroque orchestra at the Royal Opera House in their new and superb second theatre, the Lindbury. I'm sure I heard most or all of it.

 

[highstream]

My neibghbour was the leading ENT surgeon in London. He tested my ears about 5 years ago when I got mild tinnitus. It comes and goes, usually to do with stress and sleep. Currently it's gone. It never really bothers me. It was really strange, it came on overnight, and we'd just been out for dinner a few days before.

I was in the expected range for someone aged 55. Couldn't really hear anything above 10.5khz. Otherwise fine.

When you can't hear some claimed benefit of a product, it's usual for people to say your hearing's shot, your stereo is rubbish, your room is no
good. Something else always to blame.

The fact is we all hear differently as our hearing is increasingly impaired and in different ways. It rarely takes away the enjoyment of listening to music. The last proper music I heard was on Friday night, a comic opera called Pimpinone by George Telemann, a double act with a small baroque orchestra at the Royal Opera House in their new and superb second theatre, the Lindbury. I'm sure I heard most or all of it.

You’re off topic. Time to move on.

 

[ssfas]

It’s clear that you are far more i interested in flexing your ego than in sound. You don’t belong here, but over at ASR. Here you’re doing nothing but trolling.

I got banned from ASR within a day for saying I liked Harbeth speakers. Which I do. My speakers were chosen by my wife because she liked the look of them, not some computer application.

Blind testing two visually identical cables is a no-brainer, especially when I already have one of them. When the price difference is a multiple of 50, not doing so would seem insane.

 

[treitz3]

So, here we are once again. Different thread, different subject and the same poster insists on thumping his chest on products he has zero experience with, or if he has, he didn't wait long enough for them to fully optimize themselves. Enough with the off topic posts and thread derailments. You have been banned on one forum (self admitted) and warned on this forum before, followed up by an involuntary vacation because you refused to stop.

We see a pattern here, and it will not continue. You are welcome to speak on products that you have direct experience with. You are not welcome to spew falsehoods on products that you do not, derailing threads along the way.

To be honest, besides my natural curiosity to investigate snake oil, half the fun is watching people try and defend this stuff.

This leads one to believe that you are biased going into any evaluation. You complain when you don't get things to try out for free, which further increases your bias and honestly, has nothing to do with anything, other than it makes you mad. It seems as if you get your kicks (or fun, as you stated) trolling.

You are being informed now of a formal public warning. Stop with the off topic posts. Stop with talking about products (calling them snake oil) you have zero direct experience with. Stop trolling. If this continues, the next involuntary vacation you will have, will be for a much longer (unspecified) amount of time.

Tom

 

[Cellcbern]

Sounds


If an SR fuse also didn’t make a difference…Sounds like hearing might be in play for you. I don’t mean that caustically. Some people’s hearing makes them unable to detect sound differences others can. They are often unaware of it and can become very strongly opinionated in heir unawareness. In that context, impatience based on experience is understandable.

The SR fuses I've tried, in amplifiers and digital gear have made a subtle but obvious audible improvement. When I switched to SR Purple my wife, who listens with me but couldn't tell you what brands of gear I have, asked from the next room "what did you change, it sounds better".

 

[wil]

So, here we are once again. Different thread, different subject and the same poster insists on thumping his chest on products he has zero experience with, or if he has, he didn't wait long enough for them to fully optimize themselves. Enough with the off topic posts and thread derailments. You have been banned on one forum (self admitted) and warned on this forum before, followed up by an involuntary vacation because you refused to stop.

We see a pattern here, and it will not continue. You are welcome to speak on products that you have direct experience with. You are not welcome to spew falsehoods on products that you do not, derailing threads along the way.



This leads one to believe that you are biased going into any evaluation. You complain when you don't get things to try out for free, which further increases your bias and honestly, has nothing to do with anything, other than it makes you mad. It seems as if you get your kicks (or fun, as you stated) trolling.

You are being informed now of a formal public warning. Stop with the off topic posts. Stop with talking about products (calling them snake oil) you have zero direct experience with. Stop trolling. If this continues, the next involuntary vacation you will have, will be for a much longer (unspecified) amount of time.

Tom

I agree that tossing out “snake oil” accusations is never productive. But blind testing the cables probably would be. Too bad it would cost $1k in VAT to do so. Maybe his uk dealer could help get a loaner pair without the vat?