Comparing old and new cables blind is not difficult, but the will to verify seems strangely absent, instead a willingness to believe. As mentioned in an earlier post the thread where someone was discussing plans to do just this, inviting constructive suggestions and discussion, ended up being taken down after too many disagreeable posts.
For my part I am sceptical because whilst I have yet to hear a remotely plausible explanation for why cables might change with initial use*, I am aware of numbers of plausible reasons why a listener might believe they hear “burn in” of cables. This is different from run-in or “burn in” of some other system components, as I can very much see a mechanism for mechanical devices with compliant parts to change through the initial hours of flexing (e.g. speakers and cartridges), and for some electronic components within a “black box” changing slightly through initial hours of powering.
(*With the possible exception of any cables used on mains or speakers that are so inadequately rated that they get hot in use.)
Of the Furutech cables that I’ve heard which are the affordable ones. They all seem to have the more muscular, body to the music kind of sound. And treble has always sounded sweeter to me.
I believe in the very high end - ready made options they exhibit a more faster transient and attack kind of sound. This I believe is the Nanoflux and above. This is what a user told me. I haven’t heard those ones myself.
Initial development of the oxide layer in the electrolytic capacitors? Though I cannot find a reference I thought that was a pretty quick process, but is called out by 110db in the link above as a factor in SQ improvement in new equipment IIUC
When they are new using them improves their properties as the dielectric forms (insulation between the plates) improving SQ.
If someone observes the performance of new components and cables changing over time, is that observation a myth if they can’t/don’t/won’t prove the observation?
I assembled a mains cable for my DAC with Furutech wire and connectors and am very satisfied with the result.
However I can’t say that I noticed any change in sound over time.
Didn’t try it with Naim gear either as Naim stock cable is usually the way to go. Might be worth looking into…
It would certainly be open to challenge unless there was objective proof and as this thread as shown with Hi Fi, objective proof can be difficult to arrange.
In my industry we generally install our cables in a particular way and are extremely careful with how they cross, how they are grounded and mixing different types of cable, this is based on measurements, industry standard and bitter experience with faults. I use the same principles when arranging my system at home.
For simple cables I have yet to see any measurable changes post installation and no burn in effects nor have I seen any research paper which objectively supports change in cable properties after a period of time post installation (I am happy to be proven wrong and would love to read a properly researched paper on the subject). The only time I have seen measurable physical changes over an initial period is with cables which are very long (kilometers) and subject to considerable external forces (sufficient to force the armour closer to the conductor).
I can get my head around proper cable terminations, microphonic effects, and proper earth arrangements within cables - but I cannot see how these change over time. Cable relaxing, I am not sure about and if I recall correctly didn’t some manufacturers get a fine for making statements in advertising about cables without having objective studies to support improvements (may be wrong on this, but I am sure some companies have been highlighted for it). But burn in of runs of cable in a home context, that I don’t understand.
I’m not sure what my view is on this subject because I’ve never really taken an interest in it but there are a couple of things that I know happen when a high current is passed through a cable. A) the cable can twitch and B) It can get warm. Obviously physically observing this usually involves very high currents but I’m quite prepared to believe that there are some effects at low currents that we don’t notice. Does a cable moving microscopically “loosen it?” Does a cable that warms and cools microscopically “Become annealed?”. I’m happy to believe that if the molecules have adjusted themselves over several months that this might affect the sound but I’m not sure why it should always be in a good way.
Work hardening of copper cables is possible I guess is you are constantly bending and unbending it. Annealing though? 400 degrees C is one hell of a current needed to get to that temp. My metallurgy degree and work experience never got me in to the nano level though.
As a software engineer I know very little that is actually useful in this area. Perhaps I should rewatch the Antman movies. There’s loads of quantum stuff in that. .
I tell a lie, I once managed a product that used “quantum annealing” to work out the most efficient routes for service engineers to move between jobs in their vans. However, I try to forget about that and it’s irrelevant to this topic anyway.
Well the question is are they observing a change, attributable to one cause, or is it down to one of the other many possible variables (see my post about 30 back from this one).
Adding to the above if the mains is noisy I’ve found it can wreak havoc with a listening session. Experienced it many times, one night absolutely sublime the next absolute rubbish nothing has been changed
.
