Cable burn in

You also need a blinding method so you don’t know which cables are which until all results are completed and processed.

Directionality will not be a factor. We will always use the cables from signal generator to instrument.

As for the speakers I can offer Spendor, B&W, Dynaudio and Sennheiser or Beyerdynamic headphones. I am positive we will find agreement.

Not necessary, please read the procedure again, there will not be subjective bias.

If less than 75% of a population cannot listen to anything in the speakers, we will declare burn-in is not audible.

But on a second thought, we can have a notary to label the cables with a code, so that nobody knows which cable is which.

We want to make everybody happy here.

Not inverting the signal, just changing the phase. With two identical calibrated signal generators.

I think this takes directionality out of the equation.

The subjective listening tests are not so important, because we already know that people (claim to) hear burn-in effects.

The most important part is if burn-in can be measured. So if you have two cables with baseline measurements, then burn in one of the cables for 50 hours, then measure both cables again. If burn-in is a physical phenomenon, then the unused cable should measure the same as before, and the other should measure differently.

If this can be established, then by far the most important part is ‘proven’.

Agreed but 50 hours too little. Let’s use 500 hours.

Perhaps even easier would be to find a store that has a burn-in machine, buy two cables and put one of them in the machine but not the other.

No thank you, burn-in machines create unnecessary CO2.

But I have a proposal: I bought a cable in 2020 that should be ready for this experiment. Then I buy another 2 identical cables to this one, set the base line against each other and then measure one new against the old one.

I just need to understand if this cable is representative.

I don’t think you quite understand the basic principles of a genuine scientifically valid study…

Whatever speakers you use, someone will say that they do not demonstrate the effect effectively. By summing the two signals, you eliminate the speakers and any effect they have. It is easily done. Using a differential amplifier it should be even easier - you don’t need to invert the original signal. Just send the same signal down both sets of cable, and put them through a differential amplifier. This will only amplify (or pass, I suppose) whatever difference there is between the two signals. Simple and elegant, IWHT, requiring less equipment and so less chance that any differences are produced or masked by the equipment used.

Agreed, I am just trying to amuse you, unsuccessfully.

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But has there been any change in the manufacture of the cable between buying the first cable and buying subsequent ones?
No, it is better to use cables bought at the same time, burn on of them in, then test.

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Sorry but I do not have a differential or inverter amplifier in my lab. I do have several high quality signal generators, calibrated by a third party.

You will have to agree on this one or pay for the difference.

Agreed, we were trying to make happy the impacient @litemotiv but we cannot sacrifice precious precision.

Cables bought at the same time, it will be.

It might be worth running a series of (non destructive!) tests on the cables before doing anything else to ensure that on ‘day 1’ they are identical.

If not, it could be that the variations observed at day 90 were there on day 1 and simply due to production variation and not ‘burn in’.

Also, wouldn’t you measure the inductance at the same frequency points as capacitance and not just a single point?

Finally the two cable comparison assumes the burn in (if shown) is due to the signal passing through the cable. It could be simply because the cable was stressed by hanging between points for 90 days. Maybe a third cable could be thrown into the mix and positioned as the ‘used’ cable but with no signal passed through it for the 90 day period; then a comparison of cables (assuming all the same on day 1) could maybe show some impact due to ‘electrical activity’, some due to ‘physical stresses’

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Oh i have all the time in the world, don’t rush for me! :hugs:

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THIS MAKES THE BUDGET 33% MORE EXPENSIVE, HAPPY TO COMPLY IF YOU CONTRIBUTE

Not sure what this means, but maybe it is worth testing the cables both ways round?

I think I can design a better experiment for directionality. Let’s focus at the moment in burn-in and keep expenses reasonable.