Cable burn in or fizzle out....

[jantheman]

Lets for one minute assume that cable burn in is a real phenomenon. I'm with The Monkees on this one, I'm a believer. The act of current flowing through a conductor does something to the physical properties of the cable. What happens if the same cable remains unused for an extended period of time, do those properties gradually disappear and the said cable return to its original form.

Why am I asking this, well its all to do with SWMBO rearranging the lounge. My Merlin cables are now too short so I had to dig out some old silver plated stuff that I had in a drawer just to get wired up. I remember this stuff of old in that it sapped quite a bit of the HF until there were a few hours on the clock. Strange being that its supposed to be silver plated. Being honest, it didnt get that much better thats why it lived in a drawer for so long but there was an improvement. Now, plugging this stuff back in, its going through the whole shebang again. The HF started as flat as a pancake but is gradually improving, I really dont expect too much though. Bass is as flappy as a flappy thing.. always was so no change there. Needless to say, this is a temporary measure until I get something decent.

So ..does a burnt in cable gradually fizzle out if not used or am I finally going around the pipe.......more of these I think...

[Effem]

This is something I noticed a few years ago. Pure silver cables in particular have this trait whereby if they are not used for a while they need "burning in" all over again, so I don't think you are imagining it.

I have a mains cable somewhere down in the basement that sounds truly horrific for a couple of minutes if it hasn't been connected up for a while and it is the worst example I have encountered. Trouble is it's a plain old freebie kettle lead and the next time I find it in amongst the boxful that I have, then I will certainly stick a label on it

[Puffin]

Is it the cable changing or your ears getting accustomed? If the bass stays flappy......?

[jantheman]

Is it the cable changing or your ears getting accustomed? If the bass stays flappy......?

It aint doing anything at the moment...I've taken it out...coundn't listen any more....awaiting replacements.