Do cables age or become too old at any point?

I have seen and heard for myself what Sean describes about oxidation over time that is visible through a clear PVC jacket, and the degradation is quite audible. I imagine that this eventually happens to a greater or lesser degree with any cable. But it seems to me that a Litz-type (individually coated fine strands of wire within a braided geometry) cable, such as the Cardas I use, should have the longevity advantage.

I completely agree with you Sean and others. It is just my opinion that the typical generic "clear" jacket cable is so poorly made, it is going bad the minute is leaves the factory. I would not recommend it brand new, so used is a non starter. On the other end of the spectrum, I have re-terminated older high quality cable. When I cut the ends off and stripped down some of the covering, the copper cable under there was as shinny as new.

Quality cables is a recent event. Most cable brands out there are less than five to seven years old. I would not consider any of them old yet. Some of the very oldest MIT music hose from 1985 may be a risk, but has anyone cut then open or tested them to see? The MIT Terminator series only started in 1994 (white jacket); the ones with the grey jacket are only a couple years old at the most.

The original poster did not specify copper cable. Silver cable is another story completely. As well as silver/copper strands like Nordost and others; and gold/silver cable like Siltech. These types of cable should last a lot longer than copper. It is my understanding that silver is still a good conductor when it tarnishes. Gold's conducting properties will be the same a million years from now.

Sugar, once again you bring up some good points and this thread is expanding in a "good" way.

I also agree with your comments concerning technology advancements and the increased quality of materials used in the production of wires / cables. Only problem is, how much of what "scientists" know about dielectric materials is actually being applied to the products that we as audiophiles are buying ? We are told that Teflon is "king". Is that really true ?

As to silver corroding, silver oxide is supposedly highly conductive ( from what i've been told ). As to your comments on gold, i have no idea. I am far from knowledgeable when it comes to metallurgy. However, i do have to wonder what happens to both of these materials ( along with copper ) when exposed to other materials such as the dielectric that is decaying ? Is there some type of "chemical reaction" between the metal and plastics that causes surface decay / increased skin effect ? I have NO idea.

As i mentioned, the only way to get around this type of problem is to use what is called a "non-contaminating" or "Type II" dielectric material. This boils down to the fact that the plastics being used to make the jacket are of a stable molecular structure ond don't "bleed" over time. I don't know if this is applicable to Teflon or not.

I've been told that using a foil shield between the conductors and the outer jacket helps drastically reduce the effects of plasticizer migration from the outer jacket into the conductors though. The foil simply acts as a "barrier shield". Even doing that would not solve the problem as individual stranding would still need some type of insulation to keep from shorting out internally. As such, the wires would still be surrounded by some type of dielectric that was susceptible to "plasticizer migration".

I think that enameled wire is looking better and better the longer that this thread continues : ) Sean
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We could all go nuts. I can imagine there is a cable out there that does not sound good (bright, analytical), degrading with age to the point that it does sound good.

I use to work with copper that was 99% pure. We worked with copper plates and I noticed a few things. If copper gets wet it will start to show corrosion in as little as twenty minutes. Im not talking under a micrescope but right in front of your eyes.

Second if the plates were stacked on top of each other they would stay shiny for several months, even over a year, but if left in the open they would start to tarnish and dull in just a couple of weeks.

I dont know what any of this means but I thought I would pass along the observation.