... what is Settling Time in cables and interconnects...

...oh and yes - before it becomes THE TOPIC of this discussion - I have been labelled A NEWBEE, so I beg your tolerance and hope to benefit from those not-so-newbees who will share (surely) not only their real-world experiences but TNSHO ...

Here we go again, and again, and again...can we give this topic a rest please?

stevehamp: sure - tell me how to cancel this topic/forum, and I'll gladly go elsewhere...
AND WHY WOULD YOU EVEN WASTE MY TIME AND YOURS BY REPLYING WITH SUCH AN UNHELPFUL COMMENT! I wonder why you just wouldn't share your expansive knowledge - or maybe because the lion-share of you just-shy of 3000 posts are useless fodder like your most recent...

Never mind stevechamdid as search and see this has been a topic...

SO EVERYBODY PLEASE DO A TOPIC SEARCH IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN THIS TOPIC AND DON'T BE TEMPTED TO REPLY HERE... 

22 hrs8min12 seconds settling time.Enjoy!!

How much time do you have.? We haven’t even talked about vibration and static electrical charges and their effects on cables. It all depends on where you get off the whole cable thing as to how much effort and cost you’re willing to commit to the cable project. Then we come to the Tweaks. The creams, the sprays, the cable wraps, the suspensions, the....😬

I have found owning a Audiostore in the U.K  that the dielectric 
type and thickness much more so dictates breakin then thewire itself.Teflon by far the biggest offender as the same thing applies 
in Teflon capacitors especially VH Audio for example.
3-400 hours is usually sufficient .
digital can take sometimes longer because of  the small amount of voltages applied.

@justvintagestuff what does TNSHO mean?   And could you point to the thread where you found this topic as I am interested.

There is always a tension on forums between new members and old members regarding discussions which have happened before.  Older members seem intolerant of newer members wishing to open debates again.   I don’t understand why older members can’t just ignore the thread and move on, as you say.   But for whatever reason they seem unable to do this and instead want to tell you what you should or shouldn’t post, their seniority (in terms of posting numbers or years on the forum) giving them the right to do so.  Often you’ll be told to go and search for a previous debate  on the subject as if that had not occurred to you.  

Best to ignore and post what you want to post.  If it’s a controversial debate then the people who are exhausted debating can keep away. 

 That should explain it all.

https://youtu.be/lG-3KyURXqk

Hi

Always find these discussions interesting. This is an obvious, but effective demonstration of what resides in the "air" around us. 

Consider how low the signals are that make the sound happen that we all enjoy. Then take into consideration the amount of electrical noise that is currently being generated by all of the local "things" in our homes as well as all the signals being pumped through our environment. It seems only reasonable that the question posed by the OP is in fact, relevant.

Enjoy this simple little video...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4CQTgDfDmo&vl=en

In my opinion, I don't buy into everything mentioned in the above posted video. Many with degrees and/or highly educated in electronics are quick to judge a concept and say it can't happen, however, they don't attempt to explain why the listener can hear a difference other than saying it's your mind or ears fooling one's self.
I'll believe what I hear over theory every time, and I won't have a scientific theory to prove when I hear.

“What’s in the air,” cable settling time and cable burn in time are what we call INDEPENDENT VARIABLES. They must be considered individually independent of the others. And they are not the only variables involved, either.

no one is questioning your interest in the topic, simply that there are many many threads, even very recent ones, that cover this endlessly

my cables are recommended for a few hundred hours break in and a week settling

I know that the Cerious Technologies Graphene and Matrix cables need time to settle in after you install them and or move them. I believe it has something to do with the Graphene possibly?
Perhaps if the manufacturer @rgrost has the time he can add his expertise?

Moving a well broken in cable around ... it may need time to return to the state it was in before it was moved. Settling time. Not a big deal. A few hours at most for a very small change most folks would never hear, or notice.                     
But I do agree best to not move cables around.. The longer they sit, the better. But if you need to, no big deal. (IMO just some additional thing for worrywarts to ponder)                            

Worrywarts = audiophiles 😬

People who can hear it = audiophiles 🤗

I'm just another Newbee so what do I know. But I have to agree that a broken in cable should not be moved around. They (cables) are just like us humans. If we settled in on a nice place, never move us from there. Same goes for interconnects. Don't change the right one to suddenly bear the left signal.
Sorry, if I got something wrong.

"I get my cables from unused NASA surplus shuttle maintenance stores that have been flown into space because it gets exposed to beneficial quantum radiation particle bombardment, then I have them professionally massaged in an oxygen free hypobaric chamber as the connectors are attached. I must say that bathing the cables in liquid nitrogen just prior to every listening session really sweetens the sound too, but sometimes my cat gets it's tongue stuck."  

Cables, breakin time, OMG,who has time for this hobby. I would think if you turn on your systen and it does not sound good, get some speakers, a amp,or a new cd player, or a new life! I have been in audio for 30 yrs and I read these posts and cant help but to think we are putting too much effort into this insanity. I am also guilty of trying to achieve audio perfection but as we try to chase this insanity, if any abstract audio improvent idea sounds like something that will change our lives. Trust me,,,,it dosent exist! If you need a new sound,,,change something meangingful in your system,,,or get a new life!!!!!!!!

Innocent question. What were you doing for 30 years? 

Living Life and finding new music to listen too,,,good music and accepting how it sounds on my current audio rig

As it all breaks in and settles as it should...

Ask one hundred people, you'll get one hundred different answers. Even if you can find someone to give you a direct answer to your questions, would you believe them without verifying yourself? Let your ears be your guide and cut out the middle man...

Purist Audio's fluid cables definitely need at least a few hours to settle after you moved them. Couple of other brands that I have and tried - I heard no difference. But that's my hearing and my system. Still - nothing major, unlike Purist.

The cables will settle in faster if you shake a magic chicken’s foot at them. 

And do you happen to sell chicken feet ?

If you start worrying about moving a cable, you have way too much time on your hands and way too little of other things in them.

In fact, if you are reading this, above applies to you, too, regardless of your thoughts about moving a cable.

If you still insist that cable should not be moved because of some detrimental influence on the sound (why cannot it be better, by the way?), start worrying what all the dust that settles on them will do to the cable and the sound. Cockroaches crawling on them may also not have the best electric properties.

Good news is that settling time for dust is much better established and researched phenomenon than for cables.

Obviously when you’re not an audiophile this sort of thing doesn’t matter. Thanks for the reminder, glubson.

Hi sejodiren :-)
Dont forget the effect of suns radition & beam angles in different seasons.  That also affects the sound tremendously.  I hear the BEST sound usually on 21 June between the hours of 11:00am and 17:00pm in relative humidity of 78% :-)

Here’s my take on the OP’s question.

Settling-in would generally mean that a broken-in cable needs a brief period in an audio system to settle-in before sounding optimal.
If a cable has not had signal for a long period of time it may need a longer time to either, 1. break-in again or 2. settle-in.
Some define break-in and settling-in as the same thing although generally break-in would take a longer period of time.
Some reject the whole notion as ludicrous. Thus the collective groaning when this thread was posted.
As a newbie I see no problem in asking the question but be warned, the answers can be contentious and divisive (and occasionally vitriolic) so the wiser here tend to avoid the discussion altogether. Of course there are always those who are itching for a fight.
Hope this helps.

Is it so then that if I only disconnect the speaker cable for a very short moment to change to another speaker, I only need to give the cable the shorter settle-in time of maybe twelve hours before I with conficence can evaluate the sound of the second speaker to the first speaker. I really would like to get this right.

If burn-in by manufacturers works, then the positive effects must last several days to allow for shipping.
I don't think you need to worry about minutes or hours or even a couple of days.
Once any cable is physically moved, it needs a little time to settle once it is back in action again, so the gap period isn't crucial.

1. I never suggested anyone should worry about it.
2. I was merely attempting to provide a definition for the terms.
3. I think we should all listen to gosta if we have any audio concerns.
Could it be that many of us are listening through signal cables that are not adequately burned-in?
Perhaps a device like the Audiodharma could change some opinions.

@cakyol.....yes, I had forgotten about that. I also found when my system was fired up in Antarctica, due to the extreme sun angle and during a raging blizzard that it’s sound quality diminished.......somewhat. So I just took all my cables and dragged them around out in the snow.....problem solved!

... I will probably put my foot in my mouth by attempting to ask (another) question: I find very few manufacturers' break-in their power cords or interconnects - so since most agree this is something to do, why don't they?

Why don't manufactures break in stuff? MONEY. To fiddle around breaking in stuff they would first need to have the equipment to do it, then the statf just for that. If you want to pay an additional $250 per.. Some places that sell outlets and such WILL break them in/burn them in for a fee. Usually $10 to $25.Some companies break in electronics. But THAT is done to avoid returns. Breaking it themselves before YOU get it ... is CHEAPER.(it really is all about the money)

elizaeth: thank you ...

It’s actually because they don’t know about it. They don’t even break in their stuff for the big shows. Which isn’t really too swift. But hey! C’est la vie, as they say in Des Moines.

I have to agree with Geoff on the show stuff. Not breaking it in? idiots...

same breakin time for biwire jumpers as main cables?

Manufacturers don’t break in wire because there would be no added value to doing so. They know this. If there was added value, they would do it because they be would certain that you would be able to hear it, refer them to others, grow their business, make money, have more fun, etc. But, they, don't, do they? Ever wonder why?

There, is that helpful?

They don’t break in wire for the same reason they don’t use better power cords or better fuses. They have never heard of them. 

They don't want to sell broken - in equipment. It has a bad sound to it. In any case, I would not call idiots those who have no opportunity to defend themselves and I would not teach them how to do commerce. 
Some manufacturers do burn in what they make but not fully, as I understand. I think, Gryphon puts 70 hours or so on their integrateds and recommends at least 100 hours more.

inna
They don’t want to sell broken - in equipment. It has a bad sound to it.

>>>>>That’s quite a bold statement and one that flies in the face of most people’s experience. Do you have any evidence to back up your statement?

inna
In any case, I would not call idiots those who have no opportunity to defend themselves and I would not teach them how to do commerce.

>>>>I’m not calling them idiots. I’m calling them short-sighted and perhaps close minded. No offense to them or you. They are free to post their comments on the subject here as this is a free forum. If I thought it would do any good I’d send out an email distribution to all appropriate manufacturers.

The phrase " broken-in" doesn't have a nice ring to it. " Burnt-in " is not much better. And they would have to say either of them, or both. 
Nothing to do with money directly, everything to do with image and stance.
Elizabeth called them idiots, Geoff, not you.

I see what you mean.

sejodiren,

"So I just took all my cables and dragged them around out in the snow...."

Nothing works like good old cryoing the cables. And you did it in organic and gluten-free way. Kudos to you. No wonder they sounded better. Could ears falling off have also influenced the sound to some extent? Maybe that is all that Van Gogh was trying to achieve. Get sweeter timbre and faster transients.

geoffkait,

"...start worrying what all the dust that settles on them will do to the cable and the sound. Cockroaches crawling on them may also not have the best electric properties."

"Obviously when you’re not an audiophile this sort of thing doesn’t matter. Thanks for the reminder, glubson."

Any time, geoffkait, any time I can help you learn more about yourself. There is nothing wrong with not being an audiophile or not having a system with fuses but participating on these threads. It is all game anyway, 100 years from now it will not matter to either one of us.