A-B testing of cables

I would love to read a technical analysis of speaker cable "burn in" .

Is someone going to suggest that the cable needs time for the electrons to "Line Up" or "configure" in a specific order so that the cables sound good?

There are no moving parts in a cable. Speakers, sure I understand that concept….and they wear out.

I'm open to learn something proven by science. Who's got the White Paper on this?

Gorquin... you say...

"There are no moving parts in a cable"

Fact: there are billions - of electrons, proton etc. Just because you can't see it movin - just sayin :-)

- There is also the effect a cable has on the performance of the connected components - at both ends

- Certain architectures actually lower the noise on the neutral side of connected components

- There is seating of the connectors - a bond that can take days before optimum performance is achieved.

- There is the effect the insulation has on the cables performance - which over time can change for better or worse.

And that is just scratching the surface.

Having dabbled with cables for years I now have cables that actually allow my components to run cooler - simply because of their architecture.

The "science of cables" is only just (i.e. in the last 30 years) being investigated and understood - it is insanely complex and as such - "papers" are extremely rare.

Choose to believe it or not - scoff or investigate - your choice.

Right now - the proof is in the listening - not in white papers.

I have heard a difference many times - sometimes to my own amazement.

My cables are an integral part of my system and I consider them just as important (if not more) than some components.

But that is just my own observations - others may not experience the same.

If you are ever in the Toronto region - drop me a line and come on by for a listen - bring your cables - we'll have some fun trying :-)

It doesn't matter what you say, he'll never change his position. Its not about cables, its about him being right. Give him all the proof you want, and he'll come up some excuse, no matter how small, to invalidate whatever it is you show him. Here's an example.

Gorquin. Here's a white paper on Audioquest's DBS system. It goes over what break in is, and what it is not. You'll also see the patent number AQ has on this system.

http://www.audioquest.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/DBS.pdf

In my exprience, cable sound has much to do with what it is plugged into. The same cable sounds different in different systems. I suspect that to get the results of what the cable sounds like in your system, you would have to connect it in the traditional way. I'm not an electrical engineer, Y connectors have always damaged the sound of anything i tried it with.

Gorquin - since, and I quote....

"I'm open to learn something proven by science"

I'll share some of my experiences....
- I was installing a new light fixture in the hallway that employs a two-way switch - i.e. you can turn on/off from either end

- to verify the wiring was correct I tested the circuit with a digital multi-meter
- With the light in the on position I checked the circuit
- the wire that carried the power to the light registered 120 volts - as it should
- to my amazement the other wire i.e. the one that carries voltage when both switches are in the other position and should be at ZERO volts - but actually registered a voltage around 43 volts.
- to make sure I was not measuring incorrectly I double checked with a second analogue meter - it recorded a voltage of 13.5 volts.

What I was actually measuring was a voltage that had been "induced" into the second wire...

The reason for the disparity between the two meters was due to the internal circuitry - the analogue meter draws more power than a digital meter, therefore the voltage recorded was less.

This is actually a well documented phenomena - simply google...

"two way light switch register phantom voltage" for some articles about it.

So what does this have to do with audio?

Inductance takes place ANY TIME that two conductors (i.e. wires) are
1. parallel to each other and
2. very close together

The induced signal, or noise is directly related to the length of the two conductors and how close they are.

If you look at the most common geometry used for cables i.e. IC's, Speaker Cables and Power cables, you have two conductors encased inside a sleeve in very close proximity.

They may have a slight twist in them, which makers state is a "noise rejecting geometry' (noise rejecting my A**).

Why are they made this way? - it's much cheaper to produce!

However...

Companies like Kimber Kable, figured this out many years ago and started using braided conductors for a superior result.

Some companies figured out that the induction process could be reduced significantly by tightly twisting two conductors together - such as the geometry used in Stager Silver Solids IC's

Others utilized a loose spiral wound around a spacer between the two conductors.

AntiCable (amongst others) found a very good solution was to wind the neutral conductor around the signal conductor in their IC's for even better performance - but they are hand made and a little more expensive to produce

Now - If you cross two conductors at an acute angle - generally between 50-80 degrees, such as that employed in Anticables spiral IC's - the induction effect is significantly reduced and this translated into a quieter background and better clarity. It also facilitates a more spacious and wider/deeper image.

Won't having two wires of differing length effect cable performance?

NO - see *** below

Going back to your "No Moving parts" - brings me to my own "atomic theory for beginners" understanding of electricity.

Electrically Conductive materials have loosely coupled electrons (i.e. moving parts) that allow them to conduct electricity - they are called valence electrons ( for the sake of brevity look it up on the web)

The reason silver is a better conductor than copper is that silver has more valence electrons. But more importantly, the electrons are in a more "spacious orbit", so it takes less electrical potential to get them to conduct, i.e. compared to other materials.

Net result - silver cables (in general) tend to exhibit a more dynamic presentation - because they are simply - faster

Some people reported silver cables as being "too bright", but this is probably due to the cable geometry used and the other materials used in it's construction - it has little to do with the conductive qualities of Silver.

So, couple the better conductive properties of Silver with the advanced geometries now being explored and you have a cable that WILL perform better many other cables out there.

One last thing to expand your thought process even further.

*** There is a common belief that
- one conductor in a cable is the for the signal
- the other is the return path

To challenge that belief - if you think about the function the cable is actually performing from the perspective of the attached circuits you may come away with a very different conclusion.

Please read the lower section of this blog post:
http://www.image99.net/blog/files/category-cable-architecture.html

As you can see - the neutral conductor simply maintains a potential of ZERO VOLTS between the two components and has little to do with the "return path"

There should be no signal in the neutral side of either component!

And so - Their lengths really are immaterial

But it is imperative that no noise gets "induced" into the neutral sides of the cable, resulting in noise in the neutral sides of the connected components - resulting in a degraded system performance.

Which is just one reason why cables DO make your system "sound different"

Power cables also experience similar issues and cable geometry is probably the most important thing to consider when trying to remedy power related issues. But that's for another day :-)

That's a very brief summation of some of the cable related thing's I've personally encountered and tried in the last 4-5 years

Hope you found it informative :-)

Reards...