Being one of the "scientists" of the group, here is my opinion: Electronics and wires do go through a phenomenon usually referred to as burn-in and break-in. The majority of the changes I see from my industrial knowledge is changes in the electronic charges accumilated through use, connection, and being energized. A brand new unit will not be the same as one that has been turned on and used (even if there is no moving parts). The other thing that occurs is mechanical and environmental stabilization. The change can be very subjective and in my audiophile experiences for the better. There ia also the perception issue -- if the sound presentation is different, human nature causes one to be aware of the changes, note them, and become more comfortable with them over time. As for freezing cables, I have access to Liquid Nitrogen, which provides me with the capability to freeze something to absolute 0 degrees (-273 degrees). I have heard of freezing cables, so one day at work I froze a cable to see what happens -- it was better sounding in my opinion. I froze all of my cables after that. The factor I couldn't separate was if the cable freezing made the difference, or the act of removing and reinserting the cable (mechanical wipe of the electrical contact surface)was the change. On a molecular level, the freezing forces the atoms tighter together, possibly causing a tighter atomic bond in the different components in the cable. Voodoo?? Perception??? If it feels good / works better, do it again.. If not, move on to the next experiment.
Burn In = Voodoo?
I have been an obsessive and enthusiastic audiophile for 20 years, I am not averse to tweaking and The Audio Critic infuriates me. However, I must admit I get a little uncomfortable reading so many posts about "burn in". While I understand that amps may need to warm up, speaker components may need to loosen up, the idea of burning in a cable or say, an SACD player just seems ludicrous to me. Unless of course, the party suggesting the burn in is a snake oil equipment peddlar and needs to make sure someone owns and uses your product for a couple of months before they decide it's really no good. At that point, of course, no one could actually remember what it sounded like in the first place and even if you wanted to return it, it would be too late. Am I being too cynical here?