2. cables
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New cables - To judge now or after burn in period?

I am in the midst of auditioning a host of Siltech speaker cables (Siltech Legend 380i & 680i) and interconnects (XLR and RCA - Siltech Legend 380i). Needless to say, they are quite a bit more costly than my existing QED cables (QED Genesis Silver Spiral Bi-wire & QED Signature 40 interconnects).

The Siltech cables are highly recommended by my distributor and seem to be well received by the audiophile press. However, doubts arise as upon trying them at home they do not sound as dynamic as my existing QED cables. While the highs are more resolving and I am hearing things that I have not heard before, the bass seems constricted and the music does not make my feet tap anymore.

Is that because the cables are brand new and have not been burnt in as yet? Or is it because there is no synergy between the cables and my particular system? Or is it a bit of both? If it is a burn in issue, how many hours of burn in is required before I should make a judgment as to whether I prefer the sound of the interconnects and speaker cables?

All inputs or observations are welcome.

128x128dcpillai

Showing 3 responses by ghdprentice

ghdprentice
6,470 posts
 
Your observations are exactly what I would expect from silver interconnects and cables that were not broken in. Having a host of stuff at once makes it a bit hard because of the pressure to evaluate. Take what you take to be the best of them, put them on and play 24 x 7. The bass should develop as the noice floor drops on them after 100 hours. It would be a mistake to make serious observations before you have at least 200 hours. Silver can take a long time to break in. If you are starting to get to like them after a solid 200 - 250 hours… then Don’t decide for another hundred or two.

Yes, this can be frustrating. I have broken in dozens of interconnects and cables. The difference in most good quality ones is very obvious and always an improvement.
ghdprentice
6,470 posts
 
Yes, for me switching back to my original after a long run is always good conformation.
ghdprentice
6,470 posts
 
@mitch2

You are absolutely correct… but no matter how hard I have tried over the decades I just cannot get myself to spend that much money on something that does not directly improve the performance of my system. I ended up getting a extra DAC, and amp for experimental purposes (just Schiit) that I attach stuff for breakin.

But you are absolutely right, one should buy one… when as young as possible so you can amortize the cost over as long a period as possible.
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