Cable break-in

[Puma Cat]

Originally Posted by AVphile

Regardless whether if so or if not, what exactly is going on physically over time within a cable which results in its being broken in?

At end of the day, it's a transfer function: a "physics"-based interaction between the conductor and the dielectric, among other things (including vibration; see below)

Also, there is "settling time" as well, which is another factor any time cables are transported (e.g. coming off a logistics truck), or even being moved or "re-dressed".

There's also the impact of vibration, especically on speaker and power cables: some of the noise factors here are tribolectric noise imparted by vibration from the floor into the cable dielectric and the other being the static e-field that is created when lifting a cable off the floor (unless it's dissipated in some manner). Because the signal is an electromagnetic wave (not electrons moving like "water flowing through a hose" or "marbles rolling in a tube") that propogates down the conductor, it's susceptible to these noise factors.