[BassicScience]

Cool, you’re smarter and more educated than me. Can you share your evidence with us, too?

Look, I really don't want to be having this discussion in this thread, so this will be my final post on the topic. You stated (emphasis mine):

Electrical current still passes through them though, and electrical current passing through anything typically alter the properties.

If you're going to make such a declaration, the burden of proof is on you. The reason that copper, silver, etc. are highly conductive is because the ionization energy required to liberate valence electrons from their atoms is very low. Once a voltage is no longer present across a wire, free electrons reattach to the ionized atoms and the structure of the material is unchanged from before the voltage was applied. Electrons are completely interchangeable. If that were not the case, wire would eventually become measurably less conductive over time, which doesn't happen, particularly over the span of "a few days", as was claimed earlier.

 

[AussieMick]

Look, I really don't want to be having this discussion in this thread, so this will be my final post on the topic. You stated (emphasis mine):

Electrical current still passes through them though, and electrical current passing through anything typically alter the properties.

If you're going to make such a declaration, the burden of proof is on you. The reason that copper, silver, etc. are highly conductive is because the ionization energy required to liberate valence electrons from their atoms is very low. Once a voltage is no longer present across a wire, free electrons reattach to the ionized atoms and the structure of the material is unchanged from before the voltage was applied. Electrons are completely interchangeable. If that were not the case, wire would eventually become measurably less conductive over time, which doesn't happen, particularly over the span of "a few days", as was claimed earlier.

Twice you’ve said this isn’t the place for the discussion, but you’ve done it anyway. Very amusing.

 

[IanB52]

I'm a believer in cable burn-in, but at this point I think it probably has more to do with the magnetic field and dielectric than changes in the metal. The world may never know or agree, but I've got my strategy for new cables that seems to work.

 

[Aetherhole]

Look, I really don't want to be having this discussion in this thread, so this will be my final post on the topic. You stated (emphasis mine):

Electrical current still passes through them though, and electrical current passing through anything typically alter the properties.

If you're going to make such a declaration, the burden of proof is on you. The reason that copper, silver, etc. are highly conductive is because the ionization energy required to liberate valence electrons from their atoms is very low. Once a voltage is no longer present across a wire, free electrons reattach to the ionized atoms and the structure of the material is unchanged from before the voltage was applied. Electrons are completely interchangeable. If that were not the case, wire would eventually become measurably less conductive over time, which doesn't happen, particularly over the span of "a few days", as was claimed earlier.

The burden of proof isn’t on me, nor really is it on you, either, but I appreciate your explanation, truly. I don’t mind learning and understanding more because, as I alluded to in subsequent posts, I don’t know everything (or maybe even all that much).

As an individual who loves and appreciates science, I don’t fully understand it, but I do have faith in the things I don’t understand about it. I also believe that science is based on both assumptions and facts, and is ever evolving as we further make new discoveries. Scholars and scientists once factually believed that the earth was flat (controversial topic to some still today lol), or that we were the center of the universe, or the sun revolved around us, all until we discovered those weren’t accurate. Extreme examples, I know, but just wanting to assume that science is only absolute and infallible, based off the knowledge we have presently, meaning somethings just can’t be explained… yet.

I can’t fully explain what I experience and hear, but I am trying to make sense of it in what ways I can.

Either way, I’ve learned more about electrons, so again, I appreciate your reply.

 

[thefitz]

Didn't this thread have someone mention burning in connectors? Like, this XLR jack needs burning in?

Folks, let's just lean into this. We'll all silently assess which posts are serious and which posts are sarcasm or satire.

 

[thefitz]

I was huge Audeze fan but definitely didn't ask for a nasal mountain of 3khz and light bass. Maybe a little more mids than LCD-4 etc, but they went to the utter extreme and made a headphone where you need EQ to get rid of the honk, and then acted sanctimonious about it, like it's your fault if you don't want to EQ the headphone, not theirs for tunning it bad...

If they made another headphone more in line with OG Audeze tunning and comfort, no doubt it would do well. But they seem defiant about doing it.

The LCD-4 is the last word in needing EQ. The stock tuning is just wrong. 1.5kHz hump, -10db crater at 4kHz, 10kHz treble spike, all objectively offensive individually, and borderline fatal together. But with nonexistent distortion, they're are breathtaking once the tuning issues are addressed with EQ. Or $4k cables.

While I am in no rush to get out of a Susvara to get back to the LCD-4 (which just does not get on with my vinyl chain), after EQ, they're more peers than you'd think.

Anyway, speaking of tuning, I have these on their way:

You can qualifiedly and quantifiably measure the change in sound with these, so this might be a tangent to current topics. Pad burn-in is actually a thing. Anyway, the cowhide Ori pads were my favorite for the HE-6SEv1 by far, and I think the larger earhole and perforations will compliment the Susvara as well. I've seen measurements of the Auteur pads and they look promising. I even have a set of oblong pad rings!

 

[Exekuhtor]

The stock tuning is just wrong.

LOL

The LCD-4 is really good with a bit of a chain tweak and fresh leather pads, it's mindblowing to me how good this headphone sounds. It's laid-back and i love it for that. Vocals and bass aswell as electric guitars sound sublime on the right chain. The 1.5kHz bump (which is more around 1kHz) vanishes almost completely with fresh pads. I significantly reduced the darkness with a pair of U-shaped sounding tubes. My LCD-4 seems to not have any 10kHz spike or i just don't hear it.

 

[Articnoise]

seeing the same old discussions over cables and burn-in repeatedly in these forum threads is sapping my will to live

Poor you!

 

[thefitz]

LOL

The LCD-4 is really good with a bit of a chain tweak and fresh leather pads, it's mindblowing to me how good this headphone sounds. It's laid-back and i love it for that. Vocals and bass aswell as electric guitars sound sublime on the right chain. The 1.5kHz bump (which is more around 1kHz) vanishes almost completely with fresh pads. I significantly reduced the darkness with a pair of U-shaped sounding tubes. My LCD-4 seems to not have any 10kHz spike or i just don't hear it.

Perhaps the 10kHz spike is perhaps the 4kHz trough ending steeply. These were OG pads to be fair. But anyway, with EQ, it was breathtaking how it sounded.

I am enjoying the Susvara more with no EQ and a hint of crossfeed! I think pad rolling will be lots of fun.

 

[Tubewin]

Look, I really don't want to be having this discussion in this thread, so this will be my final post on the topic. You stated (emphasis mine):

You were the one who initiated "this discussion"....

 

[fansq]

Fair enough.

He's just gonna say there's no evidence of cables mattering. Somebody else will say, but I hear I difference. He'll say that difference is a placebo effect. They'll say no it's not. Somebody will say do a blind A/B test. Then that'll lead to nothing.

The science side only believes a very narrow set of ideas. The personal experience side won't A/B, or at least won't A/B to the science side's standards. It'll lead to nothing

Until an independent, professionally-run A/B test is conducted, I agree. That’s the only way this issue starts to resolve. “Is there an audible difference” is not a difficult test to run will a sound methodology. Controlled experiments looking for an effect is the bread and butter of experimental science.

 

[IanB52]

Until an independent, professionally-run A/B test is conducted, I agree. That’s the only way this issue starts to resolve. “Is there an audible difference” is not a difficult test to run will a sound methodology. Controlled experiments looking for an effect is the bread and butter of experimental science.

FWIW there are many YouTube A/B tests of various cables, though not HP cables as it is a little harder to set up and record.

 

[Ciggavelli]

Until an independent, professionally-run A/B test is conducted, I agree. That’s the only way this issue starts to resolve. “Is there an audible difference” is not a difficult test to run will a sound methodology. Controlled experiments looking for an effect is the bread and butter of experimental science.

It's just hard to do A/B testing at home under sound methodology. Really, it should be done at CanJam in a closed room with a good sample size (also a variety of participants, from inexperienced to experienced). I mean, it's not a tough test to run. It's just getting the people in one space with the right gear, which is difficult.

 

[Ciggavelli]

Sample size and representative participants are key to A/B test. We can't just go off 1 person. If we do, I'm calling the test invalid

 

[AussieMick]

How about the participants being only experienced listeners who need to be sold to first pass an assessment designed to show that they can correctly identify a few different parameters of headphone reproduction. Soundstage, imaging, dynamics? After all, it’s fairly specialised and I’m sure Lewis Hamilton can detect differences in suspension, grip and steering better than a non-formula 1 driver. See where I’m going with this?
I think if a novice listener can’t identify a staging change or the effects of pad rolling, I’m not confident they’d detect something less obvious like a cable change.
the sane could be said of an expert sommelier or art historian or motor mechanic…