I do not claim to have the "answer", but I have noticed a HUGE difference with cables in particular with speaker cables. When I recieved the cables I am using now(custom made Tek line Bi wire cables) I was told they have a long burn in time, I did not believe at that time in burn in. Well I "hooked up" the cables and they sounded very rough and unrefined, yes worse then lamp cord. So I promptly called the manufacture and he said to give them some time to break in. And now I am so glad I listened they smoothed out and sound great, why I do not know but for some reason with in around 50 hours of listening I noticed a HUGE increase in there performance.
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?