geoffkait- Another “audiophile oddity” is that unused cables in the listening room hurt the sound. Take them out of the room ASAP. Unused electronics in the room and musical instruments in the room also hurt the sound. No, I’m not hot doggin’ ya!
I would say that if someone thought having an unplugged cable sitting on a table would change the sound of their system it would be more than "odd". Same with unplugged components as long as they are not stacked high. But there is some truth to this statement when it comes to unused speakers. The cones can start moving "sucking up" some of the sound. While I don’t think this matters if it is just a small speaker or two in the back of the room........But people that have a "wall of speakers" set up and only listen to one at a time might be compromising their system.