The fact is that all high fidelity components, including cables, sound better after a few weeks or even months of use. In the case of cables, MasterBuilt’s design engineers have been aware of this phenomena for years and can even measure the effects of break-in. When a cable is “raw” (has not been used), the molecules in the conductor path have not been aligned by the flow of electrons from the music signal. After several weeks or even months, a pathway in the conductor is created by the constant flow of electrons. Just as important is the interaction of the insulation’s free radical electrons with the outer layer of the conductor material. These free radicals are “pushed out of the way” by the music’s voltage and current.
Break-in is not subtle; if you break in one interconnect or speaker cable, and then compare the sound of the raw cable with the broken in one, you can easily hear a large difference. Break in will enhance the smoothness, frequency extension, dynamics, detail, and dimensionality of the sound stage by opening it up. In fact, if you listen to the cables every day for several weeks, you can hear these changes as they occur.
There are three distinct levels of sound: when “raw,” the cable sounds lean in the bass and somewhat accentuated in the treble. The dimensionality is slightly flattened, and the sound is not as harmonically rich as it can be.
The second phase of the break in process gives you a 180-degree shift in the sound – the bass becomes louder than the treble and the image becomes so focused that the sound stage sounds smaller than a live performance.
The third and final stage of the break-in results in a complete balance between all of the frequencies, with more “air” and clarity than previously heard. The sound stage dimensionality becomes very holographic, with an “open window” type of effect that lets you hear far back in the sound stage. In addition, the harmonics and detail have become stunningly better; the harmonics sound very rich and have a strikingly notable density.
All of the MasterBuilt Audio cable products have the same effects after break-in, especially the Ultra Line, which requires about three times more playing time to sound their best. It is best not to move the cables after break-in, as you will have to play the cables for a couple of hours before they sound as good as before you moved them.
