[fridays]

The Triode Wire Labs "Freedom" Ethernet Cable completely transformed my streaming setup, especially paired with my Lampizator Big 7 DAC. Right out of the box, the cable was super flexible and easy to route, which is a huge plus behind a busy equipment rack.Once plugged in, the sonic difference wasn't subtle. It feels like it stripped away a layer of digital glare, letting the natural, organic magic of the Lampizator DAC fully shine. The soundstage opened up beautifully, the background became dead quiet, and the bass gained a ton of clean punch. It makes streaming audio sound incredibly fluid, textured, and lifelike—almost like listening to a great analog source. If you want to feed your high-end DAC the cleanest possible signal without spending a fortune, the Freedom cable is a no-brainer.
Pete also says it takes about 100 hours to fully break in…wow can’t wait

[skunark]

Ethernet includes error detection and buffering, so as long as the link is functioning correctly, the DAC receives the same data regardless of the cable. If someone prefers a different cable, that’s their prerogative, but descriptions like “removing digital glare” and “Ethernet cable break-in” aren’t supported by established engineering or controlled listening tests.

[Charles Xavier]

TWL for the win

[toocool4]

Ethernet includes error detection and buffering, so as long as the link is functioning correctly, the DAC receives the same data regardless of the cable. If someone prefers a different cable, that’s their prerogative, but descriptions like “removing digital glare” and “Ethernet cable break-in” aren’t supported by established engineering or controlled listening tests.

 

Also, I would love to know what breaks-in in a cable?

[nlitworld]

Not sure how or why, but I've experienced both cable phenomenon to be true. My best guess for the ethernet cable is that digital data isn't exactly a 1 or 0, but a high voltage and low voltage much like a pwm signal for computer data. If you have a high and low voltage repeating at amazingly fast speeds, the quality of connector and soldering job, the purity of conductor and the ability to cancel noise would all play a major role.

As to rca cables, ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[skunark]

The issue is that Ethernet doesn’t work the way you’re describing. The receiver isn’t trying to interpret tiny analog differences as audio—it recovers digital packets using standardized signaling, error detection (CRC), and buffering. If the signal is good enough to maintain the link, the data received is the same. If it isn’t, you get retransmissions, dropouts, or a broken connection—not subtly better bass or a wider soundstage.

Connector quality and shielding absolutely matter for reliability in electrically noisy or industrial environments, but that’s very different from changing the sound of a correctly functioning Ethernet audio stream.

As for RCA cables, those can make a measurable difference in some situations because they’re carrying an analog signal. But with reasonable cable lengths and properly designed equipment, audible differences are usually far smaller than marketing claims suggest.

[cleeds]

... descriptions like “removing digital glare” and “Ethernet cable break-in” aren’t supported by established engineering or controlled listening tests.

That's interesting. Will you please tell us about the "controlled listening tests" that you reference here?

[skunark]

That’s a fair question. I probably should have phrased that more carefully.

I’m not aware of any well-controlled listening tests that demonstrate audible differences between standards-compliant Ethernet cables in a properly functioning network. If there are such studies, I’d be genuinely interested in reading them.

My skepticism comes from the engineering. Ethernet is designed with differential signaling, galvanic isolation, clock recovery, error detection, buffering, and (where applicable) retransmission so that, when the link is operating within specification, the same data arrives regardless of the cable.

From a practical standpoint, Ethernet is also one of the easiest cables to evaluate yourself. Swapping Ethernet cables takes seconds, doesn’t require powering equipment down, and can be done repeatedly without anyone knowing which cable is connected. If the reported effects are as large as “removing digital glare” or dramatically changing soundstage, they should be straightforward to demonstrate under blinded conditions.