well...

i'm pretty much convinced that i'm getting different results out of the different headphone cords, with the functioning pair sounding like it's through a limiter and the shorted pair sound a lot more full and open, like it's meant to.

i suppose it could be an impedance issue. a factory defect. that's so remarkably obscure. but i've been saying forever that it sounds like the signal is being obstructed, somehow, and swapping the cables seems to have fixed it.

i'm normally one to pretty loudly poo-poo audiophile claims of impedance making a difference, and i'm not exactly going to say my ears don't lie (although i can't double blind this...), but it seems to be a difference.

with all the randomness, i don't know - maybe the signal is warming up the phones, and it's warping it? i think i'm in the realm of science fiction.

i'm trying to think back to when i switched cables and don't recall exactly. i actually wasn't even sure that i had switched cables at all until i went and looked. it could have been when i swapped braces, back around new year's. but, i'm pretty sure it was working fine until a few months ago. and, again - the randomness. how does impedance "break"?

i'm going to keep testing overnight. but it honestly seems to me like it sounds right through the shorted cable.

they're usable, for now. the short is intermittent. but, i'll need to swap them. so, if i can convince myself of as much, i'll just order another cable. maybe two...

for now, i'm just excited to get a breakthrough. although, this doesn't really add up to me. how is it that other measures seemed to make a difference, if it was the headphone cord?

for now, i'll just keep listening. and if it keeps sounding good, i'll have to accept it.