Speakers or anything else: if it doesn't sound good right out of the box send it back, it never will. Good gear will sound great right from the beginning, and only get better with time. My Moabs were a perfect example, and a great choice if you want great sound. More speaker, better sound, less money. Right out of the box.
Okay, How Important Is Speaker Break In? (Dynaudio Contour 60i)
I have been running 25+ year old B&W Matrix 803 S2 speakers in my 2-channel system for about 15 years, and I finally treated myself to new speakers. Mock me for buying based on research alone, but I got a really good deal and just unpacked my beautiful Dynaudio Contour 60i's. The Dyn's are not broken in, just starting to play around with different songs, but I am expecting an improvement out of the box, and not getting it. They are no more revealing, and slightly harder and more jangley in the mids and highs. The bass is of course much better with the big Dyns, but the B&Ws with the Dyn Sub6 subwoofer I was running were better. I have very good equipment so it is not a matter of driving bigger speakers (ARC Ref preamp and Bryston 7bSST2 monoblocks). Unless speakers get A LOT better with break in, I thinking these Dyns may be converted back into cash. Thoughts? Thanks.
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I’m surprised your dealer didn’t mention break-in. Speakers need dynamic music or a break-in disc played through them. They are one of the components where break-in is truly necessary. The drivers, especially the woofers are stiff right out of the box and need to physically flex in order for the sound to open up. There’s also the voice coils which move the drivers and some capacitors inside. I agree with the 200 hour timeframe. If possible, leave them playing overnight. You can cover them with blankets or reverse the polarity on one speaker (swap + and - ) and face them toward each other. The sound will be cancelled out and there will only be a low level tinny sound. Good advice... https://www.cambridgeaudio.com/usa/en/blog/how-run-speakers |
Thanks everyone. It'n not that I was not aware of break in as a concept and need, I am just not experienced with how significant it is. My instincts align with millercarbon; I expect break-in to improve the sound, but not reinvent it. These speakers simply do not sound as good in at least the mid-range. |
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