Break in 1000% fact,most notable on speakers/headphones,electronics to a lesser degree & cables almost never in my personal experience..
Planar headphones might be the single greatest example of this fact..Every pair of HiFiMan I've ever owned(HE400i,Sundara,HE560V2 & now Ananda Nano)started out sounding like I was listening to a childs plastic toy drum set,absolutely zero definition,detail or naturalness,just thump thump thud..Slowly but surely you could hear things start to open up & advance towards the final,musical,wonderfully natural sound that were capable of..A pair of iBasso SR-1 with Bio-Cellulose drivers started out so dark & veiled it was like listening to a pair of speakers with blankets thrown over them(anyone remember the first generation Vienna Acoustics Haydn?),now sounding like the finest 300B Single Ended Tube amp driving Harbeth speakers..
Most recently,my new ProAc Response D2D speakers..Started out about 6 weeks ago I thought I had made a huge & costly mistake.Bright,brittle treble,sloppy,one note bass,no imaging or staging..Now with about 500 hours on them the bass is tight & deep,the treble extended but smooth & imaging/staging the best I've ever owned..
That is NOT just the brain getting used to their sound..
Component Break In. Truth or Fantasy
I just recently got a second pair of planar headphones and the manual suggests a break in period of 150 hours. I find the topic of component break interesting in that, like so many things today, opinions are polarized with some audiophiles claiming break in having significant effects while other maintaining it is all BS and it's just you getting used to the new sound of your component.
My experiences has been that break in has a significant effect on components that convert one form of energy into another, and that have a mechanical aspect to them.
It makes sense that new speakers, as a result of excursions when being played, will loosen up and that will affect the sound. Same goes for phono cartridge suspensions. It's not unlike our own bodies where stiffness reduces and movement range extends when we work out, move, or stretch.
However, I have not found significant break in effects with all electronic components like DACs and Solid State Amps. And as for cables, not at all.
What has been your experience?
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Bob Crump (RIP) was hired by John Curl to voice the original Parasound JC-1 monoblock amplifiers - as discussed - in this post. - - - ln this post, Bob discussed burn-in. - - - In this post, Bob mentions John Curl’s observations about burn-in for high current Nichicon caps in his JC-1 monoblocks. - - -
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My ears, the most sensitive measuring device I have used, tell me that break in matters for all my equipment, including my recently purchased Transparent interconnects and speaker cables. Funny how the demo cabling sounded warmer than the brand new cabling, and how it is becoming warmer and more neutral |
I have fifty years of experience. Virtually all components have breaking. I broke in three identical Audio Research amps, each had the same very specific behavior over 600 hours. Around 120 hours after very notable improvements the sound quality would vary flipping back and forth between really good and bad. I can describe the specific behavior of different preamps. The Audio Research Reference 5 series has a very unique warm up sequence. The Reference 6 has nearly none. Hearing breaking requires listening skill and a resolving system. Some people don’t have the skill, interest or system. |
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