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Topic: 'Wearing-in' speakers? (Read 4778 times) previous topic - next topic
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'Wearing-in' speakers?

I just bought myself some new woofers and tweeters to chuck in my old case.  While I was soldering them in a friend wondered if speakers were meant to be 'worn in' slowly, or even if there were particular audio files specially designed for new speakers to traverse all sound types.  It sounded a bit silly to me, but then it might make sense - you have to knock in a cricket bat (for those familiar with the sport) so it may follow a similar principle.  Is he right?

'Wearing-in' speakers?

Reply #1 –
I think you gotta wear in almost everything you buy (clothes/cars/shoes) before they are comfortable. Not sure about speakers tho'.

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'Wearing-in' speakers?

Reply #2 –
There's a lot of controversy on the subject. There are lots of people with (meta-)physical theories on how breaking in should help. But I've never seen anyone showing measurable differences.

To me, too, it would seem logical by intuition. Like new shoes are less comfortable, membranes may get shaken a little looser, or something like that.

But I'd be very interested in links to test measurements. Anyone?

'Wearing-in' speakers?

Reply #3 –
Wouldnt they just get worn in by actually using them?

If you buy into this, just be happy that 2 weeks down the line, you will have better sounding speakers 

'Wearing-in' speakers?

Reply #4 –
Quote
Wouldnt they just get worn in by actually using them?

If you buy into this, just be happy that 2 weeks down the line, you will have better sounding speakers 

This is what B & W suggests. The break-in period they suggest is 15 hours.

Not sure how much the sound changes though. It is standard practise to provide a burn-in period prior to serious listening tests in the trade mags though.

I used a pink noise generator and ran the whole system at about 20 watts for the required period, over the course of a couple days.

I cant honestly say I heard a difference though. I had a perception of a more open midrange but this could easily be the mind playing tricks.

'Wearing-in' speakers?

Reply #5 –
B & W? 

So is there a school of thought which perceives speakers to be like old car brakes?  I.e. If you dont 'wear-in' speakers using the correct frequency's, they will be, literally, underperforming for the rest of their lifes?



p.s. I know over 2 weeks, my speakers would have been on for the 15 hours  B)



[span style='font-size:8pt;line-height:100%']Edit: Realised it was a crap analogy, but you get the picture[/span]

'Wearing-in' speakers?

Reply #6 –
I always thought that for electronic equipment, there's only one way they go: deterioration.
But for stuff like shoes, clothes, wearable items that come in constant contact with the body, 'wearing-in' is what it is. For stuff that require skill, like swinging baseball bats, this is just training your mind to re-tune your hand-eye coordination, handgrip etc to adjust to the new bat.

Ok, just what I think stuff are as I see it

'Wearing-in' speakers?

Reply #7 –
Quote
B & W?  

So is there a school of thought which perceives speakers to be like old car brakes?  I.e. If you dont 'wear-in' speakers using the correct frequency's, they will be, literally, underperforming for the rest of their lifes?



p.s. I know over 2 weeks, my speakers would have been on for the 15 hours  B)



[span style='font-size:8pt;line-height:100%']Edit: Realised it was a crap analogy, but you get the picture[/span]

B & W = Bowers and Wilkins
It's a company that builds good speakers. When I say good, I mean VERY GOOD!
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'Wearing-in' speakers?

Reply #8 –
Quote
For stuff that require skill, like swinging baseball bats, this is just training your mind to re-tune your hand-eye coordination, handgrip etc to adjust to the new bat.

I think that this is what really happens when people tlak about need of "wearing-in" audio components: it's the brain/ears what wears in.

According to Dick Pierce, a true professional expert on speakers that usually posts at some of the rec.audio newsgroups, always that you start playing music in a speaker it suffers from some "wearing in" that lasts as much a a couple of minutes. After having stopped using the speaker for some minutes it will go through the "wear-in" next time it plays music again.

'Wearing-in' speakers?

Reply #9 –
Heh, I know my ears 'wear-in' during a DJ'ing session - say I am at the same club Friday and Saturday .... How I leave the Mixer Bass, Mid and Treble controls at the end of Friday night is unbelievable when I get there on Saturday night

'Wearing-in' speakers?

Reply #10 –
I can believe B & W when they say what they say.  Their speakers are among the best, and most expensive, in the world.  I have an old pair of KEF 104/2's that I did not break in.  They sounded great from the beginning.  But a large part of that could have been adrenalin.  The same with some Sound Lab Prisitine electrostatics.  Probably for the same reason: adrenalin.

But, after a couple of weeks they will be "broken in" and unless you have captured the sound on a device and are able to listen to it on another system with A+ earphones, like the Stax Lambdas at US$11,000 with dedicated tube amp, you probably would not be able to ABX them as different.  But maybe you could.  So what?  If you bought or built good ones they will sound fine from the start and maybe a teensy, weensy bit better in two weeks.  BTW, "teensy weensy" is a certified audio measurement. 
Nov schmoz kapop.