Speakers break in period

[FBech]

Hello, I just got a pair of whaferdale diamond 12.3. They are not sounding as good as in the shop, lack of bass mainly.

It is true that speakers have a break in period?

 

[paul puma]

Yes, that's true. Could be up to 100 hours.

 

[Roog]

Mainly due to different room = different sound.
The acoustic properties of the room are a much underestimated phenomenon.

 

[GSV Ethics Gradient]

They do, though you might want to experiment with positioning them - probably closer to the wall at first.

 

[abacus]

Find a recording of pink noise (Mono), then place the speakers approximately 1m apart facing each other, then connect the one speaker out of phase, play the pink noise for about 4hrs or so (Be careful with the volume so that you don't overload the speakers, as the out of phase noise cancelling effect will make it seem quieter than it is) and you will be good to go, after that experiment with positioning to get the best performance. (Don't forget to reconnect the speakers back correctly)

Bill

 

[Gray]

Mainly due to different room = different sound.
The acoustic properties of the room are a much underestimated phenomenon.

✅ MUCH more underestimated than any 'break in' effects - which are often vastly overestimated.

Some people wait for the effects of the magical break in and buy fancy speaker cables......after placing speakers in echo chamber rooms 🤪

 

[ToppingSMSL]

Hello, I just got a pair of whaferdale diamond 12.3. They are not sounding as good as in the shop, lack of bass mainly.

It is true that speakers have a break in period?

Could be down to your listening room.

 

[Jasonovich]

Hello, I just got a pair of whaferdale diamond 12.3. They are not sounding as good as in the shop, lack of bass mainly.

It is true that speakers have a break in period?

This may be particular to your room, setup and positioning.
I'm not sure where I stand with speakers breaking in, but I don't think this will change much.
I would suggest getting yourself a subwoofer.
If you don't have deep pockets for Rel or SVS, you could consider Velodyne SP2 8 inch, SW.
I have these setup with the Kilpsch in the diner room hifi. They don't add any colour to the sound and very good.

 

[ToppingSMSL]

✅ MUCH more underestimated than any 'break in' effects - which are often vastly overestimated.

Some people wait for the effects of the magical break in and buy fancy speaker cables......after placing speakers in echo chamber rooms 🤪

There's a guy on youtube who buys "fake" audiophile cables from aliexpress (Nordost, Audioquest etc) and does an initial review looking at the construction quality etc and explains he still needs to burn them in and does a proper review after the burn in is complete

 

[Dave_]

There's a guy on youtube who buys "fake" audiophile cables from aliexpress (Nordost, Audioquest etc) and does an initial review looking at the construction quality etc and explains he still needs to burn them in and does a proper review after the burn in is complete

Why does that sound familiar?

 

[abacus]

Speakers are mechanical, hence the need for running in, electronics, leave them on for a couple of minutes to allow them to stabilise and you are good to go, (Note: Tube amplifiers take a lot longer) cables, well that has been debunked so many times, I am surprised how many people still believe it.

Bill

 

[Friesiansam]

cables, well that has been debunked so many times, I am surprised how many people still believe it.

There are still retailers out there, who say they will burn your cables in for you, before despatch. How you would ever know whether they really did it though, is beyond me...

 

[nopiano]

Hello, I just got a pair of whaferdale diamond 12.3. They are not sounding as good as in the shop, lack of bass mainly.

It is true that speakers have a break in period?

What are you connecting them to, and are you sure they are in phase? The main symptom of out of phase speakers is lack of bass, followed by lack of a focussed image.

What did they replace?

Were they played immediately after collecting from a cold warehouse, or transported in a cold car? Speakers can sound a bit ‘stiff’ if they haven’t been at room temperature for a few hours.

 

[Al ears]

The "burn in time" for speakers is always one day longer than the returns date.....

 

[ToppingSMSL]

Speakers are mechanical, hence the need for running in, electronics, leave them on for a couple of minutes to allow them to stabilise and you are good to go, (Note: Tube amplifiers take a lot longer) cables, well that has been debunked so many times, I am surprised how many people still believe it.

Bill

Whilst it may be possible that some drivers change over time here is an interesting headphone break in experiment which found no difference:

I'm certainly not going to say there is no such thing as driver burn-in, but when you think about it it's a bit odd - they're designed to be reactive to an electrical signal and you'd expect them to be designed in such a way that there is very minimal change from when they are manufactured. If a company finds that there is a big difference why wouldnt they break them in themselves before shipping?
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zo4P48Y9BJw

 

[Friesiansam]

If a company finds that there is a big difference why wouldnt they break them in themselves before shipping?

Presumably because it would add to their manufacturing costs. Cars need running-in when new but, when was the last time you saw a manufacturer advertise, that their cars were pre-run-in before delivery?

 

[Al ears]

Whilst it may be possible that some drivers change over time here is an interesting headphone break in experiment which found no difference:

I'm certainly not going to say there is no such thing as driver burn-in, but when you think about it it's a bit odd - they're designed to be reactive to an electrical signal and you'd expect them to be designed in such a way that there is very minimal change from when they are manufactured. If a company finds that there is a big difference why wouldnt they break them in themselves before shipping?
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zo4P48Y9BJw

If anything it is the stiff rubber surrounds on many speakers that need time to acclimatise and break in rather than any electronics.
It's the elastomers see, likewise with cartridges.
However, if you've had them for a couple of days, they are not suddenly going to improve significantly.
Headphones wouldn't have this issue so we are talking about two different things here.
Always best to try to answer the OPs question.

 

[Shrek]

Hello, I just got a pair of whaferdale diamond 12.3. They are not sounding as good as in the shop, lack of bass mainly.

It is true that speakers have a break in period?

HI there i have the same speakers what Amp & source did the shop use when you heard them in the shop,what source are they connected to at home ??

 

[GeoffreyW]

My SCM11s didn't sound as good as hoped for when I got them home, but after a long time, certainly 100 hours and
probably more ( I didn't keep count), they now sound great, so persevere. Speakers are mechanical devices, so I kept the volume at normal levels, only raising it for 15-20 minutes at a time.
Amp perhaps delay positioning until you're happy with the sound?
Happy listening.

 

[Integralista]

Hello, I just got a pair of whaferdale diamond 12.3. They are not sounding as good as in the shop, lack of bass mainly.

It is true that speakers have a break in period?

Hi, how many hours or days have been your speakers used? Is your system, room similar to system, room in hifi shop? All of that matter. Simple speakers with soft dome tweeters need some 40-50 hours for break in period. Very coplex speakers with e.g. berylium tweeters are slowly changing up to 1000 hours...Yes it is true with Focal Grande Utopias Evo, which we have in presentation room. Your speakers are simple, do not worry. BR

 

[Revolutions]

I once broke in my speakers with a crowbar. I was disappointed in the lack of treasure inside the cabinets. And by the fact they didn’t work afterwards.

 

[Fandango Andy]

Hello, I just got a pair of whaferdale diamond 12.3. They are not sounding as good as in the shop, lack of bass mainly.

It is true that speakers have a break in period?

Sorry if I am going over old ground, but there are lots of responses here, I have only skimmed over them.

They will break in and sound a little better with time, but the real issue is most likely positioning. Your room is going to sound different to the listening room to the shop, that's just a fact of physics! What are the dimensions of your room? how is it furnished, lots of hard surfaces, or full of soft furnishings? You may be able to play with that.

To begin with try and get your positioning as good as possible. your speakers recommend a minimum distance from the wall of 200mm, the optimal is probably around double that. They should be about 2m apart, and a similar distance from your listening position (Imagine an equilateral triangle with you at one point and a speaker at each o the other two). they should also be at least 700mm from side walls.

If you start 2m apart, and 200mm from the wall experiment with pulling them out from the wall until the bass sounds right. the closer to the wall the moor bass, but it will sound boomy and horrible. once you are happy with this experiment with how much toe in you need. Once you have this try moving them further from the wall and closer to the wall again, just to be sure.

 

[Fandango Andy]

I once broke in my speakers with a crowbar. I was disappointed in the lack of treasure inside the cabinets. And by the fact they didn’t work afterwards.

Its your own fault. You didn't wire them with unicorn hair.

 

[ToppingSMSL]

If anything it is the stiff rubber surrounds on many speakers that need time to acclimatise and break in rather than any electronics.
It's the elastomers see, likewise with cartridges.
However, if you've had them for a couple of days, they are not suddenly going to improve significantly.
Headphones wouldn't have this issue so we are talking about two different things here.
Always best to try to answer the OPs question.

Well I did give my thoughts on the question. The stiff rubber ring is stiff and rubber for a reason.

 

[Al ears]

Well I did give my thoughts on the question. The stiff rubber ring is stiff and rubber for a reason.

Perhaps you could point out where, must have missed it.