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Break in blues

I just don't have the patience anymore to wait for components to settle in.That's the only caveat with having tubed components - ya can't leave em on 24/7 to speed up the process:( I have the little cartoon devil and angel on my shoulders.The devil is ocd "You've obviously made a mistake!After 3 days and 12 ENTIRE HOURS this thing sounds horrible!!Bright,congested,arrgh!!" The angel tries to sooth me"Turn it down,go do something else,don't listen at all until it's clocked in at 50 hours. "To be fair then the right thing to do is after an initial listen to some favorite tracks to give it another 50 hours then make a decision.Sigh....
So the devil suggested I swap cables and by golly he was right this time.Everything is playing together much better now.The old Gabriel Gold cable that sounded so sweet with the Rogue preamp was totally incompatible with the new Microzotl2.The new/old cable is a Siltech Paris.
The angel is a bit miffed but now at least I can get a feel for if it's a keeper or not before the deadline to return it arrives.What I like to do is play it at low volume for 4-5 hours each day then listen at the end of that period to see how it's coming along.It's been a few years since I've bought anything new and I don't remember ever being this anxious before.I don't remember auditioning a component that seemed to sound totally different day by day.Out of the box the Microzotl was excellent,next day bass heavy,next day the GLARE!Today with the new cable excellent.So if tomorrow is also excellent the angel and I will have learned something new.Cables do sound different from each other but I've never come across a situation where one was majorly incompatible.

128x128jtcf
jtcf's avatar
jtcf OP
1,617 posts
 
Thank you!Got em on my list now.

@elizabeth we can feel each other's pain;)
michaelgreenaudio's avatar
michaelgreenaudio
1,019 posts
 

The nature of breakin is a continuum. Designers have had the task of soft selling breakin to make it easier on the end user. Saying 40hrs, 400hrs or 400days is really nothing more than a selling point so that the designer (and listener) can have an excuse for why their system sounds the way it does. Truth is, anything that passes a current or is subject to the fundamental forces on this planet continues to mature forever.

When you think about it, it's really cool that our audio systems (including room and environment) are so flexible. I like using the term "mechanical conduit" to describe the parts of everything in our audio chains. As much as HEA has tried to paint the picture of isolation, it really comes down to our systems are moving all the time and that means is in constant change in performance. It's nothing to freak out about in fact, once you get it, the hobby takes an interesting turn for you. It's very much like having a guitar and playing a guitar.

Michael

chefbarnes
12 posts
 
Topics on burn in and cabling look more like a political...discussion. 
some folks talking about their experiences. Then comes the post saying it's all hogwash and it follows the same pattern. 

I have quite a bit of equipment pass through my hands, and I try to listen to pieces I haven't heard before or recently. Like new equipment, pieces that have sat unused for years need to go through a re burn in. 

I have gone through a period of multiple changes recently with my personal gear. I took time off from listening for a while because I also don't want to wade through the thin sound phase to the bloated bass phase to the disappearing vocals phase. 
With some of the the more chock full o functions pieces taking more than 300 hours. 
rvpiano's avatar
rvpiano
2,656 posts
 
“On this forum, and others, there are folks who come up and write purely for the sake of being noticed or boredom”. — michaelgreenaudio 

Oh yes!
djones51
4,947 posts
 
I have completely rebuilt my system within the last month the latest component being a DAC I added a few days ago. It already sounds wonderful to me so I guess my ears and brain have broken in to the sound characteristics. If you forget the extraneous requirements of hundreds of hours needed for proper sound and the worry you just blew a few thousand $$$ and it might have been a waste a lot of people put on the equipment  and themselves and let yourself relax and enjoy the music you'll find it doesn't really take that long to get broken in. 
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