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Break in period

I have just acquired the Conrad Johnson CT5 preamp and CJ LP70S power amp. Would appreciate inputs /advice of fellow a'goners regd optimal break in period and is the break in period dependent on playback volume or amount of
gain. The reason I ask is coz a Stereophile review of the CT5(July 2006 ?)mentioned that the preamp was left in continous play mode for a week, that translates to 150 hrs.Given that i listen max 2hrs/day and more on weekends, that translates to a break in period of nearly 2 1/2 months !!
Have huge issues leaving the system running 24/7 coz of erratic power supply and neighbour's privacy etc
Would appreciate any/all advice
Cheers
128x128sunnyboy1956
elevick
2,636 posts
 
Buy some cheap output tubes and run the system a lot, not continuously. Keep the cheap tubes for emergencies later. For $50 to $100 bucks, you will get a piece of mind.
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shadorne
7,471 posts
 
Guidocorona,

laudable belief. Unfortunately reality is impervious to our wishes, beliefs, opinions or otherwise. Things either are or are not, regardless of what we believe they 'should' truly be

IMHO, in reality, one can select high quality electronics equipment that does not drift measurably or audibly in as little as a few hundred hours; equipment that can function accurately from day one and for many years.

Laudable make believe perhaps but I honestly think this is attainable from many respectable electronics manufacturers.
pauly
1,012 posts
 
"IMHO, in reality, one can select high quality electronics equipment that does not drift measurably or audibly in as little as a few hundred hours; equipment that can function accurately from day one and for many years."

Break-in has nothing to do with the quality of components. I have used TFTF V-caps on a few amps and noticed how they change during break-in. Care to name a better foil capacitor than a V-Cap?
dopogue
1,773 posts
 
The reason this preamp takes so long to break in is because of its teflon caps. You wouldn't believe how much better this thing will sound, compared to the way it does now (which probably isn't too bad). But teflon caps take time, and there's no way around it. Same as my Premier 17LS2. It's worth the wait. The people who haven't experienced this don't know what they're talking about. Good luck, Dave

PS The break-in with teflon caps is not linear. Don't be surprised if it yo-yos back and forth a bit. My Ack dAck 2.0 with the teflon option just about drove me nuts before it finally settled down. That one took a good 200 hours.
phd
1,312 posts
 
Sunnyboy1956, I can understand your impatience for break-in but just enjoy the journey and the music. Many manufacturers are strongly against leaving tube gear on 24/7 as it will lead to premature tube failure (quality tubes are not cheap) which in turn could result in other problems. Look at it this way, your patience will have its rewards. The very act of turning the gear on for a few hours with different types of music & volume levels, then turning it off may contribute more to proper break-in then continous operation, no doubt a safer route with tubes.
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