Quote From Eric’s Blog -
https://tektondesign.wordpress.com/2009/11/02/full-range-driver-break-in%E2%80%A6/ Full-range break-in – what you need to know: All pistonic-type transducers have a very clear and predictable rate of change that occurs within the first few hours and within the extended hours of initial break-in. In the realm of credible transducer engineering, we see major changes (10-15%) occuring within the first 1-15 hours of break-in. This is the period where the major shifts normally occur. Beyond 15 hours, in a properly functioning and typical device, the process really slows down and small, incremental changes are typically observed over time.
The Key: When a new transducer’s soft parts (cone, surround, spider, etc.) are crisp and tight, there is a specific level of transverse friction within a number of parts in the transducer. Once we get the driver working through its effective range of motion (far from linear), the transverse friction levels immediately begin to predictably drop, and the piston moves more and more smoothly with less and less resistance.
The full-range mystery: The break-in process (with all of its negative attributes) simply happens to be most intrinsically connected to, and is most audibly discerned through a full-range transducer. This is because a full range simply has the ability to augment the very subtle higher frequency centered distortions, squeaks, and squawks that a crisp new speaker is capable of producing. Once again, if it is a full-range speaker and if it sounds bad out of the box, don’t wait for a miracle to happen; send it straight back to whomever you got it from because the speaker has serious problems. If it sounds quite good but has a very subtle graininess, or a few mild distortions, or the sound is crisp but still pleasant, then you’ve got a keeper! Sit back and be patient, and you will be pleasantly rewarded within 15-20 hours of moderate playback levels – this amount of break-in time will get you to about 80%-complete break-in. Beyond that, a functionally full and nearly complete break-in period of 200+ hours is quite reasonable and is to be expected.
Much more on this subject to follow…
Eric Alexander
