Why no “Break in” period?

the ironically named prof (who hasn't read enough of my posts, apparently) writes:

Have you ever gone a step further, and "actually listened and compared" without peeking?

Yes. Matter of fact, I have. Several times. Beyond your silly double-blind too.
One time a friend came over, and with the same mulish know it all stubborn resistance to learning something new thought he would play a little trick on me. So he did a little something. While I was out of the room. 

Well this was a party, another friend had a request, and wanting to do a quick level check sat down just to check the volume. Immediately, and I mean immediately, it was apparent something was wrong. Within about ten seconds, and just by listening, I figured out what it was, fixed it, and well under a minute had everything back to right. Only then did I notice my friend with this stunned stupid wtf look on his face, probably just the way prof would look if he had any self-awareness. Or awareness, period. 

Earlier this year when trying my first Blue Quantum Fuse it took about a minute to be sure it was in there the wrong way. Not making this up, you can go back read my post. Here's one prof: read em all. Learn something! The Blue sounded better right away, but not right. I knew it couldn't be right. First time ever hearing one. Flipped it around, sure enough.

Like I said many times, wasn't always so good a listener. Its a skill. That's the good news prof, you can learn. If you want. Takes practice. Get on it. Anyway, time was thought the idea of warm-up was bunk. But, don't cost nuthin. So left everything on all the time. This went on for months. Never did notice any difference. See? Stupid idea. Oh well. This was a really old Kenwood, so old the power switch had died years ago, kept it on with a little wood peg shimmed to fit just right. Easier just to leave it on.

One day something moves, thing goes off. Since I long ago forgot and decided it was BS went ahead and left it off. Next day turned it on to listen. WTF??!?!? Thought at first the old Kenwood was finally ready to bite the dust. Damn. Well it was a good 20 years. Wait. What? I thought it sounded bad. Now.... eventually it dawns on me I had gotten used to the warmed-up sound. 

Lotta stories like this. Friend does something behind your back. Something gets hooked up wrong, looks right, only sounds wrong. Happened over and over again.

Its easy to understand why some people are not good listeners, why they cannot hear these things. What seems trivially easy for me now was impossible 40 years ago. Also easy to understand why some guy at work would think its nuts. Not really his thing. What I can't understand is why anyone would hang around on a site dedicated to the proposition that there's things that sound better, and that these things are worth big money because of the way they sound, and then instead of doing that all they do is attack the very idea of being able to hear in the first place!

That. Is. Nuts!

Metals are good heat conductor because mostly of free electrons carrying kinetic energy (heat). Car engine breaking in is possible because of friction and heat. And of course electric current in cables is carried by electron which generating friction and thereby generating heat.

Hey something just popped in my head. millercarbon and prof are the same person - like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Their damn posts are way too long.  Most of us have to make a living, cook, eat, clean up the house, take care of the yards, washing cars and stuffs like that.  

millercarbon,

Those anecdotes are hardly accounts of a controlled tests.

And of course you include the usual disparagement of the other side having cloth ears, the old "you can’t hear differences because you don’t have finely tuned golden ears like me" trope.  (This is always hilarious to me - I spend all day attending to incredibly fine audio differences, often tuning the recorded "sound of the air in a room" to within 1 db or less to tonally match other airs or tracks.  Literally all day balancing the sonic and tonal characteristics of sometimes up to 50 tracks at once.   Not to mention I've been obsessed with live vs recorded sound for 40 years and an audiophile for almost as long.  But, I'm sure you are in a position to diagnose-over-the-internet my perceptual abilities just to try to stick the knife in because...well...it makes you feel better.  Just beautiful).

Whereas I am not saying you are wrong in your claims. I’m actually open to the possibility of fuses sounding different, burn-in etc. I just happen to be aware of the pitfalls of purely subjective inferences particularly when it comes to controversial technical/audio claims. And I see for the most part anecdote in support of the claims, vs hard evidence. So, have not come to a conclusion at the moment. (Though I think there is good reason to infer that many audiophile claims are poorly supported and likely due to subjective errors).

It’s too bad you come to audio discussions with others who don’t believe just as you do with such a strong desire to insult, millercarbon. If you could just dial down the naked hostility there could be actual conversation.



(Hope that was short enough, Andy ;-))

The "break in period" is usually one day longer than the return window. 
Physically moving items such as speaker cones and cartridges I'd agree have a break in, cables? Not in my book.