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Burn-in and Equipmemt Value

A lot of people strongly believe that burn-in results in better sound quality and some will even pay more for cables that have the burn-in done by the manufacturer. If burn-in is real, then why isn't used equipment worth more than it is? At a minimum, shouldn't the demo equipment from a respected retailer be worth more when manufacturer warranties are still in play and the equipment is essentially new?

As a side question, why is it that any perceived change in a system where burn-in is credited it is assumed that the burn-in was on the newest piece of equipment? Some users report changes from burn-in hundreds and thousands of hours down the road.

I understand break-in on speakers and tube amplifiers, but struggle greatly with things like cables and digital sources.
mceljo
mceljo OP
1,357 posts
 
I think what Mrtennis was saying is that an experienced listener can tell the difference between a cd playing music and one playing white noise!

I would also love to know more about being able to tell a difference in how equipment was broken in...

My personal opinion is that any change from break-in on the vast majority of equipment is more about getting used to a change in the way something sounds than it getting better with time. When I got my tube amplifier, some music was immediately superior and others didn't sound right because I was so used to hearing it a certain way previously and simply sounding different was enough to get a negative response. Now I am enjoying pretty much everything.
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mceljo OP
1,357 posts
 
But as long as the peanut gallery has an expected outcome placebo is nearly impossible to separate. I would prefer to swap them out without the owner knowing and then see if there was any notice or reaction.
bifwynne
2,206 posts
 
Mceljo, I for one have zero issue with buying used gear -- period!!! In fact, I prefer it for the reasons you just mentioned.

Case in point: ARC says that most of its gear requires 600 hours of burn in. Who the heck wants to wait 600 hours!!! So when I bought my Ref 5 with 1000+ hours on it, I was quite happy. Ditto with my PH-8 (ARC refurb with 750+ hours) Ref 150 (pre-owned with 1050+ hours) and my Ref CD-8 (??).

I mentioned in another post that my CD-8 is about 5 years old now. ARC says that it's pretty maintenance free. Just use a camel hair photo lens brush to kick the dust off the lens in the transport.

I think a fair point is that good quality equipment like ARC (and many other fine brands) just doesn't age like cars did in the 50s and 60s -- 60,000 miles and you had one old car. :)

Hey, who ever heard that an I/C or speaker cable ever wore out???? ;-')
schipo
1,268 posts
 
Audiophiles have more myths pertaining to audio. Then Greek mythology has legends and hero's.
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