What Exactly Does "Burn In" do for Electronics?


I understand the break in of an internal combustion engine and such, but was wondering what exactly "burn in" of electrical equipment benefits musicality, especially with solid state equipment? Tubes (valves) I can see where they work better with age, to a point, but not quite sure why usage would improve cables, for instance. Thanks in advance for your insight.
dfontalbert
Are you saying that you don't hear components break in or that you do and just don't know why?
Search any topic on forum here and you'll see that there's overwhelming consensus on one's rig sounding best after about half an hour after turn on.

Cold, out of the box, not so good.

When brand spanking new, one can easily multiply that exponentially until, after awhile, half an hour is all you need.

Something has happened. Check out any spec on individual parts and you'll see optimum operating temperatures under which they are spec'd. That means they have to heat up some and not exceed those temps.

Again, cold out of the box, not so good. Warmed up, good. That should tell you something. Your pride and joy needs less time to sound good so what just happened?

I've heard the difference between brand new and broken in but others will tell you I'm crazy.

I assure you I'm not.

All the best,
Nonoise
I wouldn't waste too much time on explanations. These posts are from people who don't like audio and start arguments for fun.
I love audio and I still out no stock in burn in for electronics or cables. What it comes down to IMO is that with high end audio it's extremely easy to be self deluded. This is due to the simple fact that our ability to perceive sound with utter consistent precision is poor at best yet we tend believe we are highly capable of detecting tiny changes. The brain ear combination is highly sophisticated but as a scientific measuring device capable of isolating tiny differences from one listening session to the next it's unreliable to say the least. That is the crux of the audiophile dilemma.