Break in Moment.....?

tedtag

New Member
Jul 19, 2016
59
8
0
Georgia
Break in .....?

I'm sure this topic has been covered repeatedly, but I was completely taken by surprise by my system yesterday. The last time I listened to it was a couple of weeks ago and it sounded terrible. Lifeless, dull, lacking texture, and subtle nuance. Not sure why that was the case because it had sounded pretty good before that and at times it sounded great. But I was ready to give up on it and start making equipment and set up changes.

Then, without changing anything, I spun a few albums I was familiar with yesterday afternoon and voila; the exact same system sounded incredible and the best I had ever heard it by a wide margin. It was one of those moments when there was a huge smile plastered on my face, didn't want to move an inch, and was completely absorbed into the music. The only thoughts I had were about what to play next. Now I can't wait to crank it up and listen some more today!

So what happened? All I can think of is break in. I've got a CAT Legend preamp/phono stage with JL7 tube amps that must be approaching about 300 hours. (I'm terrible at clocking the hours on my equipment and probably should do better at it!) Then I have a relatively new TechDas cartridge that probably has about 30 to 40 hours at this point. The speakers are PK Custom Quads with maybe 200 hours. Cables have been around a while and spent time in the cooker a few months ago. I'm not sure which component(s?) kicked in but whatever it was, I'm not changing a thing and will be booting it up shortly.

Any thoughts?
 
Last edited:

DaveC

Industry Expert
Nov 16, 2014
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Cartridge and speakers are probably still breaking-in. Sometimes burn-in / break-in can have a very large effect.
 

Hi-FiGuy

Member Sponsor
Feb 23, 2015
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Mental state is huge and also what kind of noise levels were your ears subjected to prior to that listening session.
 

Robh3606

Well-Known Member
Aug 24, 2010
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Destiny
That happens to me too not sure why but happy when it does

Rob:)
 

Leif S

Industry Expert
Feb 13, 2015
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Cartridge and speakers are probably still breaking-in. Sometimes burn-in / break-in can have a very large effect.

Sometimes??? lol
 

RogerD

VIP/Donor
May 23, 2010
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When your system has had changes,including cables,your system will sound different as it settles in. It is not uncommon in my experience for a period of rest...to help the process. Has nothing to do with mental state as high resolution systems exhibit this phenomena. Enjoy.
 

tedtag

New Member
Jul 19, 2016
59
8
0
Georgia
Thanks for your replies to my post and I very much appreciate everyone's comments. I believe I understand the effect of mental state on the listening experience and have had that happen before. But in this case, the change in the music seemed to be too significant to be caused by that.

I've read that some preamps need 300 hours to break in and cartridges may need up to 50 hours to reach their full potential. Also, I wouldn't be surprised if the speakers needed a good bit of playing time to loosen up. Maybe it was coincidental, but what if the preamp, cartridge, and the speakers all reached full break in at about the same time? I listened to the system again this morning and it definitely seems to have moved on to a higher level. Either way, I'm really glad I didn't do anything prematurely to change the components or the set up.
 

tedtag

New Member
Jul 19, 2016
59
8
0
Georgia
I have the similiar issue. Thanks to this topic? I find the way to solve it.

Best of luck with it. I just got a new CD player (MBL N31) and it sounded terrible until about 20 hours. For a while part of me wondered if I had made a big mistake. But another part of me, the rational part, said to just shut up and wait it out. Then...... boom. I love it and I'm sure it will just keep getting better. Patience is not always easy but sometimes that's all it takes.
 

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