Thread: Speaker Breakin Techniques

Wondering what you all do for speaker breakin. Seems like 500 hours is a sweet spot for most speakers.

Do you need to play with any specific volume in mind or can you let them play at low levels?
Does the type of music have any impact? Vocals would move drivers far less than Hard Rock or Classical.

What do you do to break in a pair of speakers for hundreds of hours?

Daft Punk Random Access Memories on Repeat (not kidding) for 24/7 at modest volume.


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I let mine play about 6 to 7 hrs a day x 4 days a week at medium volume. Took several months. I'm at about 400 hrs now. Definite difference. I'm guessing about another 100 hrs will, for the most part, complete the break in.

I've had to break in guitar amp speakers too. They don't take as long as home audio speakers. Probably because they're usually played at higher volume levels.

I won't possibly be able to play anything 24/7 or many hours a day so it will take me a long time to break in the new ones when they get here.

Was just wondering if the Genre makes a difference as in Dianna Krall only would take 1000 hours where maybe Black Sabbath would take 500 hours due to the musical demands on the drivers.

Sound of the Surf at just over half volume on continuous repeat - now over 850 hours on the Fyne 703s.

This was suggested to me (AVANTGARDE-USA at the time) by George Cardas at a CES show (IIRC, CES 2001) that we shared with Cardas, Grand Prix Audio, & BAT.

Always worked very well (plus folks who were staying in nearby rooms never complained), and we used it thereafter at each show, including all night at the end of each day before opening the next morning - not just CES (where we won Best of Show nearly every show). Overall, we won 7 Best Of awards at various shows in five years - from reviewers, the majority of which had not cared for horn speakers previously.

Just prior to opening the doors each morning, I always switched to the Cardas/Ayre IBE disc as a final tweak - a couple of runs of the Glide Tone - about 5 minutes each run.

Am I saying that the break-in tracks got us those awards? Of course not, but I am sure that they helped...

Whenever possible, we also set them up face-to-face in opposite polarity, as mentioned above.

I still use that album - no longer available new - as well as the Cardas/Ayre IBE recording. Both are burned into iTunes on my MBPs, although transferred to M3U files through Audirvana. These days, I run them at 3/4 of standard volume, because my listening room is in its own building.

Originally Posted by Mike

Daft Punk Random Access Memories on Repeat (not kidding) for 24/7 at modest volume.


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I have used this album for break-in myself. Nothing will work out your system like Daft Punk!

We had a Smooth Jazz station on HD that was in mono, not much for listening but it's what I used the last time I broke in speakers, played that and let them play at moderate levels wile at work then low overnight. If you work from home now you may have to be creative.

I too would think something with heavy bass content that ould work the woofer would be more beneficial forbreak in over piano/vocal type music.

What was fun is returning to the speakers for a listening session and discovering how they changed from last listen, you become a believer in "break-in". Obviously, the difference gets less and less as you approach the sound the speaker should have.

when i got my current speakers in july 2018, i just listened as i regularly do, ~1.5 hours per day. however, in retrospect some type of break-in regime like those suggested above might have been preferable.

it was somewhere around the 20-month / 1,000-hour mark that i feel they were completely broken-in. interestingly, it was the 10" wide-band AlNiCo woofer that did not really show its full capability / potential until i got almost all the way to 1,000 hours.

Originally Posted by Shadowfax

I won't possibly be able to play anything 24/7 or many hours a day so it will take me a long time to break in the new ones when they get here.

Was just wondering if the Genre makes a difference as in Dianna Krall only would take 1000 hours where maybe Black Sabbath would take 500 hours due to the musical demands on the drivers.

Dianna Krall , could put your speakers to sleep

Originally Posted by Speedskater

One loud album with lots of bass and they are broken in. Anything longer is just audiophile myths and mis-understandings.

I disagree, but I don't claim that I have scientific facts, just lots of experience observing this phenomenon.

When a system is fully optimized for working with the room, rather than against it, with the acoustic wave-launch and its reception at the listening seat really dialed-in, I have never had anyone who did not experience - and appreciate - a longer break-in time.

I could go on, but who needs more arguments in these days/times?

Originally Posted by CPP

Dianna Krall , could put your speakers to sleep

I'd sleep with her .............

Originally Posted by Jim Smith

I disagree, but I don't claim that I have scientific facts, just lots of experience observing this phenomenon.

When a system is fully optimized for working with the room, rather than against it, with the acoustic wave-launch and its reception at the listening seat really dialed-in, I have never had anyone who did not experience - and appreciate - a longer break-in time.

I could go on, but who needs more arguments in these days/times?

I think whatever satisfies your 'belief' is all that matters yet when I hear someone claim 1000 hrs I cry foul, no auditory memory is that good !

Originally Posted by Speedskater

One loud album with lots of bass and they are broken in. Anything longer is just audiophile myths and mis-understandings.

Appears you are in the minority here. Then again, maybe we all misunderstand and believe in myths and you are the only one who is correct.

Hey, I don't care if you believe or you don't. But if you do, how do you do it. If you don't.......

Hi Brian,

I think you been given several viable options regarding how to do it.

I would also suggest you just hook them up and enjoy listening.

If they don't sound better than the speakers they replaced out of the box, maybe it wasn't a big enough jump in speaker quality.

Some speakers have some amazing ups and downs during break-in. Raidho is one of those. Every 24 hours is a different speaker until around 250 hours, the they stabilize and get better for the next 250-500 hours.

I do believe that most things after 250 hours are pretty well there. They improve afterwards but the biggest improvement happens in the first 250 hrs.

Originally Posted by brad225

I would also suggest you just hook them up and enjoy listening.

If they don't sound better than the speakers they replaced out of the box, maybe it wasn't a big enough jump in speaker quality.

Brad, how dare you speak with an ounce of common sense !

Originally Posted by thedudeabides

Appears you are in the minority here. Then again, maybe we all misunderstand and believe in myths and you are the only one who is correct.

Now Gordon, there you go again, getting all 'audiophile goofy' on us ..............

Originally Posted by Mikado463

Brad, how dare you speak with an ounce of common sense !

Agree, you just can't use simple logic and or common sense its just not the way of the audiophile But I agree with him. Put on your favorite music and play it.

Originally Posted by brad225

I would also suggest you just hook them up and enjoy listening.

If they don't sound better than the speakers they replaced out of the box, maybe it wasn't a big enough jump in speaker quality.

Of course this is always a gamble when you cannot demo in your own home. I am hoping to be as overjoyed with the new Fynes as I was when I replaced my old VAC-Counterpoint combo with the Luxman. I was worried until I plugged it in.

I have been reluctant to move from the old Clearfields which are really von Schwiekerts as both I and my wife love them. BUT, if the 502SPs do not better a 25 y/o pair of speakers, my wife may just bury me in pcs in the Fyne cabinets.

I do plan to just hook them up and play them as you suggest but was interested in everyone's techniques. It's interesting that the majority of listeners agree that Breakin is real, but vary so wildly as to how to properly break them in.

Originally Posted by Shadowfax

Of course this is always a gamble when you cannot demo in your own home.

while I can't argue with that point I do feel most 'educated' audiophiles have a pretty good understanding of speaker / room interaction and should be of sound enough mind to make a good call.

Originally Posted by Mikado463

while I can't argue with that point I do feel most 'educated' audiophiles have a pretty good understanding of speaker / room interaction and should be of sound enough mind to make a good call.

Yeah for sure, but it was a good thing I listened to both the 502s and the 502SPs at the same time or I may have bought a pair I didn't really like but reviews and comments made sound more fantastic than I found. The room that I did demo in was way too small for the speakers so my room will be better. I also think my Luxman will better the Rogue gear I demo'd with.

I've been playing a healthy dose of big band, small combo jazz, and bluegrass music over the last 8 - 9 months. I try to cover as broad of a frequency range as I can. I don't have a clue if this is the correct way. Seems logical to me and I can definitely hear a difference vs several months ago. There's probably a much faster and more efficient way to break a system in. But I have to say my system seems to have "cured" very nicely.

I don't know if the electronic components breaking in contribute more or less to the sound vs the speakers. But I left the electronics on constantly for the first 3 or 4 months. Even when not playing music. Hope that helps.

Brian, I agree that they will need break in. I'm just saying, you made an educated decision as to the speakers you bought and should just enjoy them from the start.

Originally Posted by brad225

Brian, I agree that they will need break in. I'm just saying, you made an educated decision as to the speakers you bought and should just enjoy them from the start.

I plan to as I have no ability to let them run 24/7 for weeks facing each other out of phase while blasting Daft Punk

I am sure they will be an upgrade and just get better with time.

I don't swap speakers often, but I am the "setup, and forget" type, who just listens to the music. I do tend to notice that the sound will improve over a few months in my system, as the woofers loosen up slightly, the mid range smooth out, and the caps break in. LOL, thats the theory. Im not sure my hearing is good enough to notice any change in the tweeters. I do notice that my family will come into the room from time to time, and I have had comments like: those speakers are sounding better than last time I was here, did you change something else?

Either the speakers sound better after "awhile", or thats how long it takes me to retrain my hearing/brain for the new speakers.

I knew a dealer that told one of his customer on speaker and component breakin " Play it like you stole it" ,

Originally Posted by elliotg

I personally don't do much listening to any new speaker for a day or so as to let them sit and play music after there trip from wherever to my place. I don't think that over analyzing break-in is worth the time either. Most speakers are mostly ready after a few days time like 80-100 hours of playing music. I just put my playlist on and let it play and once and in a while I use an old burn in track that lasts about 30 minutes. I'm not sure it does anything but its like chicken soup!

When I bought my current speakers, the thought of having 50 tubes burning up hours for break-in also made me decide to just enjoy them out of the box.

Yes: speakers very close and facing each other, one wired out of phase, pre-amp on mono, Rusted Root CD (And Then I Woke) on loop/repeat, and close the library door for a week.

Keep a good SS amp handy for this duty if you use tubes.

I remember when I got a new pair of Dynaudio Audience 82s 20 years ago. They were stiff and non engaging for 50-100 hours and the change was dramatic from the first play. I expect new speakers to sound good out of the box, but get better with a little use. I am prepared for some amount of breakin.

The good thing for me now is, my old speakers are set to leave this coming Sunday so I will have 2 weeks to forget how good they sound before the new ones arrive.

I know I have asked this same question about Cables, but here goes again for Speakers....

What I don't understand, is why someone has not setup a simple test using some sort of Wave Editor or Audio Spectrum Analyzer hooked up to an Oscilloscope and able to zero in on the generated graph of a single note after recording the playback of a New Speaker. Then a month or so later, in the same controlled environment, take a second recording and overlay the graphs of the same exact note. Changes in sound should be visible as the graphs would not match. Maybe it's not so easy but sure sounds simple enough for Mega Buck MFGs to do and just simply Prove that Speaker Breakin is real.

I discovered a new technique.

Just play Marcus Miller M Squared over and over for a while

I know I have hours to go, but I put this Marcus disk on at a decent volume and you could hear changes by the end of the disk.

I have played mostly Bass heavy music so far and can seriously hear changes already. 500 hours does seem a bit excessive but if using Krall or Jones, yeah I can see it take half a lifetime to break em in.

I will say, it will take hours to get used to these speakers as they are so different than anything I have owned before. I think that is where the 500 hours is really needed, the bass is tightening up a bit only after 25 hours.