Driver Break-in analysis - YT video

[RexrothPigeon]

Well I sort of told it answering Kyu a few posts above

can't you just actually answer instead of sort of?

 

[amirm]

I watched the video with subtitles. He takes forever to get to the point. The real meat starts around 7 minutes. Likewise, the last 3 to 5 minutes are a lot of talking as well.

Bottom line is what Dr. Toole and team discovered years ago. Parameters of drivers do change a bit but once put in an enclosure, the impact is next to zero.

At some level, all of this has to be true. A speaker driver must be designed out of material that is NOT sensitive to usage. After all, if it is, then it will continue to get softer and softer or even develop fatigue and fail. The whole point of a driver material is to not allow this to happen. Take thick cardboard. That clearly softens if you bend it more and more. But at the start, would make a horrible speaker and change would be dramatic.

Put another way, if someone believes his speakers truly benefit from burn-in/break in, then it has horrible drivers!

 

[smygolf]

One thing i Really would like to see (but prob never will) - what happens after +10 years of use.

 

[sigbergaudio]

One thing i Really would like to see (but prob never will) - what happens after +10 years of use.

Not ten years, but I have compared a brand new driver with one that had lived in one of our demo speakers for around 2 years. Virtually identical (down to the difference you'd expect to see from sample to sample of two new drivers).

 

[John Galt]

I asked x.com Grok to watch the video and summarize it.

“Conclusion of the video:

There is no objective, measurable, audible transformation in speakers from musical break-in. Perceived improvements come from:

- Listener ears/brain adapting (very short auditory memory, expectation bias, fatigue/stress levels, time-of-day differences).
- Environmental factors (temperature, humidity, placement).
- Placebo from following the ritual.

The presenter humorously suggests it's really "le rodage des oreilles" (break-in of the listener's ears) rather than the speakers. Measurements and manufacturer engineer statements support treating new speakers as ready to use immediately.

Links provided in description:
- Forum thread with full measurement tables/docs: https://forum.soundpixelab.com/viewtopic.php?t=469
- MatrixHiFi manufacturer roundup: https://matrixhifi.com/contenedor_rodajealtavoces.htm

Overall: rigorous, measurement-heavy debunk aimed at the French hi-fi community — skeptical but not aggressive.

 

[Hayabusa]

I came across this video, it's an evidence-based analysis on the impact of break-in on drivers. I thought it was a really well-made video and the channel, SoundPixelLab, even though in french, deserves attention. (Don't hesitate to tell me if it was already posted)

Description edit: they explain the principle of the break-in, asked the manufacterers on the subject, perform a set of measurements on 5 different drivers, and give their conclusion.

Very nice analysis of the subject!
Only surprising thing was he skipped through some frequency responses saying there not much to see, but there were clear 1-2 dB changes that I think cross the boundary of audible threshold,

 

[RickS]

One thing i Really would like to see (but prob never will) - what happens after +10 years of use.

This testing may exist at some speaker company with a serious interest but you are right, we will likely never see. Am guessing the typical audiophile upgrades more often. Also technology advances and we get better materials and innovations that did not exist a decade earlier. So, except for curiosity, the research value seems pretty limited, but I could be wrong. There is likely some fringe application (space or military) where extreme longevity is valued.

Would likely be a driver with an extreme price tag too!

 

[Karmacoma]

I asked x.com Grok to watch the video and summarize it.

“Conclusion of the video:

There is no objective, measurable, audible transformation in speakers from musical break-in. Perceived improvements come from:

- Listener ears/brain adapting (very short auditory memory, expectation bias, fatigue/stress levels, time-of-day differences).
- Environmental factors (temperature, humidity, placement).
- Placebo from following the ritual.

The presenter humorously suggests it's really "le rodage des oreilles" (break-in of the listener's ears) rather than the speakers. Measurements and manufacturer engineer statements support treating new speakers as ready to use immediately.

Links provided in description:
- Forum thread with full measurement tables/docs: https://forum.soundpixelab.com/viewtopic.php?t=469
- MatrixHiFi manufacturer roundup: https://matrixhifi.com/contenedor_rodajealtavoces.htm

Overall: rigorous, measurement-heavy debunk aimed at the French hi-fi community — skeptical but not aggressive.

Awesome, didn't know you could do that, will definitely use it if I post a video in the future.

I watched the video with subtitles. He takes forever to get to the point. The real meat starts around 7 minutes. Likewise, the last 3 to 5 minutes are a lot of talking as well.

Bottom line is what Dr. Toole and team discovered years ago. Parameters of drivers do change a bit but once put in an enclosure, the impact is next to zero.

At some level, all of this has to be true. A speaker driver must be designed out of material that is NOT sensitive to usage. After all, if it is, then it will continue to get softer and softer or even develop fatigue and fail. The whole point of a driver material is to not allow this to happen. Take thick cardboard. That clearly softens if you bend it more and more. But at the start, would make a horrible speaker and change would be dramatic.

Put another way, if someone believes his speakers truly benefit from burn-in/break in, then it has horrible drivers!

It sure doesn't bring anything new at the table, not meant at all for that or obviously to compete with Dr Toole, it's just that I found the whole package, presentation and teaching skills, the reproduction of a known experiment, and also the commitment of a passionate audiophile, worth of interest.
The only break-in that exists in the end is a psychological break-in to get used to new speakers, this guy advocates the concept can be helpful in that way, and I really like this take, we've all had a little dissonance with a new set of speakers, it's a very positive and pragmatic way to see things.