Does a solid state amplifier require burn-in??

[Kumar442244]

A myth/reality that keep audiophiles baffled. Not sure how true is this but have experienced the same lately.
Recently bought Peachtree amp. Plugged it in and almost suddenly realised that it's a bad pick.
It's been almost 2 weeks now and progressively, have started loving it.
It's like hate<neutral<like<love.
Is it that the amp has now broken in? Or is it just my ears got accustomed to the sound?
Quite controversial :-(
So, is it true that the SS equipments require break-in?

 

[rikhav]

Absolutely , IME
My first experience of the phenomenon was when I got a new B1 pre made by FM @raghunadh
Straight out of the box it sounded shrill, harsh, thin and basically an absolute disaster. As I started Putting in some hours the harshness went, sound got some weight and further opened up, so on so forth

So yeah any audio equipment does require burn in and also warm up (personal opinion)

Burn in also true for cables (again, IME)

The duration does vary from equipment to equipment

 

[hifitoaster]

In my personal experience caps of most audio electronics need breakin before they sound detailed, punchy and smooth. New amps tend to be chaotic, loose and grainy before a break in happens. Some say we get adjusted to its sound as in measurements it cannot be proven. But fact is , there is no measure for instrument separation, clarity soundstage and so on, which relies not completely on this measurable parameters.

Psychoacoustics is not yet a completely decoded science. Still there are lot of aspects about our hearing under studies. Where am I going? ..anyway new amps need some burning before they sound good.

 

[Ashenden]

In my case, I felt it’s like the sunk cost fallacy that kept me going on. If I’m not liking it out of the box, then probably it’s not the right choice.

Can’t say about SS gear, since I liked both the IA i own. With headphones, I had been using Sennheiser 380pro for a long while now, didn’t like it when it was new, but got used to it and started liking it. Recently tried Beyerdynamic 990pro and found it to be so smooth and balanced. Now on a back to back comparison, I can recognise the brightness in the Sennheiser, that I didn’t like initially, rearing it’s head up again

Again this is my opinion, so likely to be wrong

 

[kbhuvi]

Yes caps require burn -in.

In some caps the burn-in is cumulative. If the amp is switched off, the caps retain the burn-in and start from that point when switched on next time.

Some caps do not retain the burn in unless they are burnt-in for a specific period, say 50 hours. This 50 hours has to be continuous and in case the amp is switched off after 5 hours of burn-in, the caps will again start the process of burn-in from zero.

IMHO the correct way to ensure a successful burn-in of an amplifier is to feed it a signal (old mobile connected to a charger with fm output) and connected to disposable speakers having recommended specification. The volume should be just enough to be perceptible. This system should be switched on and left on for atleast 50 hours and preferably 100 hours without any switching off in between.

Once burnt-in, play it atleast once a week as there are caps that even after the specified burn-in, the caps lose the burn-in if the amp is not played for a certain time.

Leaving the amp switched on without signal input does not constitute a burn-in.

YMMV.

 

[square_wave]

Absolutely. However, the burn in period depends on the amplifier design as well. I have noticed long burns ins for amps that use large caps in the design. Many such designs need to kept powered on for best results as well. When I first bought an odyssey startos power amp( I think in 2008 ), it sounded dark with a thick bass. It needed almost 500 hours to fully open up. Then it was magic. The sheer joy of details with zero harshness coming out of absolutely dark background was a joy to behold. Once the amp was turned off and cooled, the amp needed another 2 hours of playback to start sounding its best. On the other hand the amp I use now ( LFD ) needs about fifteen minutes to sound its best.

 

[sandeepsasi]

I always had this question in mind. I understand this phenomenon for speakers, CD transports, etc as they are mechanical devices. Burn-in period for speakers can be related to run-in period for cars, for example. I never understood this phenomenon for electronics.

Is it our auditory system that is getting used to new sound signature? What sounded shrill initially appears fine over time. For example, when I moved to Bangalore, I found it hard to drive initially due to relentless honking and I even experienced headaches after spending long time in traffic. Over time, I got used to it.

Another explanation could be the coping mechanism within ourselves. For many like me, a good audio system severely dents the bank balance. For many others who are well settled, it is still a portion of the hard earned money that is spent. We also invest a lot of time and effort while hunting for a system. The more time, money and effort we put in, the higher will be our expectations. Finally the system we pick may fall behind these expectations. We take time to digest this fact, and accept and learn to live with what we have. Our mind can find ways to see us through this process, which psychologists call coping mechanism.

I am an electronics engineer, and I don't have the luxury to deliver a product that doesn't meet my customer's expectations and then make a claim that it will get better over time. Wish I were working in high-end audio field. I am also bound to give rational explanation to various phenomenon. The first one about the behavior of human auditory systems is Biology and the other about coping mechanism is psychology; both, outside my domain. If I accept this phenomenon for audio, then I will be tempted to apply the same to other systems where I am involved in the design, as well. So, whenever someone talks about electronics sounding better over time, I always choose the neutral camp.

 

[Deleted member 15865]

I always had this question in mind. I understand this phenomenon for speakers, CD transports, etc as they are mechanical devices. Burn-in period for speakers can be related to run-in period for cars, for example. I never understood this phenomenon for electronics.

Is it our auditory system that is getting used to new sound signature? What sounded shrill initially appears fine over time. For example, when I moved to Bangalore, I found it hard to drive initially due to relentless honking and I even experienced headaches after spending long time in traffic. Over time, I got used to it.

Another explanation could be the coping mechanism within ourselves. For many like me, a good audio system severely dents the bank balance. For many others who are well settled, it is still a portion of the hard earned money that is spent. We also invest a lot of time and effort while hunting for a system. The more time, money and effort we put in, the higher will be our expectations. Finally the system we pick may fall behind these expectations. We take time to digest this fact, and accept and learn to live with what we have. Our mind can find ways to see us through this process, which psychologists call coping mechanism.

I am an electronics engineer, and I don't have the luxury to deliver a product that doesn't meet my customer's expectations and then make a claim that it will get better over time. Wish I were working in high-end audio field. I am also bound to give rational explanation to various phenomenon. The first one about the behavior of human auditory systems is Biology and the other about coping mechanism is psychology; both, outside my domain. If I accept this phenomenon for audio, then I will be tempted to apply the same to other systems where I am involved in the design, as well. So, whenever someone talks about electronics sounding better over time, I always choose the neutral camp.

This can be tested easily. Get a seasoned listener to listen to your amp right when it’s out of the box. And then get him/her to listen the next time when you are done with the requisite/advocated burn in. Don’t tell them what you are attempting. See if they can spot a difference.

 

[sandeepsasi]

This can be tested easily. Get a seasoned listener to listen to your amp right when it’s out of the box. And then get him/her to listen the next time when you are done with the requisite/advocated burn in. Don’t tell them what you are attempting. See if they can spot a difference.

That is a good idea! What you are suggesting is a version of a blind test. From what I have read, this is very easy in theory, but hard in practice. For one, we need to find a seasoned listener who doesn't ask questions. Usually seasoned listeners can figure things out by themselves about what our objective is. Once they sense this, subconsciously they will try to defend what they believe; it is a natural thing that any of us will do. We may still be able to pull it off at the risk of losing a good friend.

 

[square_wave]

Is it our auditory system that is getting used to new sound signature? What sounded shrill initially appears fine over time.

I am an electronics engineer, and I don't have the luxury to deliver a product that doesn't meet my customer's expectations and then make a claim that it will get better over time. Wish I were working in high-end audio field. I am also bound to give rational explanation to various phenomenon. T

I completely get your thoughts. Think about it, it is very easy to design an amplifier that sounds " great " and measures quite flat at a reasonable price point. These amps will also sound "good " ( high feel good factor ) out of the box and maybe needs a little time to warm up and sound it best.

But then, designers started thinking out of the box to make amps that sounds great or outstanding. This needs topologies, components and design parameters that are not mainstream. It is usually such designs that need long burn in times. This is the nature of electronics in the design. What happens to the components and what its results are upon the sound in the first 100 to 500 hours? This is something the manufacturer has observed in the factory itself in their prototypes. Now, what do you do ? One option is to run in every amp before it is shipped. The other is to let it burn in at the owners home. Burnin time for components are part and parcel of amplifier design itself.

In my case, I already had another amp when I got my stratos. That amp sounded slightly clearer at the top end and midrange in comparison in the same system.The stratos was darker, thicker and slightly shut in although it sounded luxurious and nice. Over the next 1 to 3 months, the stratos burned in and different world opened up in that amp. The meaning of " clear " , " midrange transparency " and "bass texture / tightness/ cleanliness " was new learning for me. In the end the same stratos sounded clearer and more resolving in the same system. Btw, within a week itself the stratos was sounded clearer and better... and it became better as time went by.

There also dealers I know who are able to connect different amps to the same speaker in the listening room and they come to the same conclusion. So it is definitely not in the mind. With some amps it is quite common for them to burn in the amp at the customer's request. I am have seen this happen quite a lot.

If the manufacturer has the means to do the run in themselves, it would have awesome but I guess with the scale they operate in, it would be difficult. So they are usually upfront about this in the documentation.

 

[RRR]

If the manufacturer has the means to do the run in themselves, it would have awesome but I guess with the scale they operate in, it would be difficult. So they are usually upfront about this in the documentation

Bryston is one such manufacturer that does the burn in process prior to shipping.
They claim to run all their amps for 100 hours continuous.
One of the objective is also to rule out any breakdown during the burn in process.

 

[COOLDUDE7808]

trust your ears ....every amplifier that I have purchased sounded muddled / bright at the beginning and eventually they got better .......so I do believe that burn in does happen .....even in case of speakers ....

I have also experienced the same with cables ......sound does change ...

 

[rikhav]

trust your ears ....every amplifier that I have purchased sounded muddled / bright at the beginning and eventually they got better .......so I do believe that burn in does happen .....even in case of speakers ....

I have also experienced the same with cables ......sound does change ...

Can't agree more with you