Cartridge/stylus "break in" period: Myth or fact?

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Licorice pizza, Nov 24, 2014.

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  1. Raunchnroll

    Raunchnroll Senior Member

    Location:
    Seattle
    I'm a kind of authority. Whats on your mind?
     
    T'mershi Duween likes this.
  2. Stone Turntable

    Stone Turntable Independent Head

    Location:
    New Mexico USA
    Irrelevant fact and/or myth.

    The only way it would matter is if a new cart started sounding bad after a break-in period. Otherwise it's either a good thing or not a thing at all, and in both cases not something that affects the listener's decision-making unless you're neurotic about stuff you can't control.
     
  3. Ben Adams

    Ben Adams Forum Resident

    Location:
    Phoenix, AZ, USA
    Yep, must be a myth. How else to explain stylus and cart manufacturers who provide recommended break-in periods?

    Oh, wait. :p
     
    Heckto35 likes this.
  4. krlpuretone

    krlpuretone Forum Resident

    Location:
    Grantham, NH
    Definitely a difference in carts after a break in period, which doesn't have to be that long and varies from mfr. to mfr.

    If you use a setup record, it's particularly apparent in the higher frequency range.
     
  5. vinylsolution

    vinylsolution Forum Resident

    Location:
    Denver, CO, USA
    If it does change, and the QA testing time that manufacturers do amounts to nothing as seems to be assumed by most break-in-disciples (but weird that they continue to waste their time doing it, no??), must it be universally agreed that it always changes for the better after dozens to hundreds of hours?

    Is there no tolerance for an opinion that it may have sounded best when new, and got worse with use?

    Or that rather than improving, you simply get familiar with the new sound you purchased after repeated listening, and familiar begins to equal what sounds good, because you lost your old reference of what you considered good when you replaced that cartridge?

    Isn't that sort of how brainwashi... er, top 40 radio... er... never mind.
    :hide:
     
    pinkrudy, mjb5310 and Heckto35 like this.
  6. ubiknik

    ubiknik Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago, IL USA
    Break in time is def. for real -why wouldn't it be? So is the ultimate death of the diamond tip, so enjoy the hours of nice sound after break in before you grind the tip down to a nasty sounding nub.
    As far as cleaning a contact on a power cord or any contact point -why would that be a myth or snake oil? - how could you not understand cleaning electrical connections for better performance ? Have you never had a car with electric windows that just stop working, or a bad cable to the battery , etc. Usually a switch is dirty on the car window and if you take the switchpack apart and use a pencil erasor to clean the contacts -wow like magic it works again.
    That analogy works for me -I have a hard time picturing the stereo sounding any better after a year or two of airborn gunk collecting on it...
     
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