fliplyricist1

Anyone believe in the 'subwoofer break-in' period? I think I read it has something to do with making the voice(s) coil fully settle or something (I'm probably way off). But is this true and do subs actually sound better after this break-in period?

wong05tsx

iTrader: (6)

Myth

saltyone

Blast 'em right out of the box. No worries man.

Gee-TR

I've tried it and it kind of sounds clearer, I guess it give the rubber or whatever the surround material is made out of some time to "break in" so the sub can hit a little further out. Some comapany's reccomend it but I think its a myth.

SanJoseRoller

myth or not better safe then sorry

nice car audio is expensive why risk it?

heyitsvu

iTrader: (1)

Not a myth. Not a joke. First hand experience.

I have blown two voice coils in two days with two different subs. I went to best buy to test out subs because I was looking to see what sub I would go with next after my Eclipse Sub died (had a fat hole in it from rubbing against stuff in my trunk. I tried the Alpine Type R first, and that blew the voice coil after 45 minutes of driving home from Davis to SJ. Had the sub replaced at the best buy in SJ with the Rockford 12 P3. Blasted it on the way back to Davis from San Jose and 15 minutes into the drive, the P3 blew the coil as well. Keep in mind, the are both DVC subs. I had a Rockford Fosgate 800a2 turned up 3/4 of the way, and peak power for both these subs is 1500 watts. I went back to BB and returned it and ordered myself a Type R because I liked the bass better on it. I listened to my bro and i let the sub break in for a good 2 weeks. Its been 8 months now, and I have the subs on full blast. Let it break in. I only tested the theory because i had BB's unconditional 30 day warranty + my friend works for customer service. The rubber needs time to stretch out so it can reach its full excursion point. Listen to experience, not what people hear or "believe" cause theres a difference between believing and knowing.

wong05tsx

iTrader: (6)

That might be why you blew that shit in <15 minutes.
Don't go by peak power, go by RMS.
Even though the Hype-R can easily take 1000, pushing your amp to the point that it gives a clipped signal will easily blow your sub.

All the "Break-in" does is slowly melt away the excess glue.

You're still on the BB/CC hype .

I only run high end car audio gear.

Gee-TR

^^^ you are right about following the rms rating and I usually go by what the manufacturer suggest to do..they made it....they know best.

heyitsvu

iTrader: (1)

I never went by peak power. I always go by RMS. Rms for those speakers is 250 watts per coil. my 800a2 only punches out 200 watts rms at 4 ohms. I'm definitely not pushing it to the point of clipping. Unless you're joking with me, MB Quart Q-line is not low end . And neither are Old school rockford fosgate punch and power amps.

wong05tsx

iTrader: (6)

Gains turned up to 3/4????

bullyx2

FWIW, professional audio reviewers routinely run speakers through a break in period when reviewing them. (home speakers at least) This has been all speakers I have read about, not just subwoofers. Not sure what it does for power handling, but they regularly report differences in the sound before / after the break in period. Not taking a side here, just reporting what I have read.

uncald4

iTrader: (3)

TRUTH. or DARE?

Every woofer manufacturer has a different break in recommendation. Sometimes it'll be written in the literature that you get with the woofer. Other times it will be taught to installers via vendor training. All woofers should be broken in one way or another.

JL Audio and Rockford used to tell us to plug the woofer into a 120 volt wall socket for a couple minutes. This is back when Rockford's HX2 woofer was king of all boom. Doing this makes the woofer move in and out at a consistant frequency.

In almost all woofers the nomex spider is the suspension that helps the cone return to it's resting point after moving in and out. When the woofer is brand new this nomex weave is stiff and hard to move. It starts out restricting the movement of the woofer. As you "exercise" the woofer this nomex spider softens up and lets the woofer move to full excursion both in and out. If you do not let the spider soften up before you start railing on it your woofer cone and voice coil will want to break away from it's restrictive lower half. I have seen many times where customers start whaling away right off the bat. Then they come back because their boomers are now knockers. Don't get me wrong... I loves me some knockers .

heyitsvu

iTrader: (1)

Plugging into wall socket! Wow Sounds crazy. I'll remember to do that when i find a replacement for the type R. My brother bought a Soundstream amp+Type-R sub off of some guy who sold it as a kit. He needed something to power his IDMAX Sub, so he gave me the Type R since my eclipse died on me. woot for free goods

And... Dont we all love knockers

heyitsvu

iTrader: (1)

LOL? Means my remote base was only set 3/4 of the way? Thats not even pushing it that hard. I definitely wasn't overpowering the subwoofer.

wong05tsx

iTrader: (6)

In no way did your original context imply the 3/4 was your remote knob. And I for sure did not mean it's overpowering the subwoofer. I was implying that you're clipping the hell out of your amp (that is assuming you meant you had your gains to 3/4 on your amp)


Good writeup uncald, I still beg to differ though. Sure, it can be recommended, but to the ear, I really don't think that you can tell the difference..
and even so, you pointed out that they become "boomers"

My point was stated in that there is no way you can blow a sub by not breaking it in.
If that was rightfully true, does that mean you would have to "warm up" your sub everytime you start the car on a cold day, so that the cone/rubber is loosened up?

uncald4

iTrader: (3)

I understand what you're saying but your statements are not correct. You should not have to let your subwoofer warm up each time you start playing music. But you should allow the suspension of the subwoofer to loosen up before you start railing on it. This may take a few days or a few weeks. It is a noticeable difference to the ear when in a proper sealed enclosure with the correct amount of power. You seem to have many opinions and post replies to many topics on here. But a majority of your responses fall short of any educated truth. When you have more experience and install time than me please feel free to school me.

I had a customer just last week destroy a brand new subwoofer. He called me because his sub stopped playing. After pulling the subwoofer from the box he discovered that the spider and voice coil former had separated from the woofer cone itself. This yanked the tinsel leads right out of the voice coil. This is the outcome of a stiff subwoofer suspension fighting against the mechanical force of the woofer motor.

fliplyricist1

Definitely an interesting topic, just wanted to see what all your takes were on the issue.

An interesting tidbit: the MW12 DLS magnesium audiophile sub I just got came bundled with a notice that states, and I quote, "IMPORTANT! Tuning up your speakers. Allow the speakers to play for about 15-20 hours. After that time a correct sound is achieved."

So I guess take that however you will. But I assume DLS knows their stuff (IASCA competition stuff)

mrdecibel

Depending on the surround material, some do require a lil break in for maximu performance and longevity.

musicbox

My experience with break-in on subs is there's a definite sound change in the first 30-60 minutes using a brand new sub. BUT I've never done any type of procedure for this, it's just playing at a moderate level, 30-60 minutes, boom, they sound better. Also, though I doubt your average consumer would even notice the sound difference.

fliplyricist1

Yeah it could just be my 'wanting' to believe the sub sounds better, but after playing the P2 for a few days now (I'd say a good 10 hours or so) I notice that the bass is not just louder, but hits better and deeper. Then again, that could just be my mind playing tricks on me.

rothshot55

truth.

the vc has to heat up and loosen up over a few days so it can achieve maximum excursion. its like a virgin, sure its alright the first time, but once you loosen her up its a hell of a lot better

jlukja

Some of you guys are misunderstanding the reason for break-in. Its not so much to prevent damage as it is to achieve best sound quality.

so cal eddie

There is def. a benefit to breaking in speakers. Some manufacturers tell you to do it. They are no dummies. In my experience a break in period is necessary for a system to last. I would finish up a system and put on some pink noise for a few hours and then tune the amps and eqs. Those cars never came back with broken speakers. On the other hand the systems that were finished where the customer didnt want to wait for a break in would sometimes have speaker problems down the road. Break in isnt totally necessary but it sure doesnt hurt to try to protect your new investment. As for plugging subs in the wall, dont try it with sub par speakers. That is one way we used to send old speakers that didnt sell back to the manufacturer. We would blow them. However, it does work on more potent subs and will def. heat up your sub and is cool to watch.

illmat1k

iTrader: (1)

Please, will someone go to www.realmofexcursion.com

Subwoofer break-in is NOT a myth. True, not to power your sub by peak power, but RMS. Although depending on which subwoofer you buy, you can push much more than RMS. Take for example, FI Car Audio BTL 12", its rated at 2000wRMS, my best friend has 4200wRMS @ 2 ohms slapping it with no problem. It depends on your enclosure also to bring up your subwoofer's efficiency. If it is done correctly, you should easily be able to push 200-600 watts more than RMS power on average for most mainstream subwoofers. Just becareful when running the subwoofer at high power all the time, some can take it, most can't. Some maybe able to take it thermally, but not mechanically, and some can maybe take it mechanically but not thermally, therefore blowing the voice coils. As, So Cal Eddie had stated, most of you who like to bang soon as leaving a shop or your system being installed, beware of future problems. Even the cheapest subwoofers need to be broken in properly.

Here's a great tip every install should be going by... Gain Settings. I know most of you might not know this, but the best way to set gains is with an oscilliscope. It is the most accurate way to set it because what you do is set the volume you would be listening at, and tune the gain to where its below the amplifiers peak level. If not set correctly, you WILL damage the speakers, peak the amplifiers, and will get distorted sound.

Well, there's my 2 cents in this. If anyone has questions, feel free to PM me, or talk to some of the guys on... www.realmofexcursion.com


btw, I didnt read any other posts but the first one and the last one that So Cal Eddie posted, so I have no clue if any of this was mentioned or not.

fliplyricist1

interesting

I actually came accross this youtube vid from elemental designs showing how to set the gains with just a 40hz tone and a multimeter. I wasn't aware multimeters could show you the true rms wattage output of an amp based upon the volts

your thoughts?

http://youtube.com/watch?v=zm4aaC87ARg