I don’t think it’s a silly question at all. People get het up about whether or not burn-in occurs with electronics because they can’t think of an explanation for how it happens. With loudspeakers there is physical movement of the drivers. Besides, the changes that occur as speakers run in are substantial, measurable, and only a deaf person would miss the large changes that occur.
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Thanks for the reply mate….
Been feeling a bit silly today for using the wrong terminology… ‘bedding in’ 
They are getting better and better and the sound is close to amazing to be honest…
What the 555 series and statement must sound like I can only imagine…
I listen for about 3 hours every night and every evening it improves…
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Perfectly honest and valid question. When I received my new pmc 25.26, I simply marked down how many records I played. At 90+ hours I could start hearing a difference, and at 130 or so hours, the bass came in really nice and clean and full with the rest. Then that was it.
Scott
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Maybe some of us have more acute hearing allowing us to pick up these changes?
As I mentioned in the “cable burn in” thread there are evidenced differences in spatial hearing capability and I think it might be a factor. Out of interest, do you find it easy to tell the difference between speakers cables or have trouble?
For my new speakers the sound signature has stayed the same as they run in but the depth of the soundstage has increased. The detail delivery hasn’t changed nor has the bass extension. I am not sure if the treble level has changed but it does become smoother to my ears and more enjoyable. So much so that I actually lowered the attenuation on the tweeter a few days ago to keep the balance as I like it. Not measured because I tune it for my ears.
I must be deaf then!
However, as I said, the changes will vary between speakers, largely depending on the specific drivers used. Some may have significant changes, others a lot more subtle. Some may change fast, some slow. Slow change and small difference inevitably means it is not possible with certainty to hear the change with use, whereas it might be obvious in A-B comparisons of new and used speakers. If a speaker doesn’t sound wonderful on day one, but does after a few weeks, there could also be psychological factors at play. (Note: This is not denying or doubting change over the first X hours of use!)
I’ve never tried to compare. Of course, among other things differences will depend on the power amp, and how it is affected by cable capacitance and inductance, Naim amps in particular requiring certain cable characteristics to perform correctly (mine isn’t Naim).
In general as my system has got better I’ve found it harder to hear differences between new things I try, at least in part because the music draws me in too well and I forget I’m supposed to be comparing!
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The running in doesn’t just apply to new speakers. I had my Kef R107 10" drivers re-foamed and there was a significant but not huge change in the bass response as they settled in.
But when I had the crossovers recapped, and the tweeters referrofluided (that’s a word, man), at the same time, I didn’t even like the change at first, and it took a few months for all the new parts to burn in. I do realize that part of that was probably just me becoming accustomed to the different sound, but either way, it took quite a while.
Slightly off topic… my 252 is 2006 model… does it need a service?
A couple of things to add to what’s been said:
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The run-in / break-in time will vary between speaker models, but (controversy alert) your speakers will never be fully run in unless you give them a good workout with some loud music, even if you typically listen at low volume. This is because, for speakers, the run-in process is mostly a mechanical one and your drivers will never get there unless they’ve spent at least a little time at close to their maximum excursion.
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When your speakers are run in (in practical terms, when the sound appears not to evolve from week to week), it’s a good idea to check the tightness of the bolts on the drivers. You’ll likely be able to nip them up an eighth of a turn or more. If the manufacturer publishes recommended torques, it’s worth your while to track this information down and invest in a torque wrench. It’s easy to strip threads on speakers, so err on the side of caution.
I had a year old set of pmc 25 23 and I changed the colour from black to walnut so I had the 2 sets at the same time and the new set sounded harsh out of the box, I had 2 sets in the house before my dealer picked up the older set so yes they sound better when used for 50 hours at least.
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