Does "un-burn-in" or "reverse-burn-in" exist?

[Ruahrc]

So as impossible as it sounds, there was a lengthy period of time (I'd say 8 months to a year) in which I did not give my beloved Etys (ER-4P) any use. And I mean I probably used them for maybe 10-20 minutes total during that entire time.

I was wondering, after being in "storage" for so long, have they come by any ill-effects? Should I be replacing the earwax filter on it, despite it not having been used?

Also though, I am curious as to whether or not having headphones sit unused for extended periods of time introduces "un-burn-in" or "reverse-burn-in" whereas the drivers stiffen up from lack of use such that they resemble factory-new, unused headphones. Do they need to be "burned in" again or will I notice a change in the sound characteristic as they get used more and more, or will I not notice any change because once you do the initial "burn-in" they stay that way forever, regardless of usage habits.

I am asking because I gave them a listen recently (came across some good music and had to bust out the big guns ) and am curious as to whether or not I am just unaccustomed to the very fine and detailed sound of the Etys or if I am hearing reverse-burn-in.

Ruahrc

[spinali]

I know of no cases of reverse burn-in, and I suspect what you're dealing with is psychological. These IEMs are not supposed to burn in, but even if they did, the diaphragms you'd find in a standard headphone would only become more flexible with time and use.

Then again, burn-in is such a controversial matter....

[nikongod]

in the case of a diaphram system, burn-in absolutely exists. materials change properlties as they are "used" over time. simple as that.

for iem's, who knows.

[braillediver]

What’s the lower Joe Grado Heaphone SR200?

Members mentioned that if that headphone isn’t used regularly it needs to be re-burned in to sound its best. Something like if you don’t use it for a month.


Mitch

[michaelconnor]

If indeed electronic burn-in exists, I'd doubt it could be reversible. And, if this analogy holds water, you also can't make a broken-in baseball glove new again.

[Ruahrc]

Can someone please clarify dynamic headphones and IEM (what does that stand for?) for me? I was under the impression that although the Etys have very small drivers, they are still dynamic headphones with diaphrams like any other phone... they were just really small.

And does it make a difference w/regard to burn in?

Re: the baseball glove analogy- you can't make it new again but if you don't use it for a long time will the leather get stiff and need some re-working to return it to its old pliability?

Ruahrc

[Jeff Wong]

Many people use burn in and break in interchangeably, but, I would say there is a distinction and that break in is a mechanical effect, like the surrounds of speaker cones softening up. Burn in has little to do with the metal as many cable agnostics like to bring up - burn in has far more to do with the insulation.

I'll offer a relatively short version in relatively simple terms as I understand it: The insulation in a cable or capacitor stores an out of phase version of the signal. An insulation with a low dielectric constant (a good thing) such as Teflon (rated around 2.1, a vacuum being 1.0) dumps this out of phase signal back into the wire more quickly than an insulation like PVC (a dielectric constant of 3.6 to 4.0.) The quicker this dumping, the less audible the distortion. The longer it takes, the more smearing of the sound, or less clarity in the music you'll hear. When you run a signal through your cables, the insulation is charging up. I guess you might say it's saturating and by having it full, you'll get a quicker response. Many cables take a long time to fully charge up and it has been noted that this can take hundreds of hours. I suspect this charging effect may be why some of these new cables with batteries may actually offer a difference in sound. Not having heard them firsthand with and without, I don't know.

But, in short, not using your cables for an extended period of time could affect the sound, and would require burning in again. I would say the drivers would be much less of an issue, unless the membrane was really old and got brittle or something... but, that's something different entirely.

[Carl]

Headphone drivers can't "un burn in", but the dialectric of a cable can unarrange itself if left unused for a while. Simply send some current through it for a while and you'll be back running again.

[ken36]

Esoteric stuff.

[sgrossklass]

Originally Posted by ken36

Esoteric stuff.

Yup. Given that signals sent through cables tend to be AC with fields being inverted all the time, I don't see how the dielectric would arrange itself. A cable is not an electrolytic capacitor after all.

Oh, and IEMs typically do not use conventional dynamic, but miniaturized balanced armature drivers, as found in hearing aids. These are said to exhibit very little break-in in the first place, if any.
As for the glove analogy, leather does appreciate some oil once in a while, but dynamic driver diaphragms tend to be made of mylar (polyester), polypropylene and such, stuff rather dissimilar to "dead animal skin".

[nikongod]

headphone cables are better thought of a long capacitors than as long wires.

if you take that view, then you will clearly see that their electrical properties can change over time&use.

[VR6ofpain]

Think Back to the Future, but replace the Delorean with some DT-990 Pro's.

[spraggih]

Wow... what (reverse burn-in or "burn-out") an interesting thought. Head-fi continues to innovate, think out of the box.

[smeggy]

I think un-burn-in is called worn out.

[fewtch]

IMO something like this does exist (sort of). When you don't use something regularly, it can settle into a less than optimal state. Most people will know what I'm talking about, but it's not exactly reverse burn-in.