[poohjai]

People always say that headphones/earphones need break-in/run-in and some say they sound 20% better after like breaking in.
My question is If headphones really sound better after break-in, why don't the manufacturers do the break-in process before selling them?

 

[superjawes]

Is it the headphones that change, or is it the listener?

/zen

 

[jodgey4]

Burn in is a huge topic of debate in the sound science forum. It can happen with certain materials (older Audeze drivers, larger dynamic ones, CNT)... but I think 90% of claims on these forums are probably unreliable. Most manufacturers would know this in advance, and would have a strong incentive to burn them in before shipping, imo. (If the change was 20%, lol).

 

[alpha421]

Whatever process it takes to "break-in" would cost time and money that would eventually be passed on the consumer.  Take break-ins with headphones/earphones as you see fit.  You may notice a difference, you may not.  Break-in can apply to anything.  Would you want to buy a "break-in" new car, jeans, or shoes?
 
20% better difference from break-in is a little far-fetch, IMO; that high of difference may apply to loud speakers. With headphones in general and less so with iems (IMO), that's the ears getting use to the sound and maybe with the volume up a notch or two. Of course YMMV.

 

[Peti]

Well, the JVC flagship DX2000 gets into it's box with 40something hours of factory pre-burning.
 

 

[ProtegeManiac]

Around 99% of the observable changes due to "break-in" have a lot more to do with the earpad wear than the driver suspension, hence, if the manufacturers shipped "broken-in" headphones, you would be getting earpads and headbands stretched out over a mannequin head. That will suck for example for those who prefer their HD6x0 and K7xx earpads still a bit firm.

From a business standpoint, that will also be resource intensive. If it was the driver suspension that totally accounts for break-in they can fabricate for example some kind of frame that will hold dozens of it at a time while a signal is run through them, but even that's going to be too expensive.

 

[Peti]

Hey Protege!
 
when I mentioned factory "pre-burn-in" I was talking about the drivers of the headphones not the actual headband. As far as I know the headbands in my case are not "burned in" but I might be wrong..

 

[ProtegeManiac]

  when I mentioned factory "pre-burn-in" I was talking about the drivers of the headphones not the actual headband. As far as I know the headbands in my case are not "burned in" but I might be wrong..

 
My point exactly was that the observable changes come from the earpads compressing, and maybe the headband loosening to a much lesser extent, more than the driver suspension getting their "break in." Whatever you hear changing, nearly all that has to do with a stiff earpad. So for a headphone to sound "as intended" out of the box, they'd have to break them in on mannequin heads for example., precisely because it's the earpad being broken in that really affects the sound.

For example, on new earpads my HD600 (still with the same drivers they've had) tonally sounds a lot more like an HD800 than whatever you're likely to read about them. Many impressions on them were likely people on an older pair, or people who try on reasonably worn units when they arrived at the meet and then had like six other people use them.

 

[ChavaC]

I've had several pairs of dynamic IEMs that I noticed a significant burn-in change, especially when compared to a new pair, so I personally don't put a lot into the pad-wear theory (which in my mind would have negligible effect on an open can). In my mind most headphones/IEMs aimed at the audiophile community aren't burned in for two reasons:

1) they know that if you buy into burn-in as a real thing then you're likely going to sit them in front of some pink noise anyway
2) why shave off 40,50,100 hours of the drivers theoretical lifespan and have it fail sooner, before the warranty expires?

 

[mccarver]

In addition to the never ending discussion about the actual advantages of burning in, let's not forget that this would increase production costs that are, even in case of high end products, usually very low... This would cut profits down, wouldn't it?

 

[cel4145]

"why don't manufacturers break-in the headphones before selling them?"

Because the longer you keep your headphones, the more likely you are to keep them. So if you are taking time to burn them and get comfortable with them, less likely to return them.