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Burn In... the Age Old Question, Cables, Components, and Speakers

First, if I choose to burn in my new speaker cables playing only Pink Floyd or something like a Windham Hill Electronic collection, both on CD, will eventually my cables be best suited for those two types of sound? Not that they would not be good for other music, but would they be BEST for the Pink Floyd or Windham Hill sound?

Second, do components need to burn in too, like a new CD player, or even (don't laugh) an Amazon Echo Link?

Third, I'm mostly sure that speakers NEED to burn in because the last time I bought new ones (Focal Arias) I got home, hooked them up and could not wait for the amazing sound that I knew would spring forth, but alas, they sounded like a pair of White Van Speakers and my heart sank into my stomach. Then as I was getting everything set to return them, (about 3 hours later) I returned to the music room and to my amazement I was listening to the best pair of floor standers I have ever heard. Then over a few days time, they were even better. So I kept them, and they are just great. 

So... any comments anyone?
jcolespeedway
jaytor's avatar
jaytor
765 posts
 
I'll try to give a serious response. From my experience, almost everything I have purchased changes at least a little after some operating time. Some things take much longer than others. My Denafrips Terminator DAC, for example, and the Nord Hypex amps I used to own, seemed to take a very long time (many hundreds of hours) before they sounded their best. Other products change very little. 

My personal theory is that it is primary dielectrics that are changing with use. Capacitors and dielectrics used for wires tend to have the biggest change.

Mechanical devices (such as speakers) also have some break-in, but this doesn't seem to take that long - maybe a few hours. But the capacitors and wires used in the speaker can take considerably longer to reach the point they are no longer changing.
jcolespeedway OP
9 posts
 
Thank you everyone! What a diverse batch of responses. I appreciate them all. 
jcolespeedway OP
9 posts
 
And from now on it's BREAK IN, not burn in... Even though Steve Guttenburg has called it such, but I guess he's really no authority on the matter, either. :-)
audition__audio
1,481 posts
 
I have the Audiodharma and this device takes my cables to a point I could never reach with normal practices. I was especially impressed with the burn in of the tonearm cable. I am a believer because I have heard the difference and it isnt subtle.
jafreeman's avatar
jafreeman
689 posts
 
A lot of us would attest to the new "break in" of even old gear, but "breakthrough" is more like it. The addition of Total Contact and Omega and E+ mats continued to improve seasoned gear over many weeks. The TC on connections and the mats under and on components did not break in---the signal pathways and components rose to such previously unknown levels of performance by responding so dramatically to the field effects of the mats, "break in" or "burn in" doesn't come close to what has changed.  Most of us gave up trying to understand how---just try to accept that what you believe to be settled audio dogma is subject to revision.  "He who knows that he does not know, knows."  
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