How does one tell for sure if the speaker's sound is really changing over time, and it's not due to things like variations in hearing over time, air temperature or pressure, mood, acclimatization to the new sound, etc.?
A bench test can be performed with the driver playing a sine wave frequency at or near speaker free-air resonance (fs). Keep driving the speaker for a known period of time. Measure the fs at various periods of time. If fs changes due to speaker suspension break-in or loosening up, the fs should decrease. Manufacturers should already know whether break-in is needed.
A bench test can be performed with the driver playing a sine wave frequency at or near speaker free-air resonance (fs). Keep driving the speaker for a known period of time. Measure the fs at various periods of time. If fs changes due to speaker suspension break-in or loosening up, the fs should decrease. Manufacturers should already know whether break-in is needed.