Rega Elicit Break-In

Snackeyp- It needs to be playing music, so yes cd on repeat is fine or radio just keep it playing. I also like to give things a rest once in awhile.

Having the same issues with my new Rega Brio R. 4 days old now and about 50 hours on it. I am really hoping the bright and hard upper midrange and lower treble become more round and warm soon. I will give it 200 hours. If it does not change I will return it. Everyone hears different. Some hear better than others in this area. Maybe my ears are just sensitive. Great amp otherwise! So don't don't let my posts deter you from trying one out.

Forgive me for digging up this old thread but I just picked up an Elicit and found what has been discussed here very helpful. You see, after I set up mine and gave it its first listen I was pretty disappointed with how it sounded. I would best describe it as sounding clinical or chiseled rather than smooth and warm as I prefer amps to sound. I also own a no-name tube amp that sounds very nice for its cost, but is nothing special in the world of high end pedigree components, so naturally I expected the elicit to blow it away. Not so. In fact, my $600 Chinese made tube amp (Musical Paradise) sounds better to me. It then dawned on me that the Elicit might require some break-in to realize it's full potential, and reading this thread seems to confirm it.
Does anyone have suggestions on best methods to break it in? Can I just leave it turned on or does it require a signal to be fed through it? Might I simply leave a CD player hooked up in repeat play mode for a couple of days or weeks?
Thanks for any help you might offer.
Best,
Peter

The Elicit currently has about 50-60 hours on it as it continues to amaze me with erratic sound changes for the past few days. I believe the unit is still in the break-in process judging from the manner the transformation in sound has taken place. The individual power supplies, transistors and capacitors under the hood must be burning-in nicely, and I hope I wouldn't have to wait too long to experience the REAL sound of the Elicit.

In the first 50 hours or so I was getting a nice warmish sound throughout the spectrum. Midrange and vocals have good tonality with a hint of warmth and highs were just about right albeit lacking in air and detail. Just yesterday there was a perceived change in sound, an abrupt one for that matter, and the effects were quite dramatic. As the midrange opened up there was a feeling of lightness as instruments sounded sharper with more attack and zing especially with drums. Layering of background instruments also improved(or changed) as the sound of some instruments went back a few rows instead of all being on the same row. Not only that, the tonality of certain instruments also sounded different. I could hear decay of drums in the background that previously wasn't there in the recording. Spooky in a nice way. High frequencies also improved as more distinct details could be heard.

Timbre and tonal quality of voices also transformed to more open, light and less shut-in. Overall it was a nice change due to the departure from an overly warm kind of sound. However, there was a slight hint of stridency especially with the increased energy and vitality. I would expect some changes here with more hours on the unit.

Music used was a particular track from Fourplay which I was very familiar with.

In summary the sound has changed from a lush, warmish, composed and slightly laid back character to a more airy, light and 3-dimensional sound borderline brightness. I am anxiously waiting for the unit to go beyond 100 hours to fully relish the true performance and sound of the Elicit. The revealing and transparent nature of the Harbeth do play an important role here as well as all changes during the break-in period are ruthlessly exposed. With this recent experience I am now fully convinced on the effects of break-in associated with amplifiers.

Ryder:

Great Observations. I neglected to detail the almost "manic" nature of the sonics throughout the break-in process. Your Harbeth's will allow you to experience the many dramatic changes that your Elicit will exhibit on your way to sonic nirvana. The unit will open up with tremendous "air" and a consistent openness as you progress. The base will reach even lower and also become more true to "live performance" instrumental timbres.

I think much of the reason for the strange break-in trend is related your comments regarding the multiple power supplies,. I believe that they actually break-in at different rates. I do love the Rega's approach to power supplies involving the multiple supplies vs large, slower transformers. It allows for more speed to down stream circuits and components at a significantly lessor cost.

I had the awesome opportunity to visit Rega and Roy Gandy last month and truly gained an appreciation for his design approach. Every design feature of every component is applied with a tremendous sense of purpose and intent, none of which includes skimping or short cutting. Every penny of cost is applied efficiently toward producing the best possible sounding products at each given price point. Further, it is a rare pleasure to see a high value product line that is still built entirely in house without reliance on China.

There are no better sounding pieces at anywhere near these prices and as USblues mentions, the Integrateds are giant killers. The Elicit is an absolute "sleeper" in this congested industry. It's too bad that, given the simple, utilitarian looks, that Rega Electronics and speakers are not taken more seriously. I think the Rega's upcoming, new "no holes barred" integrated and matching Isis CD player may garnish some of that misplaced attention.

Enjoy your Elicit! I'd love to hear your observations in the weeks to come as the break-in progresses.

Paul
Auravis Systems LLC
www.auravissystems.com

Only slightly related,sorry,but I had a Rega Luna years ago.I would use it as a backup to amps such as Counterpoint,Mcintosh, and even Ayre and Berning ZH-270.It was startling how close that little 40 watter was to those heavyweights!Good luck with yours,Bob

Thanks for the information Ad03. So the Elicit needs an approximate 150 hours in sounding close to optimum. Looks like I may be up to a few surprises. Currently the unit has about 10 hours on it as the tonal character changes throughout this brief period. In the first 3 hours music sounded shut-in and congested with wooly bass. Within 3-6 hours the midrange opened up with better bass response but vocals sounded sharp and shrill. Approaching 10 hours I started to blast the music as everything opened up quite a bit although the bass still falls short of my expectations.

Yes, the Rega Elicit is an excellent amp. The weight of the unit when one picks it up tells us that it has been built quite substantially inside. I read Rega has paid more attention to the power supply(there are 9 individual power supplies beneath the hood) knowing it is the core to any good amplifier apart from using premium parts which include polypropylene capacitors in critical positions and high quality Sanken Darlington output transistors for enhanced thermal stability to name a few. The unit has good tonality and timbre which leans slightly on the warmish side and exhibits excellent PRAT, macrodynamics and detail. I find the Elicit to sound exceptionally close to the LFD Zero MkIII which is another excellent British integrated on its own albeit still lacks the visceral bass slam of the latter. In comparison the bass on the Elicit is more rounded and less taut. The reviews in 6moons and TonePublications have been spot-on and pretty much sum up the quality of the Elicit, although the folks at Whathifi don't quite favor the unit.

Another commendable observation is the Elicit does not show any signs of breakup at moderate to high volume levels. At its modest 82W/8 ohms rating with the ability to drive 4 ohms load, music still sounded pretty much in control with the volume knob close to 3 o'clock as it drives a pair of fairly efficient Harbeth SHL5's. In fact my right ear drum now has slight ringing after all the abuse and it's time I lower down the volume on the control knob and listen to music at safe levels without blowing anything up.

Overall I am happy with the amp. Highly recommended while I continue to wait for the unit to reach the 150 hours mark.

Congratulations on a great purchase!

First in the interest of full disclosure please note that I am a retail dealer and an passionate supporter of Rega's full product line, among others.

The Rega family of integrated amps will definitely benefit from a significant amount of break-in (not unlike most electronics). The extent of the differences heard, however, will depend to a degree on the associated equipment.

That said, the Brio and Mira, while as not as bad as some pieces right out of the box, really start to shine at 60-80 hours. At 100-120 hours your pretty much there. The Elicit is a somewhat different animal with significantly larger power supplies and more caps/electronics. Add about 40 -50 hours to the above estimates and be prepared to continue to be impressed for some time to come.

Hope this helps.

Auravis Systems LLC
www.auravissystems.com