Do you believe that guitar speakers break-in?

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 5:56 pm

Speaker break-in. What's up with that? :snax:

TyroneBiggums · Post by **TyroneBiggums** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 5:59 pm

It's true

sleewell · Post by **sleewell** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 6:01 pm

and whats the deal with ovaltine?

the mug is round, the jar is round...

LES-ZOMBIE · Post by **LES-ZOMBIE** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 6:03 pm

i found it to be true.

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 6:14 pm

sleewell · Post by **sleewell** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 6:20 pm

scumback actually has a service where they will break them in for you for 15 bucks. takes 20 hours on a variac, sounds like 60 hours of actual playing.

i dont think there is an question when you compare an older speaker to a brand new one that there is break in.

Axe · Post by **Axe** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 6:22 pm

sleewell wrote:and whats the deal with ovaltine?

the mug is round, the jar is round...

[George is in his office at Yankee stadium, he pushes 'play' on a cassette recorder. The voice on the tape sounds exactly like George.]

VOICE: Chapter one. In order to manage risk we must first understand risk. How do you spot risk? How do you avoid risk and what makes it so risky?

GEORGE: This guy sounds just like me.

VOICE: To understand risk, we must first define risk.

GEORGE: This is horrible.

VOICE: Risk is defined as--

GEORGE: (banging the recorder) Stop it! Stop it!

2tallmusic · Post by **2tallmusic** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 6:24 pm

E.g. try to make use out of a brandnew WGS British Lead and you'll know it :nlisten:

Placemat Jackson · Post by **Placemat Jackson** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 7:20 pm

The best way to break in a new speaker is to get a loop pedal, make sure you have neighbors you don't like, then blast guitar center style riffage all day while you're at work.

TyroneBiggums · Post by **TyroneBiggums** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 7:23 pm

Placemat Jackson wrote:The best way to break in a new speaker is to get a loop pedal, make sure you have neighbors you don't like, then blast guitar center style riffage all day while you're at work.

Or some wub wubs

Norton666 · Post by **Norton666** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 8:02 pm

No question , yes.

Cirrus · Post by **Cirrus** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 8:33 pm

Absolutely. It's clear as day when you actually have a new and used example of the same speaker model to compare. That said, I can't stand the tgp posts asking how to best break in their speaker, as if it's unusable until it's broken in. Just play the damn thing, turn the knobs til it sounds good.

Tommy Eisen · Post by **Tommy Eisen** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 8:52 pm

Oh dear lord has anyone ever played a brand new set V30 compared to a well worn in pair? Fuck me running it's unreal how bad they sound.

Tommy Eisen · Post by **Tommy Eisen** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 9:00 pm

The celestial website used to have a great how to article on breaking in speakers, but it's 404'ed now. In a nut shell, switch to your clean channel, turn the the bass and mids all the way up, leave your treble at noon, crank your master until the amp starts to break up then bring it down a notch so your getting your max volume clean tone, play a bunch of open chords and palm mutes for 5 minutes, and your speaker will be 95% of the way broken in.

This really works, I've done it many a times. On brand new set of V30s, it won't make the top end as smooth and soft as broken in pair, but it gets it going in the right direction, and it really opens up the bottom end.

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 10:16 pm

Why don't they call it "Round-tine"? :idea:

Cool, interesting to see twenty in agreement.

I was only thinking about it because I've noticed a pretty dramatic change on both the Eminences I've bought within the last few years. And I'm fascinated by all the zany things people have tried to accelerate the process, and all the other stuff floating around on the internet about it. I tried some loop pedal stuff with the Zoom G3 but only as long as it took me to run upstairs and have a sandwich.

Jp77 · Post by **Jp77** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 10:55 pm

Yes , I believe it is true. Just not to the degree that some guys will have you think. For example: charging you an extra $20 per speaker on top of the already high price to "break in" speaker. Give me a break!

benjamin801 · Post by **benjamin801** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 10:57 pm

Friends don't let friends get their speakers toandildoed.

Why would you pay money to have someone else break your speakers in for you?! Breaking in speakers is FUN.

The main difference between new speakers and well-broken in ones is that broken-in speakers are a lot harder to make sound bad.

RaceU4her · Post by **RaceU4her** » Fri Feb 22, 2013 11:11 pm

Jp77 wrote:Yes , I believe it is true. Just not to the degree that some guys will have you think.

pretty much this. i honestly always thought it was more an excuse for someone not being thrilled with their new cab more than anything. ive had plenty new cabs through the years and ive never experienced this magical transformation i hear people talking about.

nakedzen · Post by **nakedzen** » Sat Feb 23, 2013 2:46 am

I think it's combination of breaking in the speakers and breaking in your brain. Once you get used to the sound, it will sound more familiar ie. "better".

Mesa/Kramer · Post by **Mesa/Kramer** » Sat Feb 23, 2013 3:20 am

Watch at the 1:33 mark (Brand new Greenback)
And 1:37 mark (15 yr old Greenback)

Huge difference

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5Iqt38GM3w&list=FLskUQoFDULchH2d4LWh7KEA[/video]

nakedzen · Post by **nakedzen** » Sat Feb 23, 2013 3:25 am

Mesa/Kramer wrote:Watch at the 1:33 mark (Brand new Greenback)
And 1:37 mark (15 yr old Greenback)

Huge difference

To be a fair comparison showing effects of break in alone, the speakers would need both be 15 years old, one used and the other NOS to account for changes in manufacturing. To begin with, the new ones are MIC.

laxu · Post by **laxu** » Sat Feb 23, 2013 3:33 am

Tommy Eisen wrote:The CELESTION website used to have a great how to article on breaking in speakers, but it's 404'ed now. In a nut shell, switch to your clean channel, turn the the bass and mids all the way up, leave your treble at noon, crank your master until the amp starts to break up then bring it down a notch so your getting your max volume clean tone, play a bunch of open chords and palm mutes for 5 minutes, and your speaker will be 95% of the way broken in.

This really works, I've done it many a times. On brand new set of V30s, it won't make the top end as smooth and soft as broken in pair, but it gets it going in the right direction, and it really opens up the bottom end.

This. Though I think the time was something like 15 minutes. In any case not long at all or requiring some hours long hocus pocus.

I would be more inclined believing something recommended by a speaker manufacturer.

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Sat Feb 23, 2013 8:34 am

benjamin801 wrote:Friends don't let friends get their speakers toandildoed.

Did you just come up with this? Comedy GOLD! :lol:

benjamin801 · Post by **benjamin801** » Sat Feb 23, 2013 8:40 am

Wayne wrote:Did you just come up with this? Comedy GOLD!

Guess I did. The idea of paying for speaker break-in just reminded me of that silly Tone-Rite vibrator thing. :shoot:

Tommy Eisen · Post by **Tommy Eisen** » Sat Feb 23, 2013 11:23 am

nakedzen wrote:I think it's combination of breaking in the speakers and breaking in your brain. Once you get used to the sound, it will sound more familiar ie. "better".

Some speakers more than others, I've got 5 cabs with V30s. The sound between broken in V30s and minty ones is dramatic IMO.

Now the Splawn Small blocks I have I got brand new, I did the Celestion break in procedure and they were good to go. They never changed anymore after that.

V30s need some time to break in and soften, but I guess all speakers are different. From what I've head the Celestion GH1230 heritages take and ungodly long time to break in.

Guitar Gear Forum