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[RichardStringer]

I opened another thread but it got locked because I had forgot to put my real name, well i've put my real name now so....

All i'm basically wondering is about how long do subwoofer drivers take to wear in and loosen up so performance increases a little?

[Will Knight]

I opened another thread but it got locked because I had forgot to put my real name, well i've put my real name now so....

All i'm basically wondering is about how long do subwoofer drivers take to wear in and loosen up so performance increases a little?

Are you referring to raw drivers or a complete speaker unit?  Majority of speakers from major manufacturers already go through a breakin period at the factory and unless you are planning to red line them right out of the box, don't usually need much if any "break in". A safe bet is to run canned music at a low volume for several hours (4-5) or overnight if possible. Then run the same at various SPL levels for 2.  In short, it depends. 

What type of speakers? Type of music?  Live sound or canned music? 

[David Sturzenbecher]

I opened another thread but it got locked because I had forgot to put my real name, well i've put my real name now so....

All i'm basically wondering is about how long do subwoofer drivers take to wear in and loosen up so performance increases a little?

Richard,
Welcome to the forums.  Just so you know, there is a search function in the upper right.

See....
http://forums.prosoundweb.com/index.php/topic,157438.0.html

[Chris Grimshaw]

Interesting thread, though I've gotta disagree with most of it.

I got a fresh recone of a high-power 15" sub back from the shop and the suspension was very stiff. Resonance came in around 45Hz. Ran it up to about 30mm p/p travel and left it for a few hours. Measured again, resonance had dropped to 40Hz, and the cone was easier to move. Let it run some more, and resonance dropped to 38Hz and it was as easy to push the cone as all the others.
There wasn't a lot of power going in, and the driver was free-air. Maybe 200w peaks, but an average power of less than 20w (I used pink noise low-passed at 20Hz). For a 4" voicecoil, the heat buildup would be negligible.

Now, resonance is only one indicator of these things - IIRC the T/S parameters move in complementary ways so that the in-box response might not change much.
Still, it was interesting to see the changes for the driver itself.

Running it gently for a while doesn't make much sense to me, since the change is mechanical and you need some large signals to get the cones moving. After the first gig or two, I expect any given sub would be thoroughly broken in.

Chris

[Tim Weaver]

I suggest you run them at full RMS power for about 2 weeks straight before you even attempt to use them at a gig.

Just make sure your neighbors know that you are breaking in subs. I'm sure they'll understand.





















P.S. They're ready to rock out of the box. Break in isn't a thing in pro audio. Will they loosen up over time? Maybe. What does that change? Not much.....

[RichardStringer]

Thank you guysfor your help yeah the cones are quite stiff to be honest, they're Wharfedale Delta 218b dual 18" subs brand new never been used so far. I plan on using them for about a year and a half then upgrading the drivers to RCF L18P300 drivers. I've put the drive thiele-small parameters into WinISD and everything looks ok.

[Chris Grimshaw]

That RCF driver is okay, but I'd recommend saving up and getting something better. Something like the B&C 18SW115 will have around 6dB more mechanically-limited output (ie, how hard you can drive down low before you hit cone excursion limits).

Chris

[Ivan Beaver]

Let's put it this way, there WAY more important things to worry about regarding overall sound quality.

If there is a "hearable" difference, it will be VERY minimal.  The driver to driver variance is most likely larger than the overall difference between a broken in woofer and one that is not.

At least based on the testing I have done-which admittedly is not a lot, but was enough to convince me not to worry about it.



 

[Spenser Hamilton]

That RCF driver is okay, but I'd recommend saving up and getting something better. Something like the B&C 18SW115 will have around 6dB more mechanically-limited output (ie, how hard you can drive down low before you hit cone excursion limits).

Chris

I bet you would see negligible difference with the B&Cs, those tiny little ports will choke off long before you are running those drivers to their full potential.

[Jeff Bankston]

There are guitars players that say it takes about 30 hours to loosen up a new 12" geetar speaker.

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