Is there a proper way to break in a CAB?

[shogun]

I have been told by some tonejunkie's that you should break in a cabinet before cranking it.. i have been told otherwise by other experienced musicians that it is BS and that marshall used to dime amps through them to test them before shipping & selling.. what do you guys think? I have a brand new 1960A beside me, i played it a bit today at a low volume, being cautious.. i have to use it at Jam on wednesday night and we play loud.. what can i do to 'break' the speakers in before then... and is it a neccessity or just a wives tale.

-shogun

[bammbamm]

I've never hear that a cab has to be broken in. Speakers do, but just playing them will do that, all you're doing is getting the surround used to moving, so move it

[shogun]

Originally Posted by bammbamm

I've never hear that a cab has to be broken in. Speakers do, but just playing them will do that, all you're doing is getting the surround used to moving, so move it

cmon man obviously i mean the speakers >=|
should it be played at a mediocre - low volume before being cranked?

[C.Thep]

I don't think there is a proper way, but even if there was, it doesn't matter to me, because my speakers sound good, and they have been cranked since I got them.

[David McCarroll]

Originally Posted by shogun

cmon man obviously i mean the speakers >=|
should it be played at a mediocre - low volume before being cranked?

Probably the other way around... I seem to recall that there is a little bit of info about breaking in speakers on the Weber Speakers site, and they are frighteningly fanatical about speaker tone!

[wallie!]

Never heard of working them in before :S
But If I had to I would just work my way up volume wise, then leave em cranked for a few hrs (might be in for a long shift of playing here haha)

[dannymills]

I heard you should just max the amp out, clean, and hit chords for about 15 minutes.

[Josh_P]

Originally Posted by dannymills

I heard you should just max the amp out, clean, and hit chords for about 15 minutes.

Lets all pray he's not married..........................

[screamndemon69]

Good post. I've heard this too but have no clue if it is true.

I wanted to be a smarta$$ and say "with a baseball bat" but, eh - I'll leave the funny quips to Andy and Cid

[jb4674]

Typically, cabs don't need to be "broken in", at least not that I've heard of. Most of the drivers employed for guitar cabinets are not made with the greatest materials on earth like a pair of B&W speakers would, for example.

High-end speakers, on the other hand, sometimes will need to go through a "break-in" period of 50-100 hours of normal playing (nothing loud volume wise) before they sound the way they were supposed to. Typically, audiophiles will make claims that this is something imperative for every speaker but, most speaker manufacturers will not disclose such procedures because they are not required.

I hope this helps.

Jimmy

[j.arledge]

yeah i thought you were just suppose to crank head for a few minuets on clean .

[jemplayer55]

Originally Posted by shogun

i have been told otherwise by other experienced musicians that it is BS and that marshall used to dime amps through them to test them before shipping & selling.. what do you guys think?

-shogun

Fact is Nigel Tufnel had his Marshall cabinets "broke in" at the factory personally by Jim Marshall by going one better...... 11

[bammbamm]

Originally Posted by shogun

cmon man obviously i mean the speakers >=|
should it be played at a mediocre - low volume before being cranked?

Type what you mean.
I deal with people who say one thing but mean another all day, and unless you say what you mean, I am not going to attempt to read your mind.

This is direct from Celestion's site:

How do I break in my speakers?

Important Note! Before breaking it in it's advisable to "warm up" the speaker gently for a few minutes with low-level playing or background hum.

Break in a speaker with a fat, clean tone: turn up the power amp volume to full, and control the level with the preamp gain. Use a level that will be quite loud, but not painful in a normal size room.

Have the bass and mid up full, and the treble at least half. On your guitar, use the middle pick up position (if your guitar has more than one pick up) and play for 10-15 minutes using lots of open chords, and chunky percussive playing. This will get the cone moving, and should excite all the cone modes and get everything to settle in nicely. The speaker will continue to mature over the years, but this will get it 95% of the way to tonal perfection in the shortest time.[

[shogun]

thanks for the help guys.. what i am gathering is that it is more of a finatic procedure and isnt neccessary, im going to look around on the net a bit but i think i will crank it on clean for a bit and play some country (WOOO)..

another question: as your speakers age, do they sound better, or worse.. ( i am assuming it would be debatable.) is there a preference to brand new speakers?? or are worn speakers what some people look for.. assuming that they still work fine and are not out of phase..

[bammbamm]

Speakers don't change phase as they age.
They either work or they don't, phasing is another issue altogether, having to do with wiring and or miking techniques.