xda-1 burn in

[ratpatrol09]

I'm a new owner of a xda-1, I see on dac blogs burn in times on dacs, thoughts?

[Deleted]

I own the XDA and have had it on for a long time. Nothing has changed one bit.

[bobbyt]

"DAC blogs" should tell you your answer right there...find yourself a power cable blog and I'm sure the nerds there will think their braided 1/0 gauge power cables linking their ratty 50+ year old 12 gauge wall wiring to their equipment also needs to burn in.

It's a box of circuits; none of its components care how many electrons have passed through them before.

[rclark]

I noticed a thinness to the initial sound and that opened up in the following hours. By the next day (left it on all night) the sound had blossomed.

Burn in is a fact.

[Erwin.BE]

Apr 12, 2011 18:33:43 GMT -5 ratpatrol09 said:

I'm a new owner of a xda-1, I see on dac blogs burn in times on dacs, thoughts?

Only one advice to this: read the article "The Ten Biggest Lies In Audio" on page 4. Old article, but valid as ever. You need #6: The Burn-In Lie
>
www.theaudiocritic.com/back_issues/The_Audio_Critic_26_r.pdf

I must add that I do believe that gear can sound different after some time. But that's just our brain playing games with us. The brain makes new internal connections at a dazzling rate. So, after you hear something for the first time, your brain "interprets" that impression by building some more new connections and as a result, the next time you hear it, it will sound slightly different. Read Lone Frank's book on this. She's a Danish science journalist:

lonefrank.dk/?page_id=42&lang=en

But be warned: if you have religious beliefs, those too will be challenged!

[Deleted]

That's an awesome article

[briank]

I think Choo Choo wrote that article so I wouldn't put too much faith in it. ;D ;D

[Wideawake]

Erwin, people will believe what they want to believe. Burn in, biwiring with passive xo, the list goes on. Got blue in the face pointing people to these articles. Now I don't bother any more. People will always believe in burn in, and interestingly burn in always improves the sound, never degrades it! Don't try to figure this out or you'll find yourself in a padded room.

[flyhigh]

Burn-in of a purely electronic device has got to be one of the more thoroughly de-bunked audio myths around. Ranks up there with "directional" AC cables, Magic Crystals, and Quantum Noise Filters.

"Burn in" sounds better to the audiophile than does "get used to it".

There is no doubt that some folks will in fact hear a difference in an electronic component after a period of time, but that has more to do with the adaptability of the ear/brain, than any changes in the device.

[Erwin.BE]

Apr 13, 2011 7:47:48 GMT -5 Wideawake said:

Erwin, people will believe what they want to believe. Burn in, biwiring with passive xo, the list goes on. Got blue in the face pointing people to these articles. Now I don't bother any more. People will always believe in burn in, and interestingly burn in always improves the sound, never degrades it! Don't try to figure this out or you'll find yourself in a padded room.

I don't mind repeating this since I noticed this was OP's first post. We all have to learn. I know a bunch more about audio today than 5 years ago.

[Erwin.BE]

Apr 13, 2011 8:47:11 GMT -5 flyhigh said:

There is no doubt that some folks will in fact hear a difference in an electronic component after a period of time, but that has more to do with the adaptability of the ear/brain, than any changes in the device.

That's what I was trying to say.

[monkumonku]

Apr 13, 2011 8:47:11 GMT -5 flyhigh said:

Burn-in of a purely electronic device has got to be one of the more thoroughly de-bunked audio myths around. Ranks up there with "directional" AC cables, Magic Crystals, and Quantum Noise Filters.

"Burn in" sounds better to the audiophile than does "get used to it".

There is no doubt that some folks will in fact hear a difference in an electronic component after a period of time, but that has more to do with the adaptability of the ear/brain, than any changes in the device.

Agreed. The way to test something like this would be to compare one box that has had "burn in" time with another that is brand new and listen for any difference. I would think that difference ought to be measurable, as well - if your ears can hear a difference then there has to be a reason for that difference, and that reason should be measurable.

That said, you know there's never going to be agreement on this topic. Otherwise, many manufacturers would probably go out of business. Especially the ones who tell you that their products require a burn-in period that is longer than the trial/return period.

[Derry]

as mentioned it is not burn in it is you adjusting to the possibly new sound(s) your hearing,,

have gone through many an amp, tube and SS and never could tell any differnce from the first hour or the 1,000 hour,, same with the AC power cord,, just quit changing them and leave the OEM cord in place,,

always intersting when one starts a myth saying "hey this improved my system" and the HUNT IS ON for many wanting and believing they can improve their system by making this adjustment,,

the power of sugestive thinking is very influential,,

I do run a power conditioner which all my gear is plugged into,,

Derry

[geebo]

I've detected no difference in the sound of my XDA over time...

[monkumonku]

Apr 13, 2011 9:35:08 GMT -5 geebo said:

I've detected no difference in the sound of my XDA over time...

I've found that the cord in my hearing aid makes a difference - the stock cord results in thin, less dynamic sound than the upgrade replacement I purchased. I've even found that I can hear more eloquent words and types of punctuation I never heard before using just the stock cord.

[wizardofoz]

Google for "your brain on music" that book is also an interesting read

[geebo]

Apr 13, 2011 9:50:08 GMT -5 monkumonku said:

Apr 13, 2011 9:35:08 GMT -5 geebo said:

I've detected no difference in the sound of my XDA over time...

I've found that the cord in my hearing aid makes a difference - the stock cord results in thin, less dynamic sound than the upgrade replacement I purchased. I've even found that I can hear more eloquent words and types of punctuation I never heard before using just the stock cord.

You must have the directional cord, then?

[monkumonku]

Apr 13, 2011 10:16:44 GMT -5 geebo said:

Apr 13, 2011 9:50:08 GMT -5 monkumonku said:

I've found that the cord in my hearing aid makes a difference - the stock cord results in thin, less dynamic sound than the upgrade replacement I purchased. I've even found that I can hear more eloquent words and types of punctuation I never heard before using just the stock cord.

You must have the directional cord, then?

Eh? What?? Now some young'un had the nerve to tell me I was wasting my money on these fancy cords because maybe the cords have all this expensive wire in them but once the sound gets into my brain it's dealing with a bunch of old, frayed parts that are all jumbled up so what difference would a cord make in that case? At least I think that's what he said.. the guy was mumbling.

[DYohn]

Complete burn-in will not be accomplished until approximately 10,000 hours of use time, after which you should imediately toss the unit and purchase a new one.

[monkumonku]

Apr 13, 2011 10:44:58 GMT -5 DYohn said:

Complete burn-in will not be accomplished until approximately 10,000 hours of use time, after which you should imediately toss the unit and purchase a new one.

What always cracked me up was how AOL used to make some offer like 1,000 free hours if you signed up but then those hours had to be used during the first month. A typical month has 720 hours. But 1,000 free hours sure does sound good.