im thinking of getting an alpine type r(old model) or a rock forsgate P3...just wondering how long and how exactly i would go about breaking them in once i get them?
hmm well...honestly im not sure...run it at low bass for awhile like...ive heard people say like a month before you can start pushing it to the max...just make sure your comfterble with it until you think you can take it to the max
its all subjective. Most companies will tell you to break in their subs for 120hours becuase by the time you get it broken in your 30day warranty has expired and they are free and clear of any returns. I have owned many,many,many subs in my life and I have not broken in One! Yes never. Most of the great companies put there subs through vigorous training I will call it before they box them up and sell them to you. JL Audio puts every single sub through this training. now if it was such a nessecity to break in your subs how would this be possible? Well I am sure many people are going to jump at me on this since it is a highly contraversial issue but I dont care. I use my life's own lessons and by not breaking in my subs they have played long and hard all the time. Well thats just my 2Cents
james...that clears alot up to me then...cause i dont either and i hear alot of people saying you should...i dont understand why this would help except to losene verything up...idk
yeah well thats more then I have ever done and like I said all of my subs have been fine. I have never had issues with a sub because I didnt break it in. Those people that say play it low for 120 hours! are you F'ing kidding me do you know how long 120hours is? Say you are in your car for a total of 2hours a day that would take you 60days. FU$K that! I just bought a avalanche 15 which is going in my truck tomarrow for a test run and guess what guys? ohhh it will be turned up I can assure you.
The main reason that companies recommend a break in period is because the suspension is tight. It results in less than perfect sound quality initially and if they just gave the sub to you without a recommended break in period, many customers would say "this sub sounds like crap, I'm taking it back!". With a break in period, you're giving them hope that it will eventually perform better, thus selling more equipment and having less returned. Another reason is that most failures occur during installation, either by crossed wires, gain controls getting bumped, etc., plus if there is a problem with the sub, you'll hear errors better at low volumes rather than high volumes which will mask little mechanical errors/sounds. You risk less damage running the sub at low volumes until you're assured the system has no kinks to work out.
I agree if you have just installed your system and you are powering everything up for the first time deffinetly keep it low and check everything out to make sure it is all hooked up properly and souns good then aftre that I believe it is time to turn itt up. Am I gonna turn it up to max level no of coarse not but I will deff give it the Onion and not hold back on it.
james-i'm always trying to convince people,that break in is waste of time.I never did that and my friends always looked at me with amazement,what i would do with my new subwoofer(s).Never had any problems after "my" break in.
Miso, I tend to agree with you but you cant argue the fact that "breaking in" your subs can't hurt anything. Jonathan had mentioned sq will increase as the damper loosens, so that right there is one reason for breaking in a woofer. This is something that can be accomplished usually within an hour or so of playtime depending on the amplitude, excursion, and materials used to make the woofer. Another good point Jonathan made was that playing your system at low volumes would have it's advantages if there were any problems with the install or connections. So...Yes, a good, well built, spl woofer doesnt need a break period however, as many agree, it cant hurt.
Miso, I tend to agree with you but you cant argue the fact that "breaking in" your subs can't hurt anything. Jonathan had mentioned sq will increase as the damper loosens so that right there is one reason for breaking in a woofer. This is something that can be accomplished usually within an hour or so of playtime depending on the amplitude, excursion, and materials used to make the woofer. Another good point Jonathan made was that playing your system at low volumes would have it's advantages if there were any problems with the install or connections. So...Yes, a good, well built, spl woofer doesnt need a break period however, as many agree, it cant hurt.
of course that i would check connections first,but after few minutes of low level listening/checking how sub is behaving in a new box,i'm just crank it up almost at full,because there is nothing more rewarding as seeing/hearing that another one(made by me)is working and playing LOUD!So there is no way i would wait such a long time before i could play it at the max.Only times,when i play my subs at low levels is when outside temperature is very low(freezing) first 30minutes or so...
I have owned many subwoofers and have never blown them at all. The only subwoofer I have ever blown is two kicker S12L5's with a jbl 1200.1 The voice coils melted in about 3 hours of playing them. Also, I have for sale a jl 12W6v2 that does not work. The voice coil is messed up although the subwoofer has no cuts in the cone etc. and it looks brand new. It also still has the serial number on the sub so you can send it back to JL for around $100 and have them refurbish it and then you'd have a 12W6v2 in great condition. I will take $100 plus the actuall shipping. I think it weighs around 20 lbs. E-mail me if your interested.
I think that breaking in subs is a waste of time. whats the point of playing them at low volumes for a long a$$ time to loosen the spider when you can do it in a half hour by blasting it,is it really a difference. It gets loose either way.