Zitrons - a warning on the way of the burn

[vintage_tube]

Originally Posted by PHC1

Bob, that’s serious stuff there. Imagine not having to wait 800 hrs for the good sound to emerge? On the other hand we had so much more time back in the day to paint the CD edges with green markers while waiting. Of course just the edges was deemed not enough and we stared covering the whole top of CD’s for better results. Became a nightmare if the CD’s were not returned to their cases promptly as it was impossible to tell what it was anymore... Ah the good old days.

That's so funny Serge, but tongue in cheek now sooooo true - I recall those days. Infact, about 5-6 weeks back I was at my local used vinyl dealer (they sell used CeeDees too) and saw a CD that struck my fancy. Picked the case up and proceeded to pay for it -- the cashier looked up the code and put the CD in the case & I saw the green edging -- anyways, put the CD case back in the bin. Chuckled to myself reminiscing of days & gadgets past. The CD wasn't that great BTW.

Best Sir,

Bob

[PHC1]

Originally Posted by Puma Cat

This is a bit of an issue still with audio components with Teflon caps. If you leave them off long enough, they require a little bit of re-burn-in to reform the caps. But it's generally just a week or two of play rather than the 1000 hours my CT-5 took!

You are a very patient man Stephen. That’s why high end audio will never catch on with the generation of instant gratification.

[Puma Cat]

Originally Posted by PHC1

You are a very patient man Stephen. That’s why high end audio will never catch on with the generation of instant gratification.

Boy, you can say that again. Fortunately, I had my Premier 17 to listen to while the CT-5 was burning in.

[MisterBritt]

I've got a dumb question. I am burning in some NOS 2M Balanced ZiTron Anaconda interconnects between my preamp and my amplifiers. Does the volume matter? Can I turn it down almost all the way or would that slow down the burn-in process?

[MisterBritt]

Originally Posted by MisterBritt

I've got a dumb question. I am burning in some NOS 2M Balanced ZiTron Anaconda interconnects between my preamp and my amplifiers. Does the volume matter? Can I turn it down almost all the way or would that slow down the burn-in process?

No opinions about that? And here I am talking to myself. Ha.

But I am taking the occasion of burning in the new ICs by taking my Quad ESL 57s for a drive. It's been way too long. My jaw hit the floor when I fired them up. I've been running down my Bill Evans Trio and Blue Note trio and other small group LPs all day. Good times.

Waltz with Debby is a trip. You could always clearly hear the people talking and coughing but on the Quads you can make out much more of it if you care to. On side two, a lady tells the waitress, "same thing." Or when that other lady sneezes, you know it's a sneeze and that it was recorded on a wintry day. That guy chuckling at the end of side two, who I take to be Orrin Keepnews himself, cracks me up. At the applause after the first tune on side two I counted what I estimate to have been 27 people in the Vanguard. Ha. Drummer Paul Motion, in an interview/article in the New York Times a few years back, stated that he thought the crowd was a distraction on those records, but I think it's ever so charming.

We're fast approaching the initial 50 hour burn-in hurdle. From what I have gathered the next check point occurs around 100 hours. I think I'll just leave the Quads in place until then. What a delight!

[GrantS]

I think varying volume does help with speaker cables and speakers, but is not at issue as much with interconnects. I'm a fan of resting the system at various periods, like overnight, and have noticed positive differences versus running constantly. There are customers that claim a forever burn-in time for different products, but my experience has been that 100-150hrs (4-6 days) of fairly steady use gets you past most ups and downs. After that, its more fine-tuning and refinement. The current range of cables skips the ups and downs and generally gets into refinement once they settle for a day or so after shipping.

Regards,

Grant

[MisterBritt]

Originally Posted by GrantS

I think varying volume does help with speaker cables and speakers, but is not at issue as much with interconnects. I'm a fan of resting the system at various periods, like overnight, and have noticed positive differences versus running constantly. There are customers that claim a forever burn-in time for different products, but my experience has been that 100-150hrs (4-6 days) of fairly steady use gets you past most ups and downs. After that, its more fine-tuning and refinement. The current range of cables skips the ups and downs and generally gets into refinement once they settle for a day or so after shipping.

Regards,

Grant

Excellent. That is exactly what I wanted to know. I'm resting the system overnight and doing something like two 4 hour sessions each day. Thank you for the reply.

[Puma Cat]

Originally Posted by MisterBritt

No opinions about that? And here I am talking to myself. Ha.

But I am taking the occasion of burning in the new ICs by taking my Quad ESL 57s for a drive. It's been way too long. My jaw hit the floor when I fired them up. I've been running down my Bill Evans Trio and Blue Note trio and other small group LPs all day. Good times.

Waltz with Debby is a trip. You could always clearly hear the people talking and coughing but on the Quads you can make out much more of it if you care to. On side two, a lady tells the waitress, "same thing." Or when that other lady sneezes, you know it's a sneeze and that it was recorded on a wintry day. That guy chuckling at the end of side two, who I take to be Orrin Keepnews himself, cracks me up. At the applause after the first tune on side two I counted what I estimate to have been 27 people in the Vanguard. Ha. Drummer Paul Motion, in an interview/article in the New York Times a few years back, stated that he thought the crowd was a distraction on those records, but I think it's ever so charming.

We're fast approaching the initial 50 hour burn-in hurdle. From what I have gathered the next check point occurs around 100 hours. I think I'll just leave the Quads in place until then. What a delight!

Quads are amazing for their transparency. Enjoy.

[CGabriel]

BTW, we have the original Quad 57 (rebuilt) set of speakers that we use for development. They are still the reference for mid-range transparency. Love them.

[MisterBritt]

Originally Posted by CGabriel

BTW, we have the original Quad 57 (rebuilt) set of speakers that we use for development. They are still the reference for mid-range transparency. Love them.

Yes, I recall that from an long ago forum post. I actually had in my mind they were your personal speakers. Maybe they're both.

I have wondered whether you built custom power cords for them? That would be cool but I think unless I wanted to make these my primary speakers it wouldn't make sense for me to venture into those waters. Do you augment the bass on yours? I have read that if one does that, adds a sub or whatnot, it could end in disaster, one step forward and two steps back in total presentation, the magic being lost.

But they are a trip! Nirvana Unplugged in New York, sublime. Nirvana plugged, nevermind. Ha.

Also -- and if this is too far off topic to warrant a reply, I understand -- but I would consider your opinion the most intelligent and informed of all is out there on these speakers. Have you experimented with isolation devices on them, aka footers like Stillpoints? I'm just very curious. Mine are on the 18" "German" stands and are currently just positioned with the elegant wood legs on the rug. They look great! Unfortunately, due to room logistics, I cannot plug them into my Triton/Typhon combo. But they are on the same line and, from what I have gathered, are benefiting from being on the same line as the Typhon.