mace Posted June 8, 2001 Share Posted June 8, 2001 Well, the 30's arrived and are just dandy.. very dandy. I've searched on this board about breaking in and found that folks seem to agree that the speakers need to "break in". I am quite curious: What is the mechanism of this breaking in?? Is it for the woofers? Horns?? Does one need to really crank the speakers at first to "break them in"?? Should I not crank them for a while?? What exactly is the difference in sound before and after breaking in. From what I've read here it seems folks just say "you'll know"... but what changes exactly? lows, mids, highs? all? These are truly nice, nice, nice speakers.. so happy am I. Mace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mighty Favog Posted June 9, 2001 Share Posted June 9, 2001 Mace, From what I have heard (my 20's are only four months old) the mids and highs are supposed to get less brash over time. I can't say I've noticed a BIG difference and it's not something that happens all of the sudden. Your ears will get used to what they sound like now and will be constantly readjusting as playing time goes on because it is such a gradual process. I did talk to Trey (a wealth of information) in tech support and he says that they are plenty broke-in from the factory. Apart from that he also said that he believes the whole break-in thing is "Voodoo" (his word). If you have a real time alalyzer somewhere in your system you can always at a quick glance be able to make a comparison of what the meter says and what your hearing. This is very handy to determine if a driver is blown or a source signal sounds like it really reaks of any quality. I've found the best (and cheapest) thing to get the best sound from these monsters is experiment with speaker placement. This is helped enormously with the aid of an SPL meter(Sound Pressure Level). I have an old HH Scott 830z that I wouldn't part with for the world for this reason (as well as it being an RTA). A hand held model can be had from Radio Shack for about $35 but you have to be sure to have it in the same place as your ears will be while your in your favorite listening place, a camera tripod should work very well for this. Radio Shack is also a good source of 12ga. Monster speaker cable @ 50 cents a foot. If you want, I have made up an Excel sheet that can track the measurements and make a graph of the rooms resonance levels. It's very easy to use. The test may take a number of hours to do. When I did mine I turned the levels for the high-end way down as to not overheat the tweeters (the legend's weakest link). I also put on a pair of ear protection headphones to keep from getting tinnitus. Your room will more than likely have a different speaker position than mine but I found the highest SPL readings at 9 1/2" from both the back and side wall. Let me know!! ------------------ Tom KLF-20 Mahogany Carver C-1 (McIntosh C33 is coming!!) Rotel RB-1080 Yamaha PF-800 Turntable/ Sure V15 Type V Cartridge Ortofon VMS-30 Cartridge Stanton 999SS Cartridge Carver TL-3100 CD Yamaha K-1020 Cassette (maybe being mothballed) dbx 1231 EQ H.H. Scott 830z Analyzer Monster Interlink 400mk II Monster Interlink 300 mk II Studio Tech U-48RW Cabinet Original 12ga. Monster Cable Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rowooo Posted June 9, 2001 Share Posted June 9, 2001 mace.....When your ears get used to the sound of your new speakers that's when you know they are broken in. Should take about a minute. Enjoy your 30's...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mace Posted June 9, 2001 Author Share Posted June 9, 2001 Thanks for the replies. I know that speaker placement is very important and the room makes all the difference. I've got the 30's in a room about 22x16' with one of the 16' sides being open to another room. When I first set them up I set them up against the long wall about 12' apart. I knew this wasn't ideal so I moved them to the short wall about 8' apart. I like the imaging much better now but they are a bit boomy at times (each is about 3-4' from corner, 6" from back wall). I'll have to play with distance from wall... but there is only so much my wife will tolerate I believe. Anyway... these speakers are real gems... truly astonishing. I love how you can be listening comfortably and then try to speak and can't hear yourself. The music just surrounds you so effortlessly.. so clean and rich. HornEd: In case you catch this thread... I wish you a speedy recovery from your root canal. Mace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mighty Favog Posted June 9, 2001 Share Posted June 9, 2001 Mace, If the boomyness won't go away you may (if not already) want to try using the spikes if you have carpeted floors. Also, take a look at the equipment (cd player, amp, pre-amp, etc.). Make sure that there is plenty of isolation from vibrations. If you have the money and room to go with one of the aftermarket spike companies that's great. So far I took the cheap way out till I buy all the McIntosh I can (or can't) afford. I found in my basement a roll of very dense poly-propylene. It looks kinda like water pipe insulation. I cut it into 2"-3" circles and put that under each foot of each unit in the system. The highs and middle were much more defined and the bass did tighten up a bit. Good luck!! ------------------ Tom KLF-20 Mahogany Carver C-1 (McIntosh C33 is coming!!) Rotel RB-1080 Yamaha PF-800 Turntable/ Sure V15 Type V Cartridge Ortofon VMS-30 Cartridge Stanton 999SS Cartridge Carver TL-3100 CD Yamaha K-1020 Cassette (maybe being mothballed) dbx 1231 EQ H.H. Scott 830z Analyzer Monster Interlink 400mk II Monster Interlink 300 mk II Studio Tech U-48RW Cabinet Original 12ga. Monster Cable Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdm56 Posted June 9, 2001 Share Posted June 9, 2001 From "MCCALLS REAL CONDENSED JR. HIGH SCHOOL DICTIONARY": break-in (bray'-kin); 1. as in, "to break into some thing or place without permission. 2. to audiofools, an explanation for why an expensive new non-klipsch loudpeaker sucks, as in "it just needs to break-in". ------------------ JDMcCall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rowooo Posted June 10, 2001 Share Posted June 10, 2001 Mace....Take an old thick foam mouse pad you have laying around your house and cut it into squares a little larger than the exsisting feet on your Receiver and C.D. player and place them under the components. This free vibration solution works just as well as most multi-dollar devices......Good luck...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HornEd Posted June 10, 2001 Share Posted June 10, 2001 Thanks for the kind thought, Mace. Actually, I was thinking about you and your 30's while I was out today buying some special equipment cabinets that are large and stout enough to raise the KLF 10 front effects speakers high enough. I am glad to hear that you are enjoying while locked in the obligatory placement and significant other gauntlet. Don't forget to aim (toe in) your 30's at your primary listening area and get a SPL meter as Tom suggests... being wrapped in luscious sound can make one prone to make Legendary errors. Rowoo's mouse pad approach is also great advice... or you can pick up some material in a dive shop if you have one handy. In the meantime, ENJOY! HornEd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Blorry Posted June 12, 2001 Share Posted June 12, 2001 This is a very interesting topic for me. I upgraded my KLF 20s to KLF 30s approximately two months ago. I purchased both from a very reputable "brick and mortar" store here in town that allows upgrades if purchased within a year (I gotta find out if I just reset the year clock when I bought the 30s!). Considering the nearly rounded appearance of the boxes, it looked like my poor 30s had bounced around like a racquetball inside the delivery truck! Sure enough, there was some minor cosmetic damage. My K dealer decided to replace them with a fresh pair rather than offer a partial refund for damaged goods. They contend that this avoids the possiblity of hidden damage surfacing years down the road. I can understand their tack on this situation, but this means that I will have to lug these monsters back into the store, and lug the new pair back (after they have been scrutinized at the store first!). What irritates me the most is that I will have to wait another two months before the new 30s sound as good as the existing 30s sound right now! I do believe there is a break-in period, not necessarily for the mids and highs, but definitely for the bottom end. There was only a lapse of two hours between the 20s leaving my house, and the 30s taking their place. No matter where I placed the speakers, the 30s did not have nearly as smooth, warm or solid a bass response as the 20s! However, after a month or so, the 30s began to bloom. With each passing day, the bass seems to get a little bit fuller and smoother. How much of this is my imagination? Probably some. Do I have an audio analyzer to prove this? No, but I do have ears, and I firmly believe that the 30s are finally packing a wallop the 20s couldn't possibly reproduce, simply due to the difference in woofer size. To me, it's like a pair of shoes that feel tight at first, but gradually get more comfortable the longer they are worn. Since the woofer suspension is made from a flexible material, it only seems natural that it would become more pliable the longer it is used. More pliable means a more effortless excursion, and in my opinion warmer, and more relaxed bass response. My new speakers had to be ordered from Hope, as the number of new Legend speakers is dwindling rapidly. The speakers I receive may be from the final production run of KLF 30s, and I am concerned that QA may drop off as the product line reaches end of life. Mace, I am betting you will find your 30s sounding better within a month or so. What some perceive as the horns getting less "brash" may just be the woofers coming into their own, and balancing the output. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boa12 Posted June 12, 2001 Share Posted June 12, 2001 how bout that 30s bass slam?! mr blorry, your dealer sounds pretty fair, but if they have installers/delivery they should bring the new ones to you & pick up the old. my local dealer did/would. sometimes it's a good reason to go back into the showrooms though (like maybe to hear the new refs) ------------------ Klipsch KLF 30 (front), KLF C-7, Cornwall I (rear) Velodyne HGS-18 sub woofer Monsterbass 400 sub interconnects & Monster CX-2 biwire & Z-12 cable Marantz SR-8000 receiver Sony DVP-C650D cd/dvd player Sony Trinitron 27" stereo tv Toshiba hi-fi stereo vcr Technics dual cassette deck Scientific Atlanta Explorer 2000 digital cable box Boa's Listenin Lounge: Klipsch RF-3 (front), RC-3, cheap little Technics (rear) Monster MCX Biwires Sony STR-DE935 a/v receiver Kenwood KR-9600 AM/FM stereo receiver (vintage 1975) Russound AB-2 receiver switch to RF-3 Teac PD-D1200 5-disk cd changer Technics direct drive turntable Sega Genesis game player Sub: None yet rock on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Blorry Posted June 12, 2001 Share Posted June 12, 2001 Absatively Boa! My K dealer said they'd have to charge me for delivery (which I think is a load of cow dookie), but it does give me the chance to check out all the hype around the new speakers! Since I'll have my old pair of broken-in 30s right there, maybe I should ask them to do an A-B comparison for me! Hmmm.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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