Give Your System And Its Parts An Occasional “Rest Break"

One of the phenomena I have experience during break-in of a component, a cable, or loudspeakers is that after a good break-in period for something which has been newly introduced into my system, an occasional “rest” break for the component and its parts have always given me even better results in performance. Let me explain what I mean.

I have found that cables and speakers can take you on a real roller coaster ride until they start to “gel” sonically. Some days cables can sound bright, some days they can almost sound “dead” or “flat, and some days they will amaze you with their “aliveness”. Then there will come a day when everything will just come together in the music and the cable and/or loudspeaker will just settle into its own “groove”. I play this by ear, but once I find that the cable or speaker or component is doing things “right”, I will intentionally or unintentionally give the system a “rest break” – sometimes I do it on purpose and sometimes I have to go away during the break in period. But, I have found that by still keeping the system hooked up to “power”, with everything on, and turning the volume down, etc., when I return the system to listening or continuation of break in, the new component sounds better than ever.

I asked Michael about this and he confirmed my findings although he was the one who was able to give me a technical explanation as to why this phenomenon occurs and what happens to a part’s “outside” versus its “insides” when the part is allow to “rest” occasionally.

When I broke in my PZCs, I would play them during the day with the tuning bolts in the “normal” listening positions of my choosing, but at night, I would open up all the bolts and just allow the room’s natural vibrations run through them. Seven years later, I have found that I have been rewarded with some absolutely outstanding sound in all the rooms in my condominium throughout which all the rooms have PZCs. And, my listening room just gives me so much pleasure each time I sit down for a listen that at the strike of the first note, I feel blessed to have such good sound.

When I first got my Chameleons, I played them straight day and night for a few months during the break-in. I had the bolts in the “open” position during these few months and just let the speakers play. After those few months, I would occasionally just stop feeding them a signal and let them “rest” and when I fired them up again, they always sounded better. These breaks weren’t for a long period of time. Sometimes it would just be for an hour and sometimes maybe just overnight. But, I have done this with every component or change I have ever introduced into my system and have found that after the “break”, everything sounded even better than before. It’s almost seems as if everything in the universe benefits from an occasional “break”, just like our bodies do and once the rest period is over the system is re-energized and performs even better. But, they key is to keep power to the entire system during these rest breaks.

I was very patient with the Chameleons as I was told they do not come to peak performance for five years and I have found this to be true. After a few years, the drivers will easily be set in motion from the slightest touch from your index finger but while they are new, you get a normal “stiff” reaction from touching the drivers. So, I’ve learned patience because of the way Michael’s products are designed and built.

So, try giving your system and its parts an occasional rest break. No harm will be done and you may find that your system performance also has increased after these break periods. Just remember to maintain "power on" for all your components.
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Jim Bookhard