Hey - so I’ve got a pretty new pair of Adam T7v monitors. Going from my AKG k702 headphones to the monitors, the monitors sound pretty harsh and edgy in the treble… Kinda crispy, not in a good way! Low end and low mids are OK, although hopefully they’ll open up a touch with time.
Is burn in going to help with top end? Does anyone have experience with these monitors / good burn-in process, especially for the tweeter?
Thanks in advance for any advice!
The bits from user reviews I have read, they’re supposed to have a pretty smooth top… Not sure if you’re just too used to your old setup or you have an issue with your set? It can be pretty jarring going from cans to monitors if you’re trying to compare, would try them out again after not listening to anything in particular for a few hours.
You can just leave a radio playing throuh your monitors at moderate levels when you’re not home. A few days is all that it takes, if they indeed even change their sound after a burn-in period.
If you want to try the burning in thing, make sure you play lossless audio. No radio or Mp3.
Do read up a bit on “burning in” monitors. To be frank, I’m not a believer ;). I think the burning in happens with you brain. As in, you adjust to what you are used to. Good monitor speakers will have a very clear top end and it can lead to ear fatigue especially if you are not used to it. It does provide you with a detailed presentation of the top spectrum of frequencies which can be quite useful for mixing audio. An important part of getting the top end under control is treating your room against early reflections and flutter echo. Otherwise you’ll not be using your monitors to their full potential. Going all the way and use bass absorbers as well will of course be the best to do but can become quite expensive unless you built them yourself.
Keep an analyser handy for the first few weeks of mixing for sanity checks and try mixing to pink noise for the same reason. It will speed up the adjusting period a bit.
Hope this helps. Cheers
Your ears just adjusting to the new soundsource. “Burn in” is just one of these foolish audio myths.
Put on a couple of your favorite cds, sit back and enjoy hearing the revealing nature of monitors compared to hi-fi speakers. The staging (both width and depth) is the most immediate and impressive thing.
“Burn in” might have made a little bit of sense back when speakers were still made from paper and hobby glue.
Pretty sure it’s not a thing anymore as pointed out eloquently above.
I once read a thread in a hi-fi forum where there was a Q&A with some dude from a speaker company (can’t remember exactly which company) where he was asked about “burn in” Monitors and Headphones.
Basically the response was that he isn’t aware of ANY parts of the products that needs to “burn in”. Speakers and Headphones are ready from the"get go" and he hasn’t any clue where this myth came from.
The following is taken from the Focal Shape 50 monitors official manual.
Running In
The transducers used in SHAPE loudspeakers are complex mechanical assemblies which need a period of running in to operate at their best and to become acclimatised to the temperature and humidity conditions of your environment. The length of time this takes can vary according to circumstances, sometimes extending over several weeks. Avoid listening to the loudspeakers at high volume levels during their first hours of use. To speed this process up, we recommend you operate the different products for about 20 hours at medium volume, on musical programmes that are rich in low frequencies. Once the characteristics of the transducers have been stabilised, you will able to enjoy the performance of your Focal products to the full.
So, you know, if Focal says “running in” is a thing, I tend to belive it is. 
Source - https://www.focal.com/sites/www.focal.fr/files/shared/catalog/document/shape_user-manual_notice.pdf
Hey guys - I appreciate the responses, some good thoughts in there, especially @DaveMech (by the way, if anyone hasn’t seen his great Overbridge video yet, check it out!).
In terms of ears acclimatising, I’m normally pretty quick with that, but I would say that my room is poorly treated, so I’ll spend some extra time to make sure it’s not reflections that are causing me issues. Always good advice Dave. I also remember reading somewhere else ages ago that pink noise is good, so I might give that a go too.
I should have clarified, I’ve had Studio Monitors before, including in the same room, as well as having spent a fair bit of time in studio rooms. So I’m accustomed to revealing speakers etc. I’ve also listened to a bunch of my favourite records on the Adams and have been constantly struck by how the treble sounds so unflattering in a way I really wasn’t expecting. And as I say, I’ve heard these records through several pairs of dedicated studio monitors.
Re. the burn in thing, a lot of manufacturers suggest there is a burn-in or wear-in period (useful link @Daisuk !) , with both speakers and headphones. From my point of view, I have a classical background whereby instruments (wooden, brass etc.) all literally change over time with the vibrations being passed through them, and obviously the most sensitive time is when they’re new and being really played for the first few months. Environmental factors such as air moisture, heat etc all play a part too. And thus I wholeheartedly believe that speakers will have a breaking-in period! How could they not? It just makes sense to me, but I fully respect that lots of people will totally disagree!
I’ll feedback in a few weeks once I’ve given them (and myself) some more time… Meantime, suggestions and / or any personal experiences with these particular monitors still much appreciated.
Thanks esq.
True, most manufacturers say there’s a breaking in period. Breaking them in day and night for days on end is a bit over the top imho. Just use them and enjoy them as much as you can and listen to high quality music with lots of detailed low end. You’ll be fine 
Yeah, I’m not dedicated enough to do it day and night for sure! (neither, I suspect, are my neighbours…)
I just need to remember to leave some stuff on cycle when I go out - that way if they do change over a week or so, I might notice before my ears also adjust!
I actually picked them up about 8 weeks ago, I’ve just had very little time to actually use them since. Got some fun projects to run through them in the next couple of months though.
Of course manufacturers will endorse speaker burn-in; they are well aware that prolonged listening to a product will improve one’s acceptance of the product.
There is no difference between good studio monitors and good hi-fi speakers. If you look at manufacturers who make both (e.g. Genelec), the only differences tends to be the connectors and aesthetic finish.
There is no such thing as burn in speakers or headphones, otherwise all frequency responses graphs are incorrect.
This.
I agree there actually is no real-world concern about “burn-in”, but somewhere the concept was invented and stuck so long, a company simply had to jump on the wagon…
it’s actually pretty old school, i suspect the hippy fringe, as usual.
Sure, old Harley-Davidsons, old analog amps, their newly-acquired bong and yet, virgin brain cells might have had a Burn-In period for sure.
As the 60s rolled into the 70s, it was even more desirable for a sense of predictability and a feeling of “worn-in” familiarity, a trusted relationship, a pair of stinky blue jeans that got more comfortable with age, especially once Nixon took office and the all-too dreadful reality of growing up, finding a career, getting a house, wife, etc. and becoming sucked right back into the system they rebelled against.
THIS is “Burn-In”…
I was hoping for some fellow T7v owners to voice their thoughts, or to hear suggestions relating specifically to burn-in for the tweeters.
But alas, it seems mostly the people here don’t believe. For interest, it’d certainly be great to blind test between a ‘worn in’ pair and a new pair of the same speaker to get a better idea.
imho
all membranes need burn in
This explains it well imho. It’s just a combination of your head adjusting to the sounds of your speakers/headphones and breaking in, but the actual breaking in is not that big of an effect.
So, just using your monitors/headphones from the get go is fine. I really don’t think you could ruin a pair speakers by not breaking them in with high quality music. I didn’t break-in my pair of Dynaudio BM5a’s 10 years ago, and they sound incredible and I’m happy with my mixes.
Treat your room, that will have way more effect.
Did you not compare the T7v to other speakers prior to purchase?
If you are not happy with the sound of the T7v now I doubt you will ever be truly happy with them.