Burn in

[Jennifer]

To add a little more color to Perseus' response...

Fresh out of the box, a pair of headphones may not sound as good as a well used pair, as the designers have intended. Often, people want their headphones to sound the way that they are intended as soon as possible. Most people don’t want to wait for weeks or months of regular use, so the choice is to expedite burn in by getting the process over with in the first week of ownership. Others choose to listen to their headphones as they change over the burn in period. 

All the best,
PAN

[Perseus]

When speaking of headphones, ‘burn in’ is the term used for the settling of the design parameters of the diaphragms into their intended state. The physical process is that the diaphragms loosen up through use and eventually reach a point that could be considered final. A similar situation is breaking in a new pair of shoes!!  Hope that helps...

[Mells]

Just curious... I read Percy and Blue's discussion about burn in.  But what is ‘burn in’ and why do people choose to burn in a new pair of headphones shortly after getting them?

Inquiring minds want to know!