TRL Marantz Sa-14

La45, could you go into more specifics about the TRL 2000 tweaks?

Other than putting the unit on a DIY Symposium Ultra style isolation platform and mating it with a very good power cord I have so far resisted the temptation to open up the unit. Also using QuickSilver as recommended by other TRL fans.

I have tweaked lesser units with Dynamat Xtreme for damping, Stillpoints ERS for EMI/RFI attenuation, Auricap across the IEC inlet for AC noise filtering.

Although I haven't looked inside the unit, I am guessing that they already employ ERS in the mod. Scroll down to the bottom of this link and you will see TubeResearchLabs/CableResearchLabs as users of the ERS product.

http://www.stillpoints.us/1Pages/ers_products.html

No 500 hours break-in isn't normal. I've had a number of mods done by other companies on amps, preamps, cds, etc and after a couple hundred hours they usually reach their potential. The caps and transformers should be fully cooked by that time. I'm guessing they use a special kind of solder or leads.

Sbayne: I've owned various Tube Research Labs amps and preamps since the early 90's. Every one of them has taken a while to break in, so it is common for their products.

TVAD: Most folks don't have memory lapses that prohibit them from remembering how a component sounded a few weeks back. Then again, maybe some guys "experimented" too much with mind altering drugs ... :)

Jack

Jack wrote:

Most folks don't have memory lapses that prohibit them from remembering how a component sounded a few weeks back.

This is an interesting topic that deserves some serious attention, and I hope I can effectively present my thoughts here without sounding argumentitive.

I really wonder how anyone can make a definitive comparison between Sound A and Sound B several weeks after initially hearing Sound A. After all, the changes that occur during break-in happen incrementally, and the listener experiences them in small increments over extended periods of time that would, it seems to me, make the perception of these changes nearly impossible. I certainly don't have any scientific evidence to support either side of the debate, but I suppose I side with those who attribute some of the perceived changes to a listener's acclimation to the sound of gear over time in addition to actual measurable changes in the electronics. Then again, many folks claim to hear a point during the process that is essentially an "Ah-Ha!" moment at which a clear change becomes apparent.

Like most things in life, there is most certainly a murky point in the mist where both sides meet, but can seldom, if ever, be identified.

You are misunderstanding my question. I know TRL mods take up to 500 hours to break-in: but why? Other mods I have had done by companies such as Musical Concepts and SACDMods didn't take that long. I am guessing TRL uses special solder or leads that require the long break-in.