Jeff Rowland 501s burn in ... a strange experience

I have a different ICE amp, and what you are witnessing is well documented. Eventually it should sound fine. After break in you should try rolling what else you have in your system. Power cords should be upgraded first, and then you will find sources and speaker cables being of crucial importance to great sound. When you get it right...... you will know it.

After a few hundred hours if your not satisfied I strongly suggest upgrading your power source with a dedicated circuit and metal clad heavy gauge wire. Some switching amplifiers can be fussy about the AC their being fed. This is an inexpensive upgrade that your entire system can benefit from.

Sounds like common break in pains. Give it some time to settle in.

Nothing having to do with the JR 501's underwent any permanent or long lasting change from about 10 seconds after you powered it up to 6 hours later, or for that matter, till now. If it did, then the equipment is poorly designed. Since that company has been around for a while and has many satisfied customers I doubt that it is that poorly designed.

Clavil, the glib answer would be. . . take 2 Aspirins and call me in 6 months.

Here is a more useful answer. . . all new amps need real playing time break-in. . . during this time sound will fluctuate wildly. Different types of amps require different break in times. Seems that amps that operate at lower temperatures require longer break in time. Most class D Rowland amps require about 1,000 hours of REAL playing time to reach peak performance. You should also leave your Capri pre and 501 amps always turned on. . . this is JRDG's recommendation.

Once the amps are broken in, you may want to consider a pair of JRDG PC1 PFC external modules. . . they should yield greater authority and greater subtlety to the sound. Power cords should probably be after that. G.