Should i turn off my power amplifier and preamplifier or should i leave them on 24/7??

[Thorseng]

Hi everyone

Currently I am wondering if I should leave my power amplifier and preamplifier on or off. It has come to my attention when I began reading some stuff about it, but I can’t really get a satisfactory explanation.

I’ve got the Densen B200 and the B310 combo. Just if people were wondering, they have switches on the back. I also have the option of turning them into idle/standby mode. But what’s the best thing I can do?

BR

 

[podknocker]

I keep my system on 24/7 and just mute it at night. Keeping the circuits at a steady temperature all the time makes sense to me.

The only kit I would turn off when not in use would be stuff like the Music Fidelity A1 amp. This Class A model will consume and waste a lot of energy when not in use, so not good for your finances, if you do worry about this of course.

 

[gasolin]

I keep my system on 24/7 and just mute is at night. Keeping the circuits at a steady temperature all the time makes sense to me.

The only kit I would turn off when not in use would be stuff like the Music Fidelity A1 amp. This Class A model will consume and waste a lot of energy when not in use, so not good for your finances, if you do worry about this of course.

It will add some heat to the room the amp is in but is a class a amp worth it, mabye not

Many moderen amps have aut standby just use that and make it aut go into standby, i don't since i wanna do it manually

My amp def adds heat to my room

 

[nopiano]

If devices have a standby setting, so that you can wake them either with a music signal or remote, then I’d switch them to standby at night. Were I not expecting to use them for longer than say 48 hours I’d turn them off completely - as you describe with your rear switch.

What do Densen say in your handbook/manual?

 

[Fandango Andy]

Hi everyone

Currently I am wondering if I should leave my power amplifier and preamplifier on or off. It has come to my attention when I began reading some stuff about it, but I can’t really get a satisfactory explanation.

I’ve got the Densen B200 and the B310 combo. Just if people were wondering, they have switches on the back. I also have the option of turning them into idle/standby mode. But what’s the best thing I can do?

BR

Generally speaking a device with a switch hidden on the back but with a standby mode would be designed to be left in standby mode when not in use. Personally if I were unsure I would contact the manufacturer and ask for their opinion.

 

[Fandango Andy]

I keep my system on 24/7 and just mute it at night. Keeping the circuits at a steady temperature all the time makes sense to me.

The only kit I would turn off when not in use would be stuff like the Music Fidelity A1 amp. This Class A model will consume and waste a lot of energy when not in use, so not good for your finances, if you do worry about this of course.

Yes, if I had a Class A amp I would be turning it off when not in use too. Have you read the specs on them? Some Krell amps use as much power on standby as a average A/B amp does while playing music.

 

[Gray]

Much newer stuff uses under half a watt on standby - so it's not as much of a (financial) issue as it might once have been.

I originally wanted the option of switching everything completely off - from the front.
So in my case, the 9 switches go to a row of rear mains sockets.

Check what the actual standby consumption of your units is, multiply that by the current unit price* of your electricity.....over time, to help you decide what to do.

* Unit price gives you 1000W for an hour.
So a half watt standby costs the same over a 2000 hour period (or almost 3 months of 24/7).

 

[Revolutions]

I’ve been experimenting with power sources recently. I wanted to leave everything in standby & use a WiFi plug to switch it all on/off.

Unfortunately my active speakers didn’t like that, one of them kept on not powering up. And now I’ve realised that my amp sometimes struggles so I have to put that on standby, then turn power off at the back.

Today I removed the WiFi plug as it’s not adding anything remotely useful 😂

 

[nopiano]

I’ve been experimenting with power sources recently. I wanted to leave everything in standby & use a WiFi plug to switch it all on/off.

Unfortunately my active speakers didn’t like that, one of them kept on not powering up. And now I’ve realised that my amp sometimes struggles so I have to put that on standby, then turn power off at the back.

Today I removed the WiFi plug as it’s not adding anything remotely useful 😂

I must admit I’d not trust a remotely switched socket to feed my Hifi. I use one for a lamp, which acts like a timer - on at dusk, off just before midnight.

For Hifi I feel reassured by having items plugged in at the wall or into a decent distribution block. I recently treated my kit to a Puritan Purist block, the one with no gubbins inside except star earthing. It’s so strong I reckon you could drive a tank over it and it would still work (not that I’m planning to do so! 🤣)

 

[Stuart83]

I’ve been experimenting with power sources recently. I wanted to leave everything in standby & use a WiFi plug to switch it all on/off.

Unfortunately my active speakers didn’t like that, one of them kept on not powering up. And now I’ve realised that my amp sometimes struggles so I have to put that on standby, then turn power off at the back.

Today I removed the WiFi plug as it’s not adding anything remotely useful

Had similar experiences when using such plugs although infrared with a remote to operate a heater, but of course it just went straight to standby mode meaning I had to get up regardless and switch it on manually.

The stupidest thing is I did the same thing with a plug in 24hr timer on a digital radio which also just went into standby mode instead of coming straight on.
That time I did subject myself to a homer Simpson slap on the head and shout "doh" 🤦

Obviously my brain forgot about standby modes on modern things and remembers when old radios etc would just go straight on.

I did redeem myself as the remote control infrared plug was very handy for an older type fan heater and light although those "ever ready plugs" don't live long as the replacements also broke after about 6 mth of daily use.

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[twinkletoes]

As others have said purly depends on what we’re talking about. My sugden wouldn’t like being left on all the time ,forgetting the cost, it would drastically reduce the life of the components inside as it gets so hot.

My dac on the other hand it’s been on for nearly 8years. It has no on off switch no standby just a little 5 volt wall wart.

In all honesty even if you did turn off components completely they take seconds these days to stabilise and about 2-5mins to warm through.

 

[TrevC]

Hi everyone

Currently I am wondering if I should leave my power amplifier and preamplifier on or off. It has come to my attention when I began reading some stuff about it, but I can’t really get a satisfactory explanation.

I’ve got the Densen B200 and the B310 combo. Just if people were wondering, they have switches on the back. I also have the option of turning them into idle/standby mode. But what’s the best thing I can do?

BR

Turn them off completely. That way they will last longer.

 

[podknocker]

Turn them off completely. That way they will last longer.

I think the initial input current and 'shock' with the repeated startup of circuits could reduce their lifespan. I've mentioned something smiliar will car ignitions. Having the engine stop at lights all the time and then the huge current draw every time the engine starts again, can't be a better option than keeping the engine running. I don't have figures for either HIFI or car ignitions, but to me it makes more sense not switching sensitive electronics on and off all the time. I think the old style of light bulbs lasted longer if left on, rather than being switched on and off all the time. Electrical 'wear and tear' as opposed to both electrical and mechanical with car engines etc.

 

[Revolutions]

I think the initial input current and 'shock' with the repeated startup of circuits could reduce their lifespan. I've mentioned something smiliar will car ignitions. Having the engine stop at lights all the time and then the huge current draw every time the engine starts again, can't be a better option than keeping the engine running. I don't have figures for either HIFI or car ignitions, but to me it makes more sense not switching sensitive electronics on and off all the time. I think the old style of light bulbs lasted longer if left on, rather than being switched on and off all the time. Electrical 'wear and tear' as opposed to both electrical and mechanical with car engines etc.

Cars are built to withstand the stop/start. As are hifis.

It would be up there in the top 3 tests of “what will customers do with our product?”

 

[nads]

Mmmmmm had one unit fry itself when left in stand by as we get many micro power cuts, which would power it up. It now gets turned off. Amps seem ok on stand by though.

 

[Gray]

Mmmmmm had one unit fry itself when left in stand by as we get many micro power cuts, which would power it up. It now gets turned off. Amps seem ok on stand by though.

Now that's a good point.
In the past, I've had power cuts - then quick succession on/offs as they've repeatedly attempted to restore supply - fortunately not common - but if there's a power cut - I isolate components from mains, to insure clean repowering.

 

[GSV Ethics Gradient]

I think the initial input current and 'shock' with the repeated startup of circuits could reduce their lifespan. I've mentioned something smiliar will car ignitions. Having the engine stop at lights all the time and then the huge current draw every time the engine starts again, can't be a better option than keeping the engine running. I don't have figures for either HIFI or car ignitions, but to me it makes more sense not switching sensitive electronics on and off all the time. I think the old style of light bulbs lasted longer if left on, rather than being switched on and off all the time. Electrical 'wear and tear' as opposed to both electrical and mechanical with car engines etc.

I always worked on this principle - until I got a smart meter and could see how much current my power amp was using just in standby, and given energy prices at the time and the fact that I wasn't listening as much there seemed no good reason to leave it on all the time any more.

 

[Juzzie Wuzzie]

With winter approaching, I'll leave the pre and power on 24/7 to gently heat the living room ;-)

 

[RobSys]

I asked Cyrus about leaving the Cyrus One amp on all the time... They said NO... This is a bit of a nuisance since there is no stand-by mode on the amp and the power switch is sometimes a bit tricky....

 

[Roog]

The way I look at this is, every thing wears out, including electronics, so I turn mine off after every use. This also reduces the risk of faults causing fires. I have Naim amplification, a company which I believe was at the forefront of promoting the benefits of keeping it on 24/7 and yet even they admit that it shortens the life of components in their equipment.

Time to achieve electrical stability? negligible, time to warm up to achieve best sound? who knows, but I've never noticed any difference and I have tried leaving it on for weeks.

The incandescent lamp argument isn't really valid, its a very non linear load which is barely capable of regulating its initial current drawn, a feature which I gleefully exploited in work project once upon a time.

The amp which fails due to switch on was about to fail anyway.

 

[DiggyGun]

Some manufacturers state to turn off, other manufacturers state to leave it switched on, for example, Naim who state to leave them on 24/7.

Cost of electricity for them does not enter the equation.

DG…

 

[Revolutions]

With winter approaching, I'll leave the pre and power on 24/7 to gently heat the living room ;-)

Been there 😁

 

[podknocker]

The amp which fails due to switch on was about to fail anyway.

But did the amp fail at switch on because of numerous switch ons? An amp can fail at any time, but if it fails at switch on this suggests it was fed up of being switched on all the time. If it's left alone powered on 24/7 is this not a more stable situation for the amp? Has any company kept one of their amps on 24/7 for 5 years next to one that's been switched on and off every day for 5 years? I doubt there is any evidence to support either scenario. I'm careful with the energy use these days, but apart from cleaning, my Audiolab Omnia has been on 24/7 for nearly 2 years. How would I know if this would be any better than switching off when not listening to music, unless I'd bought 2 of them and found out which one lasted the longest? Amps cope fairly well with heat and my Omnia has a 10 year old Dell laptop sat on top of it, blocking all the ventilation and even in summer it never complains and neither does the laptop. I still think switching things on and off all the time causes stress to components, charging and discharging circuit boards and having these undergo frequent resets etc. I can't see anything in the Omnia's manual giving any advice on this subject. Keepimg the thing on means it's always connected to my network and I don't have to faff around attaching the thing to my router via the PlayFi app or Spotify on my mobile. All I do in the morning is unmute via the remote and the music returns. Incandescent light bulbs, irons, heaters, toasters and kettles draw more current when switched on than when in use, as the resistance increases when the internals get hot. The constant heating and cooling are taken into account when they are designed, but changes in current and temperature must cause more electrical wear and tear than something left on all the time. Obviously a kettle will stop drawing current when it's finished boiling, but doesn't a repeated cycle of switching on and off cause more stress to the materials used, especially in more sensitive and delicate electronics?

 

[Gray]

...doesn't a repeated cycle of switching on and off cause more stress to the materials used, especially in more sensitive and delicate electronics?

I think surges mean there is some risk of that.
I believe there was at least one broadcast company that left everything constantly powered up, based on the theory of leaving well alone.

A lot of hi-fi is meant to be left on standby (and certain customisable features often get reset otherwise).
But it's worth remembering that the act of going in and out of standby, is effectively still switching the majority of a components' circuitry on and off.

 

[RoA]

Keeping everything constantly powered on is audiophile foolishness. If you can’t bear to wait 5 seconds until everything sounds as should, you’re in the wrong hobby or have medical issues.