solid state gear- leave on?


Is it good idea to leave solid state power amps on during the day if they don't make much heat?
samuellaudio

Showing 1 response by gs5556

It'd neither a good idea nor a bad idea. An amp will sound its best when warmed up and ready to go and every second thereafter will not improve things one bit. If the amp requires many hours before being warmed up, then, yes, I'd go for 24/7. If it only takes 20 minutes, what's the point?

There's no problem with leaving the amp on all the time. There's also no problem with turning it on and off as needed. Whether one way or the other results in a shorter life span has, to my knowlege, never been proven. Who knows - the "stress" effect of cycling and the thermal effects of 24/7 operation may be a wash.

If you leave the amp powered on all the time you have to guard against surges. Being away with a thunderstorm in progress and an amp powered on at home is very trying to say the least.