I leave my ss stuff on all the time (occasionally unplug if I will be away for a while or threat of severe storms). Improves dynamics and timbre especially on acoustic instruments. Takes my amp about three days to get up to speed. The DACs all behave differently, the Cambridge DACMagic seems to be bulletproof (I have melted a few power supplies, so I am cautious and turn it off), the Schiit DACs I just leave on, no problem with their cheap bur reliable power supplies. Not much current passes through the system when it’s not being used, so electrical draw is a non-issue. I am more concerned about the thermal cycles of turning the components on and off (when I say the DACMagic is bulletproof I mean it seems to be able to handle being turned on and off).Tube gear gets turned off, but they do sound better and probably last longer if left on. If I turn my Odyssey Candela on a few hours before listening it seems to be less fatiguing, but leaving it on overnight doesn’t seem to improve it. Probably wear out the tubes a little faster but I don’t care - they are cheap enough to replace.My advice is to test it yourself. You may not hear much if you are perched on the edge of your seat trying to discern a difference, but if you just listen to your program and make a few notes during and after the session you will notice some trends (musical engagement and lack of fatigue come to mind). Also, check with your manufacturer.
Current line-up:
Source > ss Odyssey Suspiro phono-pre > Odyssey Candela (turn on and off) > Odyssey Khartego > speakers
Source > various DACS that I leave on (except for the DACMagic) > Candela, etc.
Note: I didn’t buy the Odyssey gear all at once. I started with a hot-rodded Khartego, then started adding new pieces as they came up (Candela from the ’gon, Suspiro I got talked into by Klauss). If you can deal with Odyssey (interesting people), you will end up with some really fine stuff without spending a ton of money.
