Amp — Leave on or turn off

@rvpiano I think it’s fine to bring up again. Good on ya.

@bigtwin I think score-keeping will eventually fall into the hands of AI modules better suited for thread-summing than those currently employed by Google etc. For now, yeah, it’s still best just skimmed maybe. 😅

These threads can be useful for anyone hoping to check whether an individual poster has a tendency to conflate personal anecdote with meaningful evidence. Plenty of that on each thread like this.

In this particular thread’s case there is a clear answer (best had from the manufacturer): Benchmark can be turned off unless one prefers to be marginally wasteful of energy. The class D amps that power my subs are no different and also have a 15 min auto-standby feature (was required by law for them to be sold in EU as opposed to in US).

I specifically got away from tubes in most of my devices because of the antagonistic relationship of needing to warm up but also having a finite, heat-related lifespan for increasingly expensive tubes.

Only one post mentioned insurance. Check your home/renter/RVauto insurance policy and if an amp-caused burn-down could be considered void due to a manufacturer’s recommendation to leave an amp powered on, then never mind said amp designer and always turn off your amp when not in use. If unclear on this, always turn off your amp when not in use (or at least when you’re not home/awake). It’s amazing to me the haphazard recommendations that will flow out of some folks as though nothing in life is bigger than a hobby of recorded music playback.

Don’t unwittingly make a fire hazard or an insurance claim hazard. Once you know folks who’ve gone through this, you develop caution by virtue of proximity. It’s probably worth heeding more than a pile of anecdotes about how a handful of folks perceive unmeasurable differences in sound based on temperatures they can’t be bothered to record and report. 😉

soix

8,261 posts

02-17-2024 at 09:32am 

“Don’t unwittingly make a fire hazard or an insurance claim hazard. Once you know folks who’ve gone through this, you develop caution by virtue of proximity.”

@benanders  Exactly how many people do you know who’ve had a fire hazard from audio equipment?  It’s probably at about the same percentage as getting hit by lightning.  Using your logic, you should probably never drive a car because you could get into an accident.  Gimme a break with your fear mongering.

@soix  re: your cavalier wording - fear mongering is a phrase best used when there’s a specific divisive purpose; I’m not in the biz of selling turn-‘em-off amps or insurance policies. I’ve no interest in pot-stirring.
Please realize I’m advising against disregarding the common sense that any firefighter or insurance adjuster would be inclined to share. Neither of those professions will likely consider a niche, high-power and high-heat device made for rather esoteric purposes in life to be worth such risk. What I advised was for everyone to know what their insurance policy(ies) stipulates - if it’s not under hifi kit/AV kit (likely) perhaps it’s addressed by a general electronic appliances clause. Like with the on/off-which-is-better-amp argument itself, an insurance policy will depend on many variables. Expecting it to work as a plug-and-play solution to policy holder ignorance is a poor strategy, no matter how unlikely an electrical/appliance overheating disaster may be.

Perhaps I could’ve worded my first reply more explicitly: (1) know what your specific amp manufacturers recommend, and (2) take rec’ that as second-tier in importance to what your insurance policy stipulates. And (3?) do not trust you invariably know what’s best for both (1 and 2) factors for the next person while typing online. 😅 Forgoing knowledge of either (1) or (2)  and leaving an amp on unattended amounts to abandonment of common sense that firefighters and claim adjusters will prefer you to practice, but maybe also know some folks disregard.

Now @soix as to your conjecture above, it may be to your behest to realize one Audiogon poster lost his entire music room when a lightening strike took out the roof of the house a few weeks back, posted about it. Improbable vs. impossible is a relevant discrepancy on the topic of unattended high power amps being on. And for the past decade I’ve lived in a city where public transit is [in most cases] far more convenient than driving a private vehicle. My point being it is best to avoid straw man arguments if you’re unfamiliar with the underpinnings you choose.