Rbwinterlink, in general it is best to turn off your system if you leave home for a few days regardless of the class of operation of your amp. . . besides power consumption concerns for all class A amps and many class A/B amps, there is the issue of inclement weather which can cause power outages, spikes, and worse.
Pure class A amps are -- as far as I know -- always furnaces. . . . as they draw current at the same peak value regardless of what they are doing. . . whatever is not used for making music goes up in heat.
Things become more murky with class A/B devices. Some are veritable furnaces like the Pass X.5 series and my old Rowland 7M monoblocks. . . others run as cool as cucumbers like the Theta Citadel monos -- one of the sweetest amps I have ever heard.
Then there are switching amps -- mostly class D -- that most often run very cool to the touch and have operating efficiency ranging from 85% to 98% depending on manufacturers and models. In most cases these amps have output properties (high damping factor of 500 to 1000) that make them particularly suitable for driving low impedance speakers like Magnepan 3.6. I listen almost exclusively to classical music and my amp is a class D Rowland 312, which runs cool even in the sweltering summers of Austin. . . I couldn't be happier about its sweetness and its power to deliver staging, imaging, detail, and nuance.
Besides power draw from all class A and some class A/B amps, I would not be terribly concerned about the inherent musicality of any class of operation. You will find musically satisfying amplifiers in class A, A/B, and D alike, and at least as many that will put your teeth on edge -- no matter what their class may be.
Guido
Pure class A amps are -- as far as I know -- always furnaces. . . . as they draw current at the same peak value regardless of what they are doing. . . whatever is not used for making music goes up in heat.
Things become more murky with class A/B devices. Some are veritable furnaces like the Pass X.5 series and my old Rowland 7M monoblocks. . . others run as cool as cucumbers like the Theta Citadel monos -- one of the sweetest amps I have ever heard.
Then there are switching amps -- mostly class D -- that most often run very cool to the touch and have operating efficiency ranging from 85% to 98% depending on manufacturers and models. In most cases these amps have output properties (high damping factor of 500 to 1000) that make them particularly suitable for driving low impedance speakers like Magnepan 3.6. I listen almost exclusively to classical music and my amp is a class D Rowland 312, which runs cool even in the sweltering summers of Austin. . . I couldn't be happier about its sweetness and its power to deliver staging, imaging, detail, and nuance.
Besides power draw from all class A and some class A/B amps, I would not be terribly concerned about the inherent musicality of any class of operation. You will find musically satisfying amplifiers in class A, A/B, and D alike, and at least as many that will put your teeth on edge -- no matter what their class may be.
Guido