Harm in using a power strip as an on/off switch?

Back in the seventies, alot of popular preamps came with switched and unswitched outlets. It was like having a built in power strip. You plugged your turntable and tape deck into the unswitched ones and your power amp and tuner into the switched ones. This worked fine with 60 and 75 watt per channel solid state gear.

If your power amp is a heavy one, say over 25 pounds, I'd be concerned about stressing the power strip switch by requiring it to switch on the power amp. My house lights dim for a split second whenever I switch on my power amp and it's plugged directly into the wall. So unless your strip is really heavy duty it may make a pretty nice arc (and the resulting pop Marakanetz mentions) just before you close the switch contacts. Over time this flash of lightning will impair and erode the switch contacts. In some applications, like home aircon compressors and automobiles, delicate switches connect more robust relays which have the mass to handle the repeated arcing.

For my money a power amp gets plenty of ventilation, is plugged directly into the wall and in my case (solid state) left on continuously.

Check your owners manual as some manufacturers have allowed for this with switchable power modes. I had a Bryston 4b-SST with a switch on the back for connecting the power to a "switchable outlet" (on/off light switch controling an outlet) and it worked just fine. I had the amp behind a entertainment center and it sounds like you will have a similar placement and power use.

As an on/off switch, theres no issue. You can certainly use the switch on the strip as opposed to the amp. The biggest concern would be the power strip limiting the current of your amp, especially the bigger more powerful current drawing types. I recommend trying an in line power conditioner made by the folks at Virtual Mode. They offer a single component conditioner called the "Clearpower 2" made for amps. It has passive filtration and NO Mov's and incorporates a soft start circut. They are a small Conneticut based company. You can check out their site at...WWW.Virmode.com. The unit sells retail for $175. I just bought one here on Audiogon for $120- and it's great. Exactly what I was looking for as my amp sits alone between the speakers.

Best-
Ken

Some amplifiers have delayed shut down and preamps usually shut down instantly. You may hear loud pop in your speakers.
I can use the master shut-down since I have delayed circuitry in my powerconditioner.

If it is SS. amp, I would leave on all the time unless gone for extended period of time. The on/off of an amp does more damage then good.

Some amps do not have a on/off switch, so........