Pass Labs XA-25 on all the time?


My Pass Labs XA-25 stays on most of the day. It does sound its best about an hour after it turns on. I'm thinking of leaving it on all the time. Does this help or hurt the amplifier in some way. I  have a PS Stellar S300 in another system that stays on all of the time. It's a class D amp so it uses very little power at idle . PS recommends leaving it on. It sounds better to me that way. Other than the power consumption, is there a downside to leaving the Pass on all the time? Thanks Larry
cooperjack

Showing 1 response by scothurwitz

hey cooperjack

I own a Pass Labs XA30.8 and I leave it on all the time. There is a reason I do that. Every time I have to unplug my amp or just turn it off for a long period of time I noticed that when I plugged back in again things just didn't sound "right". It's hard to say exactly what didn't sound "right" but I heard it every time. Then it dawned on me.

When you unplug or turn off an amp for a long time it allows the caps and the transformer to completely drain. You do NOT want to do that. I also noticed that when you turned it back on again it took about 3-4 days until everything sounded correct. You have to realize, the Pass Labs amps are pretty much ALL power supply. Mainly the temporal aspect of the music (timing cues) is what was most affected. A lot of people will think you're nuts if you tell them that. If you're worried about your electric bill then shut it off, if you want it to always sound it's best, leave it on. I hear it every time I unplug it. It takes 3 - 4 days for that big transformer and all those caps to fully charge back up again and come up to speed and stabilize. When that happens everything just comes into focus and the subtle timing nuances that the musicians have taken the time to get just right are preserved and audible. It's a fact that music is a time continuum from start to finish. You can definitely hear it. That's why I leave it on all the time.

Scot