Warm-up time for amps and preamps

How long does it take for your system to sound good from a cold start?
I try to keep my system on most of the time. But occasionally I turn it off and it sounds like crap for a good half-hour to an hour.
i know there has been discussion here on the virtue of leaving tube preamps on all the time.
But my solid state amp (modified NuForce mono blocks) technician advises turning even them off occasionally.

Rvpiano,

I would say check with the equipment manufacturer/designer’s recommendation. If your ears tell you otherwise, then go with your ears. I leave my Naim equipment on 24/7 based on manufacturer’s recommendation. From my experience throughout the years, the Naim preamp takes 2 to 3 days to achieve optimal performance, the power amp takes several hours from cold. Most Naim users leave their equipment powered up 24/7.

As for my sources, I switch all of them off when I am done with the listening. The CD player has a standby switch and is warm to the touch when it’s on standby.

Yes, frequent switching on and off in some ways can be more detrimental than leaving the amp permanently on. It depends on what components we are talking about as capacitors or transistors of certain amplifiers can last very long, well over 20 years before a degradation of sound quality is perceived. Naim recommends their solid-state amplifiers to be left permanently on, and the recommended service is every 10 to 12 years for the amplifiers and power supplies.

It may not be recommended to leave tube gear permanently switched on but some solid-state gear are designed to be permanently on without much adverse effects.