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When to power off a tube amp?

So I just got new tubes for my Lyr and really don't want to damage these tubes and want them to last for as long as possible. So I had a few questions and was hoping you guys could help me, thanks.

1) Should I turn off the amp if I am going to away for like an hour or so? Would that decrease the life of my tubes more than leaving it on that whole time I am not using them?

2) Should I let my tubes warm up before using them? If so, how long should I wait?

3) Is unplugging my headphones before turning off my amp necessary?

And just a random question out of curiosity, what if you use two different tubes in a tube amp? lol.

Thank you guys, any help would be much appreciated.
highrolller

Showing 1 response by swampwalker

swampwalker's avatar
swampwalker
5,138 posts
 
1. General consensus is that for safety purposes, it's not a good idea to leave a tube amp unattended for any significant period of time. In my case, that means if I leave the house, I turn it off.
2. Let 'em warm up if you want, but no reason not to listen if you want to. It can't hurt the tbes.
3. If the amp is has tube output tubes, it's not a good idea to run them w/o a load, i.e., headphones.
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