Do you keep your equipment powered on at all times?

[MrBurns84]

15 hours ago, Falcon 500 said:

I think its also important the order equipment is switched on and off to protect speakers/headphones but that is just me.

Yep..same here.  I sequence the start up giving it a min or two before turning on the next piece.

[April Snow]

34 minutes ago, MrBurns84 said:

Yep..same here.  I sequence the start up giving it a min or two before turning on the next piece.

 

May I ask what is the best sequence?

 

I turn my gear off during the week as I live in a thunderstorm prone area & also we do get power spikes.

And I work full time, so not there to turn things off if a storm decides to roll through.

 

On the weekends I leave the Phono stage on from Friday night to Sunday night as I am always playing some wax.

But I still turn the rest off of a night before bed.

 

Through the week, I just let things warm up for an hour ........before spinning a record - so usually play a CD first 

 

 

[ray4410]

2 minutes ago, April Snow said:

 

May I ask what is the best sequence?

 

I turn my gear off during the week as I live in a thunderstorm prone area & also we do get power spikes.

And I work full time, so not there to turn things off if a storm decides to roll through.

 

On the weekends I leave the Phono stage on from Friday night to Sunday night as I am always playing some wax.

But I still turn the rest off of a night before bed.

 

Through the week, I just let things warm up for an hour ........before spinning a record - so usually play a CD first 

 

 

Hi April what you are doing now makes sense particularly as to where you live
as for turning components on and off in sequence generally the rule of thumb is to turn on source components on first then the amplifier be it an integrated or power amp and reverse the sequence on turn off so amp off followed by source components,this is to eliminate any clicks and pops  when powering up and down. 

[sir sanders zingmore]

10 minutes ago, April Snow said:

May I ask what is the best sequence?

The only thing that really matters in my opinion, is the amp 

 

Amp off first, amp on last. That stops any thumps being sent to your speakers  
Order doesn’t really matter for the other components 

 

(edit:  @ray4410 beat me to it )

[April Snow]

44 minutes ago, sir sanders zingmore said:

The only thing that really matters in my opinion, is the amp 

 

Amp off first, amp on last. That stops any thumps being sent to your speakers  
Order doesn’t really matter for the other components 

 

(edit:  @ray4410 beat me to it )

Seems I am doing it right then   *whew*

 

[Cafad]

I tend to utilize standby modes when I can.  Otherwise everything gets turned off when not in use and warmed up for about an hour prior to listening.  Except the Antipodes server, which stays on at all times (but is switched off and unplugged if the chance of a thunderstorm exceeds 10%).

[blownaway]

5 hours ago, ray4410 said:

Hi April what you are doing now makes sense particularly as to where you live
as for turning components on and off in sequence generally the rule of thumb is to turn on source components on first then the amplifier be it an integrated or power amp and reverse the sequence on turn off so amp off followed by source components,this is to eliminate any clicks and pops  when powering up and down. 

correct

[blownaway]

5 hours ago, April Snow said:

Seems I am doing it right then   *whew*

 

it's really not going to make a difference on your gear Sue

 

[muon*]

Off when not in use, on when in use. (switched off at the wall also when off)

 

Start up, with volume down (zero): Transport > DAC > Pre Amp > Amp.

Shut down, with volume down (zero) the reverse of the above.

Edited June 29, 2024 by muon*

[Kirby66]

Innuos Streamer / Server and USB Reclocker on permanently

Gieseler TDA 1541A DAC off when not in use

Grandinote Pre & Power Amps off when not in use

 

Not surprisingly all inline with manufacturers recommendations 

 

ON Sequence ... DAC, Pre, Power ... OFF reverse

 

Warm up ... 30-60 minutes with low volume signal (radio paradise mellow mix)

 

Threat of lightening or away for more than a couple of days - everything off and unplugged INCL. ethernet !!

 

 

[April Snow]

1 hour ago, blownaway said:

it's really not going to make a difference on your gear Sue

 

Actually it does - I have noticed if I have slipped up there can be a pop through the speakers so it is important to get the order right, and I hope the clarification may help others if they read this thread. 

Edited June 28, 2024 by April Snow

[blownaway]

53 minutes ago, April Snow said:

Actually it does - I have noticed if I have slipped up there can be a pop through the speakers so it is important to get the order right, and I hope the clarification may help others if they read this thread. 

OMG

[blownaway]

1 hour ago, April Snow said:

Actually it does - I have noticed if I have slipped up there can be a pop through the speakers so it is important to get the order right, and I hope the clarification may help others if they read this thread. 

I would be worried about that !

 

[08Boss302]

Always power on at wall for all components.

Streamer on always 

Phono stages on always.

DACs on standby

Power amp standby 

Pre standby 

Tube amp off (no standby function) but on at wall.

 

Generally turn things on about 30min before listening.

On..source, pre, power

Off..power, pre, source 

 

On.. Source, tube amp

Off..tube amp, source.

 

*Where subs involved, I turn them on prior to avr

Edited June 28, 2024 by 08Boss302
Spelling

[Bryce1963]

I’m also in the streamer always on club.

DAC, power amp (class A) and sub on standby. 
 

Power up the DAC first, then the power amp.
 

Sequence is reversed for power down.

 

If I have the time it all usually goes on at least 30 mins before I settle in to listen.

[Ittaku]

No

[TerryO]

I always leave the streamer on, other than when storms are around or I’m going away for more than a couple of days, equally so if the DAC or Pre doesn’t have tubes, then they stay on.

If Amps aren’t class D then I turn them off after listening. Mind you most of that is because I’m trying to keep my power bill even a little close to $1k each quarter. 

 

To my ears from swapping plenty of components in and out and doing many long comparisons just about all Hifi gear sounds better after being left turned on for more than 24 hours.
Plus something to take in to consideration is that a number of manufacturers say that their components take up to two days to heat up and settle down to sound their best. 
 

Still each to their own and I also understand why some prefer to only have their Hifi turned on while they are in the room.
Having said that it still might be worth, for those who have not tried it before, to at least once consider leaving everything on overnight and then having another good listen the next day.  
 

You may get a pleasant but potentially annoying surprise. 

 

cheers,

Terry

Edited June 30, 2024 by TerryO

[playdough]

On 27/06/2024 at 4:49 PM, Ehrmantraut said:

There are 8760 hours in a year. That could mean having a unit on for two years continuously might “use up” the life of a capacitor. 

Sounds about right, I get 10 years from a DAC/DSP, usually low voltage supplied DC18v or similar so caps seem to survive,  it's outdated anyway by that time buy in a fresh update. SMPS Amp supplies are the same disposable in all practicality, get better each generation., amps themselves nah, harder to buy parts for and sometimes taken a generation or 2 to find the right set....Heat soaking is a thing,,,

 

Edited July 1, 2024 by playdough

[sloper]

No

And when its on music straight away, knowing its going to sound better in 20mins.

 

regards Bruce

[Gieseler Audio]

Some good advice from Pedja Rogic - Audial - for owners of TDA1541 DAC based equipment.

 

I do not recommend leaving the S5, or any other TDA1541(A) based DAC, on 24-7. This chip is the old TTL architecture, and it will not last very long if left constantly on (its DEM circuit usually fails first, probably after a couple of weeks).

 

 

[Kaynin]

Too many house fires caused by electrical equipment left powered on for me to flirt with danger.  It's on when I'm around and listening, off when I'm not.  It's the same reason why I would never mount a tv on the wall with a flush mounted bracket - the cause of so many house fires.  

Edited July 2, 2024 by Kaynin

[Batty]

No, except anything that doesn't have an on /off switch.

[rockeater]

On 27/06/2024 at 1:02 PM, Falcon 500 said:

Years ago Wadia CD players in their manuals recommended that their players be left on.Years later and a change of staff at Wadia in a email exchange I was advised to keep it switched off when not in use.

This was probably due to fact, that their firmware made laser to travel to the rest position when the CD was not detected (when you finished listening and closed an empty drawer). If you turned the power off before the laser had a chance to move away from under the VRDS bridge, the KSS-151A head would be stuck under the VRDS bridge, and the only way to use the player again, was to open it up and free the head manually. I always told this to people who bought Wadias from me, and it worked well for months. Until they became complacent and  forgot to wait the 15 seconds or so after the drawer closure before they turned the power off.

Later, Wadia used different lasers (first Pioneer's Stable Platter and then DVD lasers for their SACD units) and this was no longer the issue.

 

Although keeping power on might be a thing on some forums, there would be very few electronic engineers or technicians (people who really know what is going on) who keep the power on all the time. This is regardless of unit or what the manufacturers' blurb states.

If your unit is even half decent, power supply will take care of any initial voltage spikes and there is no danger to any components. Most power hungry beasts like power amps have delay circuitry that deals with a second or two of initial supply instability. Source units' supply should be stable in less than a second because currents are very small.

Keeping stuff powered up all the time increases the risk and of damage, should power surge occur or lightning strike were to disrupt your mains supply. 

Electronics warms up quickly (a minute or two normally brings it close to its normal operating temperature) and even units for which manufacturers recommend long warm up time are within the specifications fast.

Years ago, I did a test on a 1MHz Frequency Standard which was to be switched on for an hour before usage.. It was sitting pretty solid on 1 MHz after 20 seconds from turning it on and would not drift from there after and hour or a day or a week.

 

If you do not believe me, look at the people who work in electronics and who have replied to this thread. All the guys that I know to be in the trade, said NO to keeping the power on.

[thatmetalman]

No. If for no other reason than causing the electrolytic capacitors to prematurely dry out (causing their ESR value to rise, amongst other problems).

[Klipscher]

I leave Dac and streamer on. The tube amp and preamp off.