Effect of powering On/Off devices?

[JeffS7444]

Some gear behaves better than others when powered on/off via a power strip. This is what comes out of the unbalanced outputs of a Benchmark DAC2 HGC when energized in that manner:

 

[MakeMineVinyl]

Some gear behaves better than others when powered on/off via a power strip. This is what comes out of the unbalanced outputs of a Benchmark DAC2 HGC when energized in that manner:
View attachment 118834

Does that DAC have a latching on/off switch or a momentary pushbutton on/off switch? I ask because if it has a latched on off switch and you suddenly apply power, the microcontroller controlling the DAC may not have a chance to initialize things properly, thus the spikes in the output.

 

[JeffS7444]

Does that DAC have a latching on/off switch or a momentary pushbutton on/off switch? I ask because if it has a latched on off switch and you suddenly apply power, the microcontroller controlling the DAC may not have a chance to initialize things properly, thus the spikes in the output.

Momentary.

 

[somebodyelse]

Europe is 0.5 W

Except when it's not - network connected devices spring to mind as one allowed exception, but there may be others.

 

[boXem]

Except when it's not - network connected devices spring to mind as one allowed exception, but there may be others.

For me the rule is 'if has an information screen then 1 W standby else 0.5 W standby'. Yes, there are exceptions, but networked devices in general are no more part of these.

 

[MakeMineVinyl]

For me the rule is 'if has an information screen then 1 W standby else 0.5 W standby'. Yes, there are exceptions, but networked devices in general are no more part of these.

The rule we follow, and the one I have to design to, is less than 1 watt, although we're always well under that. I'm reminded of something a fellow engineer once said: 'standards are great - you can pick the one you like best'.

 

[egellings]

Hydrogen is more of an energy transport mechanism than a fuel, since energy (fossil, solar, nuclear) is needed to collect the stuff. You un-combine it from other materials (water, hydrocarbons) using energy and then let it recombine again to get some of the energy back. A fuel is mined and you get much more energy back than was spent in mining it.

 

[egellings]

My understanding is that most hydrogen today is obtained from alkanes stripped of their hydrogens, sort of like picking kernels off a cob of corn.

 

[BostonJack]

This is what I had in mind, am I shortening the life of my DAC by turning if off/on several times a day, rather than letting it idle in standby and slowly suck its 2.4W. And if I am shortening its life, is it going to be by a more significant amount than the exposed risk to surges etc that leaving it powered on exposes it to. Every decision is a trade off!

My best guess is that you are shortening the devices lifetime by a small amount. Emphasis on "small". Power cycling accelerates the appearance of "early life defects" so once the device has gone through, say, 2000 hours of operation the effect of moderate power cycling is probably nil.

2.4 W isn't a lot of power. A "small" acceleration of failure isn't a big deal. I'd say its a matter of personal preference.

 

[mansr]

Power cycling accelerates the appearance of "early life defects"

From that we can conclude that one should power cycle often for the first year or so, while the device is still under warranty. If it's going to fail early, better that it not be a week too late for a free repair.

 

[nimar]

From that we can conclude that one should power cycle often for the first year or so, while the device is still under warranty. If it's going to fail early, better that it not be a week too late for a free repair.

Indeed this is what @BostonJack alluded to in an earlier post

An old system test technique was to power equipment on and off automatically at a period of 2 or 3 seconds. A few 10's of hours of that would shake out as many early life failures as more sophisticated environmental (heat) stress tests. It may boil down to personal preference.

Sounds like its not worth worrying about, and I can continue with my smart plug and the > 80% of people that have voted thus far and turn things off when not in use. I could automate a similar system test to find issues earlier but rather not have to deal with the hassle of the return and will just hope if its going to happen it will happen within the Apos two year warranty.

 

[MakeMineVinyl]

Indeed this is what @BostonJack alluded to in an earlier post



Sounds like its not worth worrying about, and I can continue with my smart plug and the > 80% of people that have voted thus far and turn things off when not in use. I could automate a similar system test to find issues earlier but rather not have to deal with the hassle of the return and will just hope if its going to happen it will happen within the Apos two year warranty.

In my experience, the switch you use to turn the system on and off will undergo more deterioration over time than the controlled electronic components will.