Do cold temperatures damage audio equipment?

Somebody once told me that you need to let the equipment warm up to at least 40 degrees before you turn it on. I don't know why that number was picked but that is what I usually told customers. Dan

Somebody once told me that you need to let the equipment warm up to at least 40 degrees before you turn it on. I don't know why that number was picked but that is what I usually told customers. Dan

That's a pretty reasonable guideline. Commercial grade integrated circuits are commonly rated for an operating temperature range of 0 to 70 degC. 0 degC is of course 32 degF, so the 40 deg number allows a little margin.

Regards,
-- Al

I'm gald you asked this..I've always wondered, and frankly I've been more concerned about summer heat. As a result when I've bought new I usually pay extra to have shipped overnight or two day if they drop ship. Like mentioned above it just bothers me to know the gear is sitting in a sweltering warehouse or slow truck when its over 100F outisde with high humidity.