"Off" vs. "Standby" and tube life

Matrix - thanks for the response. I just want to make sure I am understanding you correctly - are you saying it IS okay for me to put my solid state integrated into standby and then power down my tubed CD player?

I generally keep my system fully powered for several days at a time and then if I'm not going to listen for a while I'd like to power down my tubed CD player but keep my solid state integrated on. My amp sounds better that way.

You can put the amp into standby, or you can mute the amp, or put it into standby or you can select a different input than the CD player before turning the CD player off. The point is that the CD player MAY emit a pulse when it is turned off which you would not want to amplify and feed to your speakers.

Most tube CD player outputs simply use the tube as a buffer. These small signal tubes would probably last LONGER if you don't turn the CD player off. Turning on a tube results in a quick inrush of current that rapidly heats the tube causing stress. This is what causes most of the damage to a tube. I would leave the CD player on all of the time. Also, when you turn the CD player off, the capacitors in the player discharge. It can take a lot of time for the caps to fully charge up and for the player to sound its best.

You'd better "Off"...

Don't ever live tubes on 24/7 or overnight. It realy doesn't matter if the tube will live longer or shorter it I guess matters to you more.

You can rely on circuit protection when the tube goes bad and you don't turn any tube component rightaway. If not you may set up your house on fire.

The safety issue is not limited to tubes. The tube itself won't start a fire, but the failure of the tube could casue other components to overheat and create a hazard. But, that is the case with solid state gear as well. Actual fires from component failure is not common, but I suppose there is some risk of leaving anything on all the time. Unfortunately, I do have to leave my refridgerator on all the time (but not, I suppose, the interior light).

From the Cary Audio website:

4. When is it best to turn my equipment off?

This brings us to an ongoing debate. Which is better-leaving the product on 24 hours a day or turning it on and off? Both will shorten the life of your tubes. So what should you do? The answer lies somewhere between the two. If you listen faithfully for several hours a day then leave the unit on. You do not want to turn it on and off several times a day. This is worse than leaving it on 24 hours a day. If you listen two or three times a week or just on weekends, turn the unit off when not in use. In this case, allow one hour for warm up time. For the weekend listener, turn the unit on Friday and turn it off Sunday night. This will optimize tube life for your amplifier. Preamplifiers and CD players should stay on all the time. The tube replacement cost for these units is considerably less than amplifiers. Most of our amplifiers have a Standby feature. The Standby is there to pre-warm the tubes before operating. Tubes generally last longer if they have only a few minutes of warm up time.

Most tubes will last for many years. Some will fail after a short period of time. As more tubes are being manufactured, the quality is excellent and the life is longer."