Question Amplifier that will turn on with input signal

rustyuk

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Guys

Currently have an ageing Linn system, but life and kids mean that i dont get to listen to music any more so im looking to change things up and replace it with an echo. Thing is that i would love to be able to use my existing speakers with some amplification, but my current pre/power amps are hard on or off. Im after something that would auto switch on once it gets a signal from a source, and then turn off again after some period of silent time. Does such a thing exist? Im not looking for anything brand new or massively expensive. Perhaps something nice and small like the old cirrus kit?

Thanks in advance

R
 
Unless you have a 12v trigger and can connect all in the chain up then it's the good old manual switch on. I have the same 'problem' with a Rega amp when using it alongside a receiver.
 
If you're referring to an Amazon Echo, you could get yourself an Alexa controlled socket adapter. Plug your amp into that and use the Echo voice command to switch that on, thus powering up your amp.

A selection...…

Amazon.co.uk: alexa controlled sockets
 
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Assuming you can control volume with an echo, a Linn LK series power amp will switch on/off according to the input signal. I picked up a near mint LK85 of Fleabay for £185 (plenty about).
 
Assuming you can control volume with an echo, a Linn LK series power amp will switch on/off according to the input signal. I picked up a near mint LK85 of Fleabay for £185 (plenty about).
I already have an LK100 (which unfortunately does not support this) and im also not convinced that leaving the echo to control it's own volume would be a good idea. More after an integrated.
 
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I have read the cost of leaving hifi on and not in use is not that expensive.
It would be a shame if you were to spend money and get inferior sound.
Hifi can last longer if left in standby (or on) and not powered on and off.
 
I have read the cost of leaving hifi on and not in use is not that expensive.
Depends... a Class A or tube tube amp can use a significant % as much power at idle as it does at typical listening output. AB (most modern analog amps) is less of a power hog, and digital amps nearly nothing at idle.
If the amp has a stand-by mode, not much power consumed (my A-S501 is listed at 1 watt in standby), but leaving a non-standby amp idling will consume power proportional to it's wattage. Back in the day I used to leave my DC300A (Class AB, 150W RMS/ch) running all day while at work at very low volume to deter would-be B&E artists... until I saw my apartment electricity bill go up by nearly 15%. A cheap radio did the same for a lot less $$$.


Hifi can last longer if left in standby (or on) and not powered on and off.

If you were turning the amp on/off several dozen times a day, may affect longevity, but modern amp life will not be affected much by turning them off/on once or twice a day. And most decent amps now have "soft start" circuitry, so the rationale of avoiding the " damaging surge/thump" by leaving the amp on is no longer a factor.

What MAY negatively affect electronics life is if the humidity in the room fluctuates a lot, particularly if a lot dust is allowed to collect on the circuit boards. It gets VERY humid here in the summer. I worked at a school where they turned off the air conditioning and desktop computers/terminals on summer weekends to save $$. Management wondered why every Monday morning in the summer us computer dep't techs were run off our feet coaxing said computers/terminals/printers to work... of course by noon all was fine, until next Monday. So it wasn't turning the computers on/off that caused the problem, it was when the air conditioning came on early Monday and all that moisture in the air was looking for somewhere to condense... thin-film corrosion on the dusty, cheap board edge connectors was the usual culprit. The trip from the secretary's desk to the workbench usually brought the beast back to life, so the repair techs told us to simply jar the computer/terminal with a fair hit before bringing it in for repair.

Another reason I don't get all oogley-eyed over vintage/classic gear... the new stuff just has less opportunity for those issues to occur.
 

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