Why doesn't every amp come with a stand by switch?I think it's mainly for tube amps.But I use it to change guitars,pedals,ect.Any ideas?
Budget, plus tiny amps snd solid state amps don’t need them.Why doesn't every amp come with a stand by switch?I think it's mainly for tube amps.But I use it to change guitars,pedals,ect.Any ideas?
I've often heard this, I respect your idea, and I don't know enough about SS rectification to comment. OTOH, Merlin doesn't make an exception for diode rectification, and his data on the *total* absence of cathode stripping at guitar amp voltages seems to say that voltage hitting cold tubes isn't actually harmful. I'd need a factual article like Merlin's that showed the *reason* it would matter with an SS rectifier.The only amps that really need a standby switch are tube amps with solid state rectifiers. In these amps, the high voltage comes up as soon as the amp is powered on, and the standby switch keeps the voltage off the tubes until their filaments are warmed up.
LOL Wally, you and Merlin are both people I trust, but I didn’t name you here to make you blush.@King Fan, I appreciate the mention. However, I am nowhere close to being on the same level as Merlin.
They were used everywhere. TVs, radios, amps, lab equipment, organs, tanks, fighter jets....no standby switches.Just think about the extremely high voltages in TV sets 50 years ago. They had quite a few tubes in them and no standby switch.
One of the main reasons we still have tube manufacturing in China, Russia and former Soviet states is because MIG fighter planes continued to use tubes in their radar and communications into the 1980s.They were used everywhere. TVs, radios, amps, lab equipment, organs, tanks, fighter jets....no standby switches.
That is a good reason -- for those that swap speakers live. Wally also mentioned it:If you love your speakers. I'm pretty convinced when i pull that 1/4" jack plug, my speaker coils are thanking me for not seeing that loud transient spike that can occur.
Voice coils are known for giving up the ghost over loud spark-like transients, from dead quiet.
My belief in the practicality of a standby switch on a loud amp.
If you say turn down the guitar volume, think again.![]()
A standby is handy for changing speakers.
I have a 'silent pedal' (Polytune).Seems like a useful thread could be built around design options for a simple mute switch.
FWIW, I don’t *think* Merlin says brief use (like swapping guitars) is actually harmful in terms of cathode poisoning, the real-world opposite of (non-issue) cathode stripping. I think he says the harm occurs with longer (true standby) use. But heck, I now swap guitars with the 'silent plug' on my cable.