Facing the worrying hike in the energy costs over the coming months, although I can wear lots of clothes to keep the heating off in the winter, do I really have to turn my naim boxes (12) off rather than keep them on 24 x 7. Being a much ignored pensioner in the income stakes and having spent most of my savings over the years in keeping Salisbury well oiled, how do I react to this dilema?
It’s tricky to respond to this. I’m assuming you are being tongue in cheek, but you may not be! Anyone who can afford a mega system like yours seems unlikely to be in the unfortunate position of needing to wrap up in jumpers and turn off the heating. Sadly, many will be in this position in the coming winter. It’s always a good idea to give a thread a title other than your Forum name……
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Also, there are numerous threads already on this topic. May be worth reading those.
Add me to the people confused about this post. We don’t know your income and your costs of living. This question is probably best answered by yourself and a pocket calculator.
Also consider that all energy that goes thorough the system ends up as heat
I’ve changed the thread title as otherwise it’s rather confusing.
Really it’s a question that only you can answer.
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I am in similar position. The high end system I bought doesn’t enable me to eat every day unfortunately. I eat once a day, only spaguettis, every 2 days. Can’t even afford to buy some new underwears.
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I console myself with the idea that my Naim is generating heat that I would otherwise have to use another energy source to supply…
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When I owned Naim kit I became concerned for a while about leaving everything switched on. More from a safety aspect than anything else - with my wife and I being out at work all day. I more than once switched off and tried to convince myself that it didn’t make any difference to the performance. Sadly, it did, and very noticeably.
So in your dilema I would say you either put up with the running costs, switch off and accept reduced performance to save money or else buy something else that’s not sensitive to being powered down. Might be something you need to seriously consider in the long term if it really is an issue.
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I’ll tell you what i do.
I leave on my nac282 and its napsc and 2 Hi Caps. And the ndx2 on standby fed with the xpsdr on. ( i get that im not getting the proper smps benefit with the xpsdr). Also my phono stage is on fed with its psu.
But, i turn off my power amp. My power amp is not naim ( long story) and is a uprated MF Nu Vista 300.
This provides me with a resonable compromise. Sensitive naim stuff that likes to be on, but doesnt draw much current. Whereas the grunty and current hungry power amp is only on when listening. Yes, it sounds better after 20mins or so. But after that i cant hear any improvements.
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I used to do similarly, but now both my HiCaps are Off. Only my NAPSC remains On.
I always left the 250 off, just powering it up when ready to listen. Works for me…
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That’s fine until you need a wee, which is even more important when you are a little older.
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That " padding" is made by Tena.
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It’s machine washable, you’ll be fine…
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I always left my humble 92/ 90 switched on
The extra heat this last few days has killed it
It now hums like a very large hummingbird
Thank you Nigel, as always I enjoy your comments. Yes although this is a trite tongue in cheek I am
serious about the issue of conserving my energy bills. Although I have been able to afford to bulid my system built over the years this has been from savings. Now I have to look at my forthcoming energy costs hence the very serious question I posed. Sorry not to have headed the question right… and thanks to Richard for doing so. my computer skills leave a lot to be desired!
I am sorry your confused by my post , although I understand your points, suffice it to say
that as a state pensioner income (you can see this for yourself) and the forecast energy costs ÂŁ4000 plus by January, I am quite capable of looking at my costs without a pocket calculator, the purpose of my question is to ask the forum how they would view the keeping on the 24/7 system or turning off to help save energy costs which must surely ocuppy all our thoughts.
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It’s fine to power it all down, it’ll be warmed up and where it would be if you left it on 24/7 after 15-20 minutes anyway.
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It’s certainly a tricky one, and of course having a very expensive asset doesn’t mean that you have lots of money swilling around. We are on a fixed price tariff until June 2023 so are still paying £110 a month. A jump to £350 would be a lot to find, and that’s for someone who is hardly on the breadline. The whole thing is a nightmare.
In your case it’s really not a problem. Let’s face it, you have an £80,000 stereo. It’s hardly essential. You could sell one of your 555PS boxes, hardly notice the sound difference and pay the bills quite happily. If you were someone living on benefits and literally wondering whether to be hungry or risk freezing to death, it would be a life threatening issue. For you, it’s not an issue and, while you’ve had very traumatic things in your life, you are in a position far more fortunate than most. This is not meant to be harsh, but you are airing a problem that for you is not real. An £80,000 system and worrying about the bills? It’s time to get real.
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That’a’boy Nigel, break it to him gently 
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