Hello,
I just upgraded my Nait XS 2 Amplifier to a supernait 2. I am more than delighted with the improoved sound quality and it is so addictive. I have always left my amplifiers in the past switched on 24/ 7 because I find the music is always on tap and i dont have to wait for them to warm up to sound its best. I am just thinking about how much electricity it is using as its 37VA. Would someone tell me how much its going to cost me every year or persuade me to go green.
So long as you keep the volume at zero when idling, it should be negligible compared to the XS.
At loud volumes it might consume a bit more.
I think 1VA is the same as 1 watt; if so, and assuming you are paying approx GBP 0.15 per kWh, 37VA would cost around ((37*0.15)/1000) x 24 x 365 = GBP 4.80 a year. But electrickery has never been my forte, so I could well be wrong!
E&OE 
Hi @justin65, congratulations on your SN 2.
Your NAIT XS 2 Power Consumption (quiescent) rating was 20VA, your new SN 2 is rated at 10VA. So less than your NAIT XS 2.
The new SN 3 Power Consumption (quiescent) is rated at 37VA, significantly higher, I assume due to Phono stage.
See Product Specification:
NAIT XS 2
SN 2
SN 3
According to Naim, the quoted power consumption of 10VA is incorrect. It’s also 37VA for the SN2 – and in the brochure, one can find that power consumption.
Thanks @Naim_The_Dragon, that’s good to know. They could simple correct the website and save unnecessary confusion.
Just looked at Naim PDF Owners Manual and spec confirms NS 2 at 37VA, and then recommends to refer to Product Spec for full technical spec on website which is wrong.
So is NAIT XS 2 spec correct at 20 VA?
I asked about the SN3’s power consumption after its announcement – wondering about the increase. It didn’t make sense to me that the consumption nearly doubled. I guess I “hoped” it was wrong considering the published consumption of 20VA for the SN2. Unfortunately it was the other way around… I assume they weren’t bothered about correcting the website since it’s a discontinued product. Still it’s not good practice to leave a mistake on their website…
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It all seems a bit of a muddle & TBH I would not trust any of the numbers to be accurate.
My Supernait (1) has published “quiescent” (inactive state) of 10VA. I’ve measured the amp at 12VA, OK not that far out & considering variation in test conditions (my voltage is ~248) & meter accuracy.
But whats the reason for the SN2 & SN3 going to 37VA ?? It doesn’t seem logical to me.
Does anyone with a SN or SN3 have or know someone with a milliamp range AC amp meter
Perhaps more important is how much electricity a device consumes to deliver 1 watt.
An amp does only use the effect asked for so if no signal then it doesn’t matter if low or high on volume pot. Same power usage.
Not exactly sure, but leaving an amp on with no signal with volume at 9 o’clock should have a different quiescent electricity draw than at zero. Perhaps from a different charge to the transformer, capacitors and output devices.
Certainly in the past with rubbish amps I had, if you can hear it hissing through the speakers - that’s more drawn from the mains than if it was silent.
Class A amps tend to draw as much electricity at zero as they do at full volume.
Saying that, I upgraded my Naim XS integrated to a Karan KAI 180 integrated and feared that my electricity bill was going to shoot up through the roof - being sliding bias class A and with a kilowatt + transformer. Alas no change was noted, even though I keep it on all the time.
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