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Topic: No ON-OFF switch on Black Box |
Ian Worley
From:
Sacramento, CA
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Posted 22 Aug 2014 11:32 am |
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Maybe this is a question for Brad, but others may have thoughts/comments too. I practice a lot at home through a POD and headphones and I like to use my Black Box 'cause it just sounds better. Problem is, I forget to unplug it, and sometimes it stays on for days at a stretch. Even when I do remember, for me it would be much nicer to just flip a switch to power it off.
Has anyone added an internal power switch, or there a specific reason this was excluded in the unit's design?
It doesn't get particularly hot so I don't suppose it's using all that much power, but is it adding any noticeable wear to the tube and other internal components just sitting at idle for long periods? |
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David Nugent
From:
Gum Spring, Va.
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Posted 22 Aug 2014 12:38 pm
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| Had a similar problem with forgeting to unplug my Hilton pedal after practicing at home. My solution was to simply plug all of my equipment (amp, wall wart for effects, Hilton VP) into a separate power strip and switch it off at the end of the practice session. |
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Brad Sarno
From:
St. Louis, MO USA
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Posted 22 Aug 2014 1:00 pm
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It's a good question and something I put a lot of thought into actually. If there's a switch on it, that's just another thing that can break down over time and something that can get banged and knocked around since the Black Box is kind of a brick that gets tossed around in gear boxes. A switch sticking out is a vulnerability. Fewer mechanical parts, more long term reliability.
But another major reason was that when there's a switch, people are inclined to turn it on and off frequently. That on/off with a preamp tube actually shortens the tube's life, the heat-up, the cool-down, the tiny bit of "cathode stripping". I leave mine on days on end sometimes. I had one on in the studio for about 3 years straight, 24/7. It was still fine after all that time. Also, when you turn on a Black Box, it doesn't sound its best until about 15 or 20 minutes after firing it up. Tubes sound best when they've fully warmed up and all parts of the tube structure have thermally stabilized. So if people find themselves turning it on and off all the time, they're likely to wear the tube out, likely to miss out on some better tones during that warm-up perioud, and also are dealing with a mechanical switch that could possibly need replacing in the next 10 to 20 years maybe.
The simplicity was part of the design for these conscious reasons.
The Black Box doesn't use very much power actually, and it's not like leaving a tube amp on where power tubes are the kinds of tubes you do want to turn off when not in use. And a simple 12AX7 is cheap to replace.
Brad |
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Ken Campbell
From:
Ferndale, Montana
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Posted 22 Aug 2014 7:12 pm So then
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I practice every day and gig on weekends. When i turn on my amp i turn on my black box too via a power strip. Sometime i practice for less than an hour a couple times a day. Should i leave my bb on all the time or eschew its use except for gigs?
Thanks
Kc |
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Mike Wheeler
From:
Delaware, Ohio, USA
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Posted 23 Aug 2014 7:04 am
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Yes, Ken, for practice days leave it on all day. As Brad says, that will reduce wearing the tube due to frequent on/off cycles....not to mention that it only just gets warmed up fully after a half hour.
_________________
Best regards,
Mike |
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Brad Sarno
From:
St. Louis, MO USA
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Posted 23 Aug 2014 7:25 am
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Mine often gets left on in our rehearsal room for days on end, 24/7.
Generally, if I think I may sit down at the steel more than once in a day, I'll almost always keep it on for that whole day so it's on and warmed up whenever I may return.
B |
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