Naim Superuniti and Power Consumption (WEMO)

I won't give you a definite answer but I can give you some 'food for thought'.

I don't know how benign the switch within the Wemo is to current passing through but it does represent an additional, and complex, connection. I don't know how benign the internal circuitry is to power passing through - but it is located within your equipment's first point of contact with the mains circuit.

You may wish to know what the 'consumption' of the SuperUniti is and compare this with the capabilities of the Wemo. The online PDF manual for the Uniti range gives figures for 'Quiescent', or resting, consumption - and you could have a look. The figure is probably not relevant as the Wemo will also be in-circuit during use.

If you looked at the Product page for the unit you would see a figure of 400VA(max) - this is more relevant.

You should follow the link below to a thread along the lines of your enquiry. Ultimately - you may, or may not, find that the effect of the Wema is nugatory. That will be the subjective judgement with which I cannot help.

My guess is that it would be detrimental.

https://forums.naimaudio.com/to...000#1566878605290000

The basic advice is to leave it switched on. That way, it will sound best and is less likely to fail. I certainly wouldn't trust an expensive Naim box to an automatic switch. Obviously leaving it on uses more energy, which is not good, but you might be able to offset that by getting a load of LED light bulbs for example. 

The SuperUniti uses 35W of power when it's on but not playing any music, according to the reference manual. This is not much and agreeing with HH, replacing only a couple of light bulbs with LEDs will allow you to leave the SuperUniti switched on all the time at the same cost, which is what most people on the forum recommend users to do (and what I do with all my Naim units).

best

David

Thanks all. This advice is more sane than some other threads I've read!

One more thing - I'm left wondering:

If Wemo (and other similar devices) exist, then it must be OK to use certain electronic devices with them (otherwise they wouldn't exist).

So, putting the sound of a Naim device aside for one moment, what makes it 'bad' to use any amplifier with an electronic timer? More specifically, I'm interested in what's happening on an electronic level and why it is apparently frowned upon.

Thank you for your insight

It all comes down to whether you can hear any effect on sound quality from the mains supply.  Naim sell expensive mains leads which Just provide a very high quality connection to what is coming out of the socket on the wall. I'm not into this myself but it is undeniable that many people think it worth paying several hundred pounds per mains lead and say they can (easily) hear the benefit in sound quality.

it seems very unlikely that something that is designed to interrupt the supply under electronic control can do it in a way that doesn't diminish the SQ if you take it as true that using the right connectors and conductors in expensive mains cables increases it.

Apart from all that, Naim equipment works best when it is at its design temperature so leaving it switched on saves waiting half an hour or so each time you want to use it before it sounds right and electronic systems generally suffer more failures at switch on than at other times because the cold electronics and discharged capacitors means big current surges at switch on.

so this all points to connecting the SU to the mains with one of Naim's power cables and leaving it turned on all the time (except during electrical storms and prolonged absences from home).

best

David

Also - why not just turn it on shortly before you want to use it?

Your timer ploy will only benefit you finances by, say, halving the time it is on. 20 minutes on, before you listen, will probably give you nearly as much sonic benefit. In addition, the timer will be switching it on - even when you don't have the time, or don't have the inclination, to listen.

Just turn it on and off manually. It really can be that simple.

Ah, well the answer to that is simple: it would render the streaming feature useless.

if I or my partner want to play music, we should be able to open the app and just play it. (i.e. The device should be on permanently - in the day).

I don't want to have to think about turning it on half an hour before. 

During the night the device should be off. This will benefit my wallet and the environment.

Also note I am not so much interested in the "sonic benefit", but rather why the amplifier may dislike being switched off vs. say, a washing machine.... with which I imagine you will all say is fine to use the Wemo with.

Or just leave it on. There is a reason why the mains switch is at the back

You lot are missing my point

No we get it, believe me, we do.

The advice is: just plug your SuperUniti directly into the wall and don't switch it off. Just make sure you set the display to 'off' when muted.

So... the OP is totally 'new' to Naim and is getting a SuperUniti...? He doesn't understand why the SU should be kept switched on. He wants it to be 'available' all the time, but (seemingly) does want it to be permanently powered...?

Cake and Eat It applies here. If the OP wants it available it should be on - and the easiest, most effective way is for it to be left switched on - as Naim intended. 

Perhaps the SU is not for the OP, as there are aspects of it and Naim generally, that the OP doesnt like....?

dashandblast posted:

This will benefit my wallet and the environment.

If you really want to "benefit the environment" there are likely far more meaningful life-style steps to be taken than reducing 35 watts of power for hi fi on a truncated basis. LED bulbs have been suggested, maybe you've done that and are already minimalistic in your everyday life, but the options are still abound; eat lower on the food chain one night a week, make one less car trip a month, turn down your heat one degree at night, turn up your refrigerator one degree, etc., on and on. Whether running your SU 24/7 or embracing any of my aforementioned suggestions, I doubt you'll perceive any benefits to the environment or to your wallet as you already seem rather conscientious.

In the end, daily on-and-off switching of the SU might result in earlier than normal servicing of the unit, and that procedure could ultimately blow your minimalistic carbon footprint model out of the water.

ianrobertm posted:

Perhaps the SU is not for the OP, as there are aspects of it and Naim generally, that the OP doesnt like....?

Which may be answered by the new Uniti range and its compliance with the newer standards on Standby consumption.

Yes, that's a fair point. The new range might be better - I hunted for figures but couldn't find any.

When it comes down to it though, I'm using the Electronic timer with a myriad of other electronic devices, and essentially wanted to know why I couldn't add the Naim to the mix. Anyway, I think we're done here. Thank you! Looking forward to it arriving now.

Simply - there can be a difference between working and working optimally.

You could run a car on meths (possibly) but it would probably be a false economy.

Naim equipment benefits from the best electrical supply you can give it - optimal socket, plugtop, minimal electrical interference - and yet it will work (within reason) with any configuration which would, for example, spark up a light bulb.

As you say - the rest is silence.

If it is a truly electronic switch it will distort the mains waveform slightly and that's not ideal for audio equipment (but still fine for most other applications, hence why they are sold).

It's unlikely to cause damage to the SU, but may well affect sound quality - Adam is correct.

Thanks Huge