How much current does the kit draw when left on

What is far more impressive is how much current is drawn transiently when the entire system is powered up simulataneously (like after a power outage, when the electricity first starts to flow again). With my 12 power supplies each demanding high amperage before the transformer coils build up flux, I would guess that 50A is a conservative value. The 20A circuit breaker never fails to trip when this happens.
Back to your original question... I think that each component probably dissapates in the region of 20 Watts when idling. So 100W total would be a reasonable average estimate for a typical system. This represents arouind 2.6 x10^5 KJ. Depending on the local price of a KW/hr the raw electricity cost can be calculated from that.
In my case, with 12 power supplies that will each need recaping every 8 years, that is about 1.5 recaps per year. If an average recap costs $300 then I am looking at an additional $450 in capacitor deterioration costs per year. Or one brand new Hicap worth every three years.

Ron
Dum spiro audio
Dum audio vivo

My 250s and the CDX are always slightly above ambient temperature, I figure they dissipate around 10-20W each based on the ill-considered basis that 60W light bulbs are small, yet too hot to touch, when on. So, empirically... let us say 100W total for the 32.5/Hi-Cap/110/SNAPS2/CD3.5 combo in quiescent mode, that's 100*24*31 for the month, which is around 75KWh/month. Electricity in California is around 12c/KWh (if you're in LADWP's service territory you probably have a better rate) so that's around $9/month. Turning the a/c off for a day in August would save you that much

-John

We mostly use bloke speak on this forum. You need a different language. Try

It costs less to run than the hairdrier you use to keep your hair looking great.

I suppose that over a year it costs about half a trip to the hairdressers so it has to be good value.

Etc.

Regards
Steve

Ron,
It is my understanding that capacitors degrade whether they're powered up or not, so it's irrelevant to count the cost of keeping them powered in terms of the number of recaps. You just have to recognise that it sounds better when warmed up and get on with it.

That said, I often find it can sound a bit more exciting after being powered down for a while - like when coming home after a holiday. Anyone else noticed this effect? Would that mean there's an optimum period over which the system should be left on, after which it starts to tail off? Maybe it's just down to mains fluctuation.

I was, hovever, interested to note the power surge bit. Maybe that explains why the lights seem to dim slightly on power-up!

Keep it warm.
Regards, CB