[Amps] Filament life

[Gudguyham at aol.com]

In a message dated 7/15/2006 1:23:13 A.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
rob at sherweng.com writes:

I was in  commercial broadcasting for about 25 years, and filament life 
was an  issue.  What puzzles me, however, is Alpha's recommendation to 
turn  off their amps if one is not going to use it for two hours.   If I  
was going to be operating on and off during a Saturday, for example, my  
inclination would be to leave it on until I was finished operating for  
the day.   Any idea why Alpha says what they do?  




I was also under the impression to leave the filaments running.  One  of the 
first things I did with the many SB-220's I owned was to add a stand-by  
switch so I would not have to shut down the filaments when I did a bare foot to  KW 
comparison report on the air.  I am sure someone could make an argument  
saying that cycling the filaments is not a problem,but it was always my belief  
that if a good step start was not incorporated in the filament supply that the  
constant cycling could eventually cut down on filament life.  it is a known  
fact that 99% of light bulbs that burn out, burn out when they are first turned 
 on, a big bright light for a second, and puff dead bulb!  73  Lou