[eelekim]

Dear all,

I've been using my 14B ST for about half a month. Today I received the bill for the last month and was surprised at the charge! It's even much higher than the peak month last year. I'm curious how much the amp sucks the power.

I found the power consumption info from Bryston website but I don't understand what it means... For example, what does "Stereo 8 Ohms (500W ea.) 2292W" mean? Does it mean that the amp draws 2292W per hour with full 500W stereo output at 8 Ohms?

Please excuse my ignorance and stupidity. I can be called an electronics idiot. Please help. If it's not the amp, I'll ask the electricity company to check my power meter and line.

Thank you very much for your kind help in advance.

Best regards,
mike

[jethro]

Mike:

The 2292 watts is the max power drawn at any moment in time. If you could run your amp full-out during an hour then you have used 2292 watt-hours, or 2.3 kilowatt-hours. Most power utilities charge per kilowatt-hour.

Where I live we pay around $0.10 per kilowatt-hour. Over the course of 60-days, at this price you could theoretically use up to $330 worth of electricity, or $0.23 per hour.

I doubt that the 14B ST is spiking your bill unless you have much higher rates than we do, or very unhappy neighbours.

--Steve

[bsmith15]

eelekim,

Are you leaving your 14B on 24/7?  Even the power consumption at idle will add up in a month's time.  I am not sure how much of a spike you are seeing in your electric bill, and what your previous equipment was, but if your amp is at idle for 20 hours average per day X 30 days it is going to have an impact on your electric consumption.   

[Jason Nugent]

The 14B SST will use 215W just being plugged in and on stand by mode (ie, the green channel lights are lit).  That'll  add up a little bit over the course of a month.  It's like having two 100w light bulbs turned on 24/7.  how much did your bill increase?  There have been times when I've received my bill, figured it was off, and called only to find out that "no, we didn't actually read your meter this time.  We just guessed and will adjust next month".  Drives me crazy.

[Phil A]

Mine is powered on via the trigger from the SP1.7, which also powers on the 6BSST. 

[James Tanner]

Dear all,

I've been using my 14B ST for about half a month. Today I received the bill for the last month and was surprised at the charge! It's even much higher than the peak month last year. I'm curious how much the amp sucks the power.

I found the power consumption info from Bryston website but I don't understand what it means... For example, what does "Stereo 8 Ohms (500W ea.) 2292W" mean? Does it mean that the amp draws 2292W per hour with full 500W stereo output at 8 Ohms?

Please excuse my ignorance and stupidity. I can be called an electronics idiot. Please help. If it's not the amp, I'll ask the electricity company to check my power meter and line.

Thank you very much for your kind help in advance.

Best regards,
mike

Dear Mike;
 
   Thanks for your recent inquiry.  The Bryston 14B SST is capable of drawing quite a bit of current from the wall on peak power demands, but that is normally only a momentary condition. The average power draw of a typical amplifier in a sound system is not far from idling conditions.  The idling power consumption of the 14B SST is approximately 150 Watts, or less than two light bulbs.  That in itself should not raise the electrical consumption of a house more than a small amount.  At 6 cents per kiloWatt hour, it would amount to about 22 cents per 24-hours of running.  That amount would only increase by a small percentage even with extended listening.
 
   I hope the above is helpful, but please let me know if you have any other questions.  Thanks for your support of Bryston audio components.
 
Sincerely,
Chris Russell
Bryston Ltd.

[rosconey]

boy 6cents a kw-im about 17 here in ny with the shipping charge-
we have the highest outside of hawiai i think-

thats why my 4 mono's are off when im not listening

[eelekim]

Thanks for all your reponses! I've checked if the power is hacked or the meter has a problem. I'm glad that there is no such case. The sudden charge increase may be the result of more frequent air-conditioning in the HOT summer now.

By the way, I found that the amp consumes less power than an air-conditioner by checking the speed of the meter wheel. Anyway, it must be one of the big power eaters at home. Therefore, I keep it on only for listening. I guess it's not wise to keep it on all the time in order to keep it in its optimal sonic performance. It isn't worth for the higher bill and faster dying of the internal parts.

mike