George Alessandro Asks: Are You Using Your Amp’s Standby Switch Correctly?

The on/off switch controls power to the entire amplifier by switching the line voltage on or off to the power transformer. The power transformer is the distribution hub for the energy inside the amp. If your amp doesn’t have a standby switch, then once you switch it on, all the energy is on inside the amp all at once. This isn’t a good thing for vacuum tubes. They need to warm up before they can function, which is why you get no sound from a tube amp when you first turn it on. Tubes only need about 45–60 seconds to warm up to function, but they do sound different and “better” once they get up to operating temperature. This can take five to 10 minutes, and once you actually start playing the amp and they get cooking, even more time to get that tone!