Bryston 4B gets HOT. Should I leave it on?

after rereading this thread i realized that i need to add this bit; I had used 4B amps for over 23 years, but within the last year have switched to 7B and 3B and PP120 [witch is ½ of a 3B]

The mind boggles at just the thought of using 8 amps for "two" speakers!

By the way, I take it that the Bryston folks aren't too concerned about a dangerous failure? If it's smoking hot and not supposed to be, I'd worry that it might actually cause a fire, especially if it were left on all the time.

Vetteman: Sounds like you are running something similar to what i'm doing, just in a different manner : )

I've got six stereo amps and am running all 12 of their channels. They are arranged so that each amp runs only one frequency range of one channel i.e. dual channel mono-blocks set up in an active tri-amp arrangement. Due to the multiplicity of drivers, low sensitivity, low impedances and high reactance, i chose this route so that each channel sees a reasonable load. On top of this, i now have twice the power for each channel to "combat" the efficiency / reactance problem. None of the amps are ever strained using this approach. I also remain in Class A operation for most use. This is primarily due to the reduced power levels required resulting from the limited bandwidth of operation that each amp is responsible for. As a side note, all the amps are biased relatively richly and idle somewhere between 130 - 150 degrees at the the heatsink.

To try and put this in English, i have one 2 channel amp running the line array of tweeters on the left and another identical 2 channel amp running the tweeters on right. I have another 2 channel amp running the mid panels on the left and another 2 channel amp running the mid's on the right. I have yet another 2 channel amp running the woofers on the left and another 2 channel amp running the woofers on the right. The signal is split between the two channels of each amp for each frequency range and each amplifier channel then feeds an identical number of multiple drivers.

Due to all of the cabling involved, the system looks like a "cluster" to say the least. I've got 12 speaker cables, tons of interconnects and a power cord for each component. On top of this, i have to have a power cord to run each of the tweeter arrays and mids, adding four more to the list. While i've tried to arrange this as neatly as possible, there's just SO much going on that it really CAN'T be "neat" and keep cable lengths reasonable :(

I am currently working on replacing my electronic 2 channel crossover with two separate mono units and i need to get my dual mono / dual chassis preamp repaired. I've got to talk to John Curl about sending this out to him and do it soon. Once i can get all of this straightened out, i'll be able to have a central rack for all of my sources and two identical racks for each channel consisting of the mono preamp, mono crossover and three amps per side. This will give me the benefit of being TRUE dual mono from the sources back. As it is now, the preamp and crossover that i'm running are stereo units and are located in the central rack with the sources. Sean
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I agree with the previous posts, my Bryston 4b never gets hot even if I leave it on all day. However, the Pass Aleph 3 I auditioned, and the BAT VK200 I currently have both get very hot. Fast!

Turn off your Bryston when not in use and get it looked at when you can afford to.

Good luck!