NP5 - Auto Power Off

[DJKeys]

Plus, all my gear both live and in studio can be turned on and off with a single switch-

-dj

[Hlaalu]

Since I forgot to set the “auto power off” function on one of my last stage pianos (Korg SV2), and the device with the built-in tube ran for many hours after a rehearsal and was almost destroyed, I have now become very careful and appreciate the auto power function very much !

I guess they are starved plate tubes, so they run at a very very low voltage and I really don't think there's much heat to begin with...

[PScooter63]

I'm a retired electronics systems engineer and product designer/manager with 40 years of experience. Leaving a Nord powered on is not something to worry about. Modern keyboard instruments will become functionally obsolete long, long before they are damaged or harmed or wear out by being occasionally left powered on. The lack of an auto-power-off function shouldn't be a deciding factor unless you're buying an instrument that the public might approach and operate without supervision. All modern high quality electronic systems without physically moving parts (such as disks drives or the electric-motor-driven tone generator in a classic Hammond organ) are designed to operate continuously for many thousands of hours without damage. The starved plate tube circuits - used for all tube circuits in the few keyboards that have them - operate at low plate voltage and current and are therefore far less stressed than the tubes in power amps and similar applications, so they won't be harmed by thousands of hours of operation time. It IS good practice to physically unplug any gear from the mains circuit to avoid extreme voltage spikes during lightning storms but auto-power won't do that for you. I suspect that the product design requirements that lead to products with auto-power off functions are based at least partially on governments demanding manufacturers build products with features that help to conserve power. Ironically, the parts on a keyboard that are most likely to fail are its mechanical bits; the keyboard and its moving parts, the control knobs and physical switches, and the instrument's power on-off switch, as well as the extra relay that physically moves that on-off switch when commanded by any auto on-off feature.

[Wolfgang T]

All modern high quality electronic systems without physically moving parts (such as disks drives or the electric-motor-driven tone generator in a classic Hammond organ) are designed to operate continuously for many thousands of hours without damage. The starved plate tube circuits - used for all tube circuits in the few keyboards that have them - operate at low plate voltage and current and are therefore far less stressed than the tubes in power amps and similar applications, so they won't be harmed by thousands of hours of operation time.

The question that remains is why almost all big music brands such as Yamaha, Korg etc. integrate the “Auto Power function” into their keyboards, stage pianos etc., although it is supposedly not necessary in terms of hardware and why has this function become an industry standard in the meantime?

[wtibbit]

Auto Power isn't an industry standard, in the precise meaning of that term. An industry standard is an official guidance from an industrial standards group, such as the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) that sets the standards for such things as power connectors. The IEC power inlet on your Nord is an industry standard feature. But in the more general meaning, "I've seen this feature on a lot or most of the (keyboards, cars, microwaves, or whatever) I see", manufacturers try to match or improve on their competition, so eventually a feature that buyers find particularly attractive tends to spread through the market. Personally, I don't think this is the situation with auto power off. I think it is being driven by pressure from the manufacturers' governments to reduce energy consumption. Here is a quote from the manual of a Yamaha piano with that function: "To prevent unnecessary power consumption, this instrument features an Auto Power Off function that automatically turns the power off if the instrument is not operated for a specified period of time." Either way, I hope you are enjoying your new Nord, Wolfgang. Mine should show up in a couple of months here in the US and I'll join you in the little ritual of manually in switching it off when I've finished playing it!

[Tasten-Bert]

The question that remains is why almost all big music brands ...

I think there could be more than one question remaining. In modern market segmentation there might be room enough for a target group „auto off users“ and beside them also the „non wanters“. I‘ll be in the latter one because of my fear the relay could break and prevent the board from switching on. I‘m very much used to soon after the gig asking the foh whether I‘m muted and then switching all off.

Cheers from Germany