I have a VSX-72 that I am considering leaving on all the time. Does anyone know how many watts it produces on and not being driven vs. off standby. Also, does anyone have an opinion as to whether this is either good or bad for the unit. I have had some concern that turning it off an on engages and disengages the relay that I hear every time it is turned on or off.

I always leave my receivers on. Not very green, though. Their lights will probably wear out quicker that way. I think Yamaha uses some sort of fluroescent bulb and leaving mine on 24/7 has not seemed to wear it out quickly. I think I have replaced one bulb in a unit I owned, and another in one I bought on eBay.

As for the relays, I have never heard of one going bad. I am sure they are rated for 1000s of cycles. I (personally) would not give those a moment's worry.

In over 15 years of receiver ownership, I have had one receiver develop an issue. They are pretty sturdy as they have few to moving parts. In fact modern receivers have eliminated almost every moving part by switching to electronic volume and input selectors.

Page 86 of the VSX72 manual shows 530 watts when on and 0.6 watts when in standby. I'm assuming the 530 watts is a max power consumption figure, but it probably burns at a min of 50 watts just sitting in the on position doing nothing. Just leave the receiver on with nothing playing and touch the top of the receiver after a while. It's still gets warm which means it's burning a good bit of power. Even if it's burning 50 watts that's like running a 50 watt bulb 24/7 vs. the 0.6 watt in standby. 0.6 watt is nothing, 50 watts adds up pretty quick.

http://pioneerelectronics.com/pio/pe/images/portal/cit_11221/268370267VSX72TXVOperatingInstructions.pdf?bcsi_scan_827F89B F90CCCDA4=0&bcsi_scan_filename=268370267VSX72TXVOperatingInstructions.pd f

VSX-72

Miscellaneous
Power Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AC 120 V, 60 Hz
Power Consumption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .530 W, 690 VA
In standby . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Less than 0.6 W