Take the 2-minute tour ×

I guess all of you have a pair/set of speakers for your MP3s. I am just interesting to how do they do when they are not playing?

How actually the power spent by the speaker? Does any the below cases matter?

  • Idle / Silence input
  • When you computer is off / not connected
  • Raise the volume by hardware (turn/push the button on the speaker)
  • Raise the volume by software (do it with your mouse)

BTW, to save the world. I am here to suggest you to unplug it when you leave your PC.

share|improve this question
It depends on whether the people who build your speaker have thought about minimizing power use. –  Christian Sep 5 '09 at 16:33
and of course the power to light up and LED lights they have, IR receivers and that sort of stuff. –  alpha1 Sep 5 '09 at 17:47

1 Answer 1

up vote 3 down vote accepted

With regard to your last statement about saving the world by unplugging peripherals when turning off your PC (or home entertainment center), I suggest you use one of the new green power strips such as "Smart Strip" that are available from many retailers in the United States.

These strips have a sensor on one of the outlets that you plug your CPU into. When you power down your CPU, the smart strip senses this and turns off a select group of other outlets, powering down your speakers, external hard drive, external USB hub, desk lamp, or whatever you normally use when your computer is running. There are other outlets that stay on all the time.

These smart power strips are a very convenient way to save power and they don't cost much more than the dumb power strips. I use one for my desktop computer and I use one for my home entertainment center, where the tuner is the central device. I can power the tuner on with the remote control and the screen and speakers come on automagically. Neat.

share|improve this answer
Not bad, only that the smart power strip itself consumes (some, probably little) power. A power strip with an off switch does the same and is cheaper.. –  0x89 Sep 5 '09 at 16:36
The problem with this, for a CPU setup, is that your CPU clock battery won't last more than a couple of months, and I find the boot error message on low battery to be very annoying. Likewise, if your VCR/DVD is your main component in an entertainment setup. Flashing 12:00 is annoying. A smart strip avoids powering off the main component. –  kwe Sep 6 '09 at 18:59

Your Answer


