Does it improve matters if you have spare power plant capacity?

[nats]

I was just wondering if you have spare capacity in your power plant does it improve anything as opposed to being on the limit of the capacity using all its power - for example can you shoot longer or charge the shields faster or keep them charged longer? It just seems to me that I do better in battles when I have a some capacity spare but it could be my imagination.

 

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

There are up sides,
I believe that heat efficiency is based on current power consumption, so having plenty spare makes you run cooler.
But I could be wrong.

The other up side is that direct power plant damage will take longer to shut down modules.

 

[h347h]

Depends, when your power plant is shot out you will be able to keep more modules on line with higher total power.

 

[Devari]

I was just wondering if you have spare capacity in your power plant does it improve anything as opposed to being on the limit of the capacity using all its power - for example can you shoot longer or charge the shields faster or keep them charged longer? It just seems to me that I do better in battles when I have a some capacity spare but it could be my imagination.

Generally no, if your ship is running at 80% power or 100% power but you can power all modules when hardpoints are deployed there is no "advantage" to having that extra 20% power reserve. The only possible exception is if your PP is damaged and only putting out 50% power, but in that case you will need to shut down plenty of other modules anyways just to get your thrusters, FSD, etc., running again. The thermal efficiency of the power plant is based on a formula that has some type of "ship factor" and then the thermal efficiency rating of the power plant itself (typically 0.4 for an A-rated plant, plus whatever mods you have that affect thermal efficiency). Generally this means you can often use an undersized A-rated power plant for ships that have plenty of power in their stock configurations, or you can use a full-sized power plant and put an low emissions power plant mod on it to improve your thermal efficiency. I use an undersized 6A power plant on my Python because it has more power than it needs and the smaller power plant saves on weight and also on rebuy cost. My Imperial Courier and Imperial Clipper both use full-sized power plants because the smaller power plant options weren't quite big enough to run undersized plants effectively, but they both have low emissions power plant mods to improve their thermal efficiency as I can have more power than I need for both of those ships.

 

[Faybs]

Only thing that matters once you have enough power is the rating, so what you choose will depend on what you want to do. A-rated power plants run cooler than any other, B are the most armored but heaviest and D are the lightest with the fewest hit points. If you do a lot of fuel scooping or fly one of the ships that tends to run hot, you want the smallest A rated plant that will power your modules; if you do combat you probably want a B rated plant and if you want to minimize your weight for racing you'll want a D rated plant (explorers will want to think about D for jump range vs A for low heat while scooping). C power plants are average and E are the cheapest and weakest. The amount of power a plant will deliver goes up with rating, so A run the coolest and output the most power. They are also exponentially the most expensive, hence "use the smallest A rated plant that will power your ship".

 

[Julio Montega]

I was just wondering if you have spare capacity in your power plant does it improve anything as opposed to being on the limit of the capacity using all its power - for example can you shoot longer or charge the shields faster or keep them charged longer? It just seems to me that I do better in battles when I have a some capacity spare but it could be my imagination.

One simple thing, the less power-total-percentage you use the cooler the ship runs.
Tested that on a python in 2.0 and 2.1, the percentage is quite large a difference when comparing power starved 100% and saving 80%.

 

[Ian Doncaster]

One simple thing, the less power-total-percentage you use the cooler the ship runs.
Tested that on a python in 2.0 and 2.1, the percentage is quite large a difference when comparing power starved 100% and saving 80%.

How did you do the test? Shutting down a module stops that module producing heat, but that's not the same as the power plant producing less heat.

 

[Bacalao]

One simple thing, the less power-total-percentage you use the cooler the ship runs.
Tested that on a python in 2.0 and 2.1, the percentage is quite large a difference when comparing power starved 100% and saving 80%.

That is very interesting and just makes sense, may I ask how you ran the tests?

 

[Faybs]

How did you do the test? Shutting down a module stops that module producing heat, but that's not the same as the power plant producing less heat.

Yep, to test properly you'd need to use the same ship with the same modules and swap out the power plant, using something like the time it takes to get from 50% heat to 100% heat when you enable silent running.

 

[Bacalao]

How did you do the test? Shutting down a module stops that module producing heat, but that's not the same as the power plant producing less heat.

Kinda ninja'd my thought, but if it was a Python it'd be quite easy to run a 6A with a set loadout, cruise around, fire all the guns, boost, whatever and measure the heat and then throw in a 7A with the same set loadout and perform the same actions. I'm assuming this is what he did, but I'm curious as to the specifics.

 

[Julio Montega]

How did you do the test? Shutting down a module stops that module producing heat, but that's not the same as the power plant producing less heat.

That is very interesting and just makes sense, may I ask how you ran the tests?

Test 1:
I simply did uninstall a single module that took power.
You can shut the stuff down, too as you like.
Isinona used the shutting down of subsystems as a great option to stay stealthed.

Test 2:
I compared a maximum sized a-rated pp to an a-rated pp one size lower (less cap, same heat efficiency).
There is a difference of 4-6% basic heat (all mods on, speed zeroed, shields up) comparing an A7 (87% usage) to an A6 (100% and shutdown of excess power use),

[video=youtube;EZfE4XGPQO8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZfE4XGPQO8[/video]

 

[Faybs]

I simply did uninstall a single module that took power.
You can shut the stuff down, too as you like.
Isinona used the shutting down of subsystems as a great option to stay stealthed.
Also i compared a maximum sized a-rated pp to an a-rated pp one size lower (less cap, same heat efficiency).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZfE4XGPQO8

Edit: nvm, I somehow glossed over the second part of your post.

 

[Julio Montega]

How did you do the test? Shutting down a module stops that module producing heat, but that's not the same as the power plant producing less heat.

I hardly think if you zero speed and have everything online,
applying no thrust and don't fire weapons that the heat generated is based on the modules active,
but the actual power draw.

Needs consistent testing, which i did not invest the time into,
as i just wanted to see how my hybrid python with SR did perform heat wise.

 

[Devari]

One simple thing, the less power-total-percentage you use the cooler the ship runs.
Tested that on a python in 2.0 and 2.1, the percentage is quite large a difference when comparing power starved 100% and saving 80%.

The issue here is that there is no heat difference when deploying hardpoints, only when firing weapons as they don't actually generate heat when powered. If running a PP with a extra margin of power usage affected thermal load then why isn't this affected when we deploy hardpoints? The weapons are completely unpowered when retracted and powered fully when deployed, yet there is no base heat change or change in thermal load unless you actually fire the weapons. Simply have the weapons powered, but generating no heat, doesn't seem to affect the thermal efficiency of the powerplant. Obviously turning off a heat-generating module (like a fuel scoop when actively scooping) or an active module that generates a small amount of base heat (such as shield generators) will affect your thermal load, but simply powering a module that is drawing power but is not actively generating heat such as weapons doesn't seem to affect thermal efficiency or heat generation. I haven't tested this in detail in the game but everything I've done so far suggests that excess power has no affect on thermal load or heat dissipation unless it is used to actively power a module that is generating heat.

 

[Julio Montega]

The issue here is that there is no heat difference when deploying hardpoints, only when firing weapons as they don't actually generate heat when powered. If running a PP with a extra margin of power usage affected thermal load then why isn't this affected when we deploy hardpoints? The weapons are completely unpowered when retracted and powered fully when deployed, yet there is no base heat change or change in thermal load unless you actually fire the weapons. Simply have the weapons powered, but generating no heat, doesn't seem to affect the thermal efficiency of the powerplant. Obviously turning off a heat-generating module (like a fuel scoop when actively scooping) or an active module that generates a small amount of base heat (such as shield generators) will affect your thermal load, but simply powering a module that is drawing power but is not actively generating heat such as weapons doesn't seem to affect thermal efficiency or heat generation. I haven't tested this in detail in the game but everything I've done so far suggests that excess power has no affect on thermal load or heat dissipation unless it is used to actively power a module that is generating heat.

In the light of silent running, weapons not generating heat unless fired is a blessing,
as they create now a multiple of their base heat in SR.
The heat however might not be a factor touched when you deploy hardpoints,
but your signature is touched, as you will always appear as an unknown contact (the flickering contact on sensors)
while in sensor range.

Is it time to do a full test of heat and SR again?
I think so, i'd wish for a useful implementation of heat and SR and have NPCs be prone to it aswell.

 

[Kizbot]

I was just wondering if you have spare capacity in your power plant does it improve anything as opposed to being on the limit of the capacity using all its power - for example can you shoot longer or charge the shields faster or keep them charged longer? It just seems to me that I do better in battles when I have a some capacity spare but it could be my imagination.

Depends what your are trying to achieve..

For general combat and missions then as Cosmicspacehead said, having the biggest and bestest PP you can afford will give better heat management and gives you some room to breathe if your PP takes some damage but I think that is it. Whether you are using 50% or 100% of your power supplies capacity I am pretty sure that distributor capacitors (SYS,ENG,WEP) all charge at the same rate.

If however, you are aiming for a cool running explorer then shut off all the modules you are not using and get the smallest PP you can live with to shed the unneccesary weight. Makes a huge difference to jump range and heat production! My AspX idles at about 20% heat and can literally park indefinitly while refuelling at the max scooping speed.

 

[Darius Brinn]

I used a 6A power plant in my Python because it powers everything and has some to spare. More than "some" juice, in fact.

However, as I discovered the first time I was interdicted, 3 Large beams + 2 Medium Autocannons caused a "WARNING: TEMPERATURE CRITICAL" message after 5 seconds of lighting up my opponent.

So I take it that using an undersized power plant is a bad idea if you intend to fight anything. Heat issues. I'm installing a 7A power plant today.

 

[Julio Montega]

I used a 6A power plant in my Python because it powers everything and has some to spare. More than "some" juice, in fact.

However, as I discovered the first time I was interdicted, 3 Large beams + 2 Medium Autocannons caused a "WARNING: TEMPERATURE CRITICAL" message after 5 seconds of lighting up my opponent.

So I take it that using an undersized power plant is a bad idea if you intend to fight anything. Heat issues. I'm installing a 7A power plant today.

From what i tested in the very limited time i invested in this feature,
the pp will not cool off quicker, because heat efficiency is shared along
same rated modules, but the base starting heat will be some percentages lower.

 

[your mom]

if your PP takes some damage.

Heh!!

 

[kdjac]

I would a +1 type bonus for spare power, like the OP I like to have as much Power free as possible.

Kinda knew I go bonus from it but it looks nice having 25% or thereabouts free.