There isn’t much in the manual about this… I’m planning to install my P20 in a shelf “cubby” that will give it about 3” of clearance above and 1” below the unit; but nothing on the sides - my shelf width is exactly the size of the P20. I don’t think there are any ventilation holes on the sides, correct?
No ventilation holes on the sides but you shouldn’t run into any trouble here. With the 3" of clearance above, it should be able to dissipate plenty of heat. Unless you’re driving it REALLY hard, the P20 stays surprisingly cool. With what you’re describing, you shouldn’t have a problem at all with it in that shelf.
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Thanks, that’s great to hear. One of the advantages of the P20 is the passive cooling, which is especially beneficial in my setup, as the unit it right above my head.
I run the P5 at 90% of it’s capacity when multichannel audio and video is enabled, so this should drop to about EDIT: 60% with the P20 on a 15A circuit, if my math is correct?
Here’s a photo:
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Living in California, that picture makes me nervous. That’s a lot of weight sitting above that sofa. 
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Yes, about 800lbs to be exact! But the custom shelf was overbuilt and it’s been holding this weight for about 6 years.
Fortunately, where I live there are no earthquakes… but it does get cold!
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I would give the P20 more ventilation than where you’ve drawn it in. You’ll have all your power cables going in there too. At 100lbs, it’s a beast to push/pull/move as well.
It’s certainly something you can keep an eye (hand) on. Drive the P20 like you would for a few hours and feel how hot it gets. If you aren’t able to leave your hand on top of the heat sink for a while, it may be getting a little too toasty.
Thanks @jamesh. I actually only have 2” of clearance above the P20. The height of the cubby is 13 1/8” and the P20 is 11” high.
The width is 17 1/8” and the P20 is 17” wide.
Depth is fine, there’s over 20” of depth so about 6” of “air” space.
I’m running about 900W when everything is on.
What do you think?
The problem is there’s no where else to keep the P20, so if it doesn’t work, I won’t get it.
Thanks!
If there is any concern as to sufficient cooling there are small silent fan options which would keep the unit cool.
I would hate for you not to make the improvement to your system.
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I’m still not terribly concerned. The hardware is able to support 20 amps, so you still have a lot of headroom left. Even if plugged into a 15A circuit, the headroom is still there. As Elk mentioned, I know a number of folks that run little whisper fans to help with circulation.
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My situation is different but may be helpful. Zero room above (a DC power supply will eventually go on that shelf) but open on the sides, front and back. The load is just over 400W. Per powerplay, the temp gets up to around 46 deg C. The side cooling fins feel warm (not hot) to the touch after long listening sessions.
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I’m curious if these units have a thermal cut-out. I wonder if people get too worried about a bit of warmth. I had an amplifier that had the heatsink on top and often reached 60 degrees Celsius or more. If the unit gets too hot, surely it just shuts itself down? Anyone who had the first generation of aluminium iMacs will know how incredibly hot they got and sure a computer is more heat-sensitive than a regenerator.
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They do but I don’t remember the exact number off the top of my head. I remember it being surprisingly high though.
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Great, thanks everyone. What a great forum!
Good to know that there’s a thermal auto-cutoff, so worst case is everything will shut down. If that happens, I will look for cooling fans 
I see that the top of the P20 is solid, so the cooling only comes from the sides and top sides, correct?
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I have several of these (above link) in service. You could employ a Aircom T10 front exhaust smart fan or the S10. Both modelscan be configured to spin the fan only when there is a need.
I’m with @vee on the shelf weight. That would make me nervous.
A neat cost effective unit. Are they as quiet as their specs indicate?
Thank you, I will check out the fans!
Shelf weight - I had a very experienced structural engineer sign off on it.
If built right, a wall stud can hold about 1000 lbs. (in addition to what it’s already holding - i.e., part of the floor above). One screw = 100 lbs (assuming it’s the right length and material).
I think @vee was more worried about gear falling out due to earthquakes…
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I have been using them for a couple of years. If you get close to them you can hear them at moderate speed. They have a smart function so they only rev up at the settings you establish.
At low speed it is audible, but barely. I’ve had a couple of the stand alone USB S2s blower fans wear out. Those are great to stream under a component. My Bryston BDP-2 players get hot. The S2 fans keep them cool underneath. I use a T8 for the BDP-2 in the cabinet, and I don’t use one in my office system where there is better ventilation.
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Thanks!
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I’d still wear at least a hard hat sitting under it. Maybe a Hans device. 
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