# Need surge / lightning protection



## Mike from Hudson (Dec 8, 2009)

I'm looking for recommendations for surge and lightning protection for my home theater and stereo systems.

What is a reasonable price to pay? I suppose voltage regulation would be nice to have too, but not absolutely necessary. Budget would be up to $500.

Thanks,
Mike


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

Start with good grounding on everything coming into the home, and each must be grounded to the electrical service ground. After that, whole house suppression is good but make sure that it protects all the signal lines into the home. After that, good system level suppressors are available for well under $100. Unless you have a specific problem with power line level being poorly regulated, which is unusual, there is little need for anything more. Look for system level suppressors from panamax, tripplite, etc, and again, be sure to protect every line into each system, such as cable, sat, ethernet, etc.

There are stickies in the Service and Support forums. Most of the information is valid but some of the links to good value protectors may be dated. If you find some more current best buys or want to check them out just post what you find here or in one of those threads.


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## Mike from Hudson (Dec 8, 2009)

Thanks Icaillo - I just saw your mega-thread a few posts down. For a HT or 2Ch system, what would you consider a good surge protector for under $100. I need at least 4 and preferably 6 outlets sockets per system, and I would like cable and phone jack connections if possible.


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

It is hard to beat the Panamax products for protection. Check out their units and compare the specs to other similar products like the Tripplite, Belkin, Monster, and CyberPower. You will likely find slightly better protection in the Panamax for a little more $$, but if you can come close in the others for significantly less you are likely fine with those. I have used the CyberPower units that sell for around $25 and think they are adequate, particularly for supplementary protection at the system level if you have whole house protection at the electrical panel.


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## JBL Fan (May 1, 2010)

I've got a Panamax 5400EX if you're interested..... Let me know...

I'm the original owner - don't have the manual or original box. Ask the guys here if they think it's a good unit or not....


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

The Panamax is a great option. I also recommend Triplite isobars You can find them for un der $100 and offer lifetime protection guarantee on equipment plugged into it.


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

The isobar products are very good but for most systems the isolated banks are not as important as protecting the signal lines, which you don't get until you go to the much more expensive isobars. The Panamax 5400 is a great unit but overkill for most systems.


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## lsiberian (Mar 24, 2009)

I've always used APC products and they are very well built strips. Usually they go for around 20 bucks. It would be good enough for a stereo setup. I'd use a UPS for any computers, lamps, or projectors. 

Lamps sounds crazy, but when the power goes out and you got a battery to give you several minutes of light it can help.


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## Mike from Hudson (Dec 8, 2009)

Thanks everyone - I'll check the tripplite and Panamax web sites and make a selection based on the specs.

Mike


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## Anthony (Oct 5, 2006)

I have a whole house setup from Eaton/CH in my panel.

After that I have a Monster 5000 on one system (it has the best switching/ delay on configuration of my power bricks).

My other system has a Panamax 5400 (not sure of the suffix) and a slightly older version of the 5400.

Quality wise, I like the Panamax units better, but they are a bit lacking in selecting banks to switch on or delay switch-on.

Much as I despise Monster as a company, they did make good on their protection warranty about 8 years ago for me. Amp died, the repair shop said lightning damage, Monster paid the whole claim (about $400 with shipping) with no hassles. So I will give them credit there.


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