Well, folks, I've looked into this Monster business and the story is not pleasant.
First, after discussing the issue at some length with the Monster tech support staff, I must report the folowing:
1. The "tech staff" is actually just a bunch of shipping clerks - they do not know what is inside their equipment. You send a broken piece, they throw it away and send you a new one. Doesn't speak well of Monster's own opinion of their products - they consider them "throwaway."
This was never an option for me - I long ago swapped out the aluminum wire and cheap outlets for 12 gauge copper and hospital-grade outlets. (Monster did not know what "hospital grade" means)
2. Monster's official position, quoted to me by 4 levels of staff, is that they don't repair, don't sell parts, will not provide schematics, will not identify parts. In other words, they prevent you or anyone else from repairing their products, to the best of their ability.
3. The general topology of this device is 2 sections, as follows:
a. A surge suppressor consisting of metal oxide varistors (MOV's 1-14) and series fuses to prevent fire when the MOV's blow up (TF's 1-3).
b. Another, larger circuit board with a number of RFI filters, some of which are controlled by relays and time delays.
I found
http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,1697,1155230,00.asp to be a useful guide to suppressor design and construction. The Monster suppressor section, 14 MOV's on a 2"x4" circuit board, is entirely consistent with the cheapest circuit examined on the web page, except that it has 3 of these cheap circuits - that is, dirt-cheap but will protect downstream equipment (until the MOV's blow up, as they do when subjected to really bad surges).
It turns out that parts selection is pretty easy - MOV's and 15A fuses. I am still researching the value of MOV that I will put in, but that is not a critical choice. One must decide if one wants the MOV to conduct, shorting the surge to ground, at 300, 600 or higher, or some in-between number. Obviously, we want higher than 120, but a low enough value to activate at a reasonable surge - maybe 300V.
In summation,
1. You can expect these sacrificial MOV's to be destroyed during a nasty electrical event. My event was bad enough to trip the power company's lightning devices at the street, and it sure blew up the MOV's in this box.
2. Monster will not help you in any way except to give you a new box - provided your is under warranty. The warranty is no good, of course, if you open the box, say, to replace the obvious junk outlets with good ones.
3. Their is no magic in the box (just in Monster's advertising) and a little research and thought can help you reverse-engineer past the more obvious malfunctions.
In view of the company's attitude towards customer service, their recent history of suing anyone who uses the name "Monster" in any capacity, and in light of the really cheap construction of this product, I really must vigorously recommend that you stay away - far away - from any Monster products.
Cheers,
