[beat]

surge protection that is!
What is the audiophile solution for keeping lightning from wrecking your stuff? Here in the high desert, weather changes on a dime...and I live up against the mountains so we get closerange lighting a few times a month in the stormy season (now)

[bob82274]

Surge protection for me...

My ears are good (and improving) but they are by no means "golden" (which is a nice thing sometimes).  So for me if there is a tiny bit of noise added I probably won't hear it and I like having my stuff (which I paid good money for) protected.

[bubba966]

I use a pair of Monster HTS 3500's for surge protection, and I use almost all of their other features as well.

I can't say that I heard any negative effects when using them. They improved the sound a slight bit, and the video a bit as well. And after replacing the outlets in one of them (with 20A hospital grade IG8300's) as well as the internal wiring (was 14ga stranded possibly aluminum, now 10ga solid copper) that improved the audio & video quality even more.

So maybe you'll get a little reduction in quality if you use a surge protector, maybe you won't.

But I'd think that a little protection for your gear at a possible sound loss would outweigh the cost of replacing everything if it got fried.

[Ulas]

I, too, live in NM, which has the highest, per-capita incidence of lightning fatalities in the US.

I attacked the lightning problem head-on. I had a full lightning-suppression system installed on the house. It includes numerous lightning rods and spikes on the roof and parapets and an extensive array of interconnected ground plates and rods buried around the periphery of the house. Everything is connected together and to the utility ground at the service panel. Also at the service panel, is a full-house, MOV-type surge suppression unit. For the dedicated line for the stereo I use a 20 amp Brick Wall, which is a series-type surge suppressor. After that comes an Equi=Tech ET2RQ which includes additional MOVs and RFI filters. When the lightning becomes so bad that the utility power is blinking with every strike, I just flip on my 20 KW, propane-fired generator. So far, I've been lucky. I've only lost one modem due to a nearby strike and it was "protected" by an APC surge protector.

I haven't notice any detrimental effects that I can attribute to the lightning protection. I can't A/B the whole-house surge-suppression because it is built in. Ditto the lightning rods. In my system, the Brick Wall is invisible and the Equi=Tech's balanced power is a big plus.

[RussKon]

i applaud ulas in your efforts....

the brickwall unit however would provide all of the protection that you need against lightning!!!

there are three companies that provide series mode protectors that will protect against the highest voltage that can possibly hit your equipment...

www.surgex.com
www.zerosurge.com
www.brickwall.com

for some very interesting reading... check out the the links on the websites above....

i personally saw a surge-x unit take over 50 hits from a surge generator (3000 amps at 6000 volts) and the laptop computer that was plugged into the unit kept right on working....

mov's degrade slowly or they actually explode from a high surge.... NEVER trust your equipment to mov's....

i have a surge-x unit in each of my equipment racks....THE BEST PROTECTION ON THE PLANET...and totally invisible for sonic purposes....

[Ulas]

Russ, My efforts were not so much aimed at protecting the stereo as protecting myself and my family. A large number of lightning injuries and deaths occur inside the house, usually in the kitchen. Points of entry for lethal HV include the telephone, plumbing, and stove vents.

[RussKon]

ulas,

you are right about lightning and its dangers!!!

my remarks are directed at the equipment end since this an audio forum......

proper grounding at all entry points is a very good idea!!!

[jqp]

As for your modem...power surges come in through the phone line as well as the A.C. line. I have lost 2 modems and an answering machine.

Phone lines have current going through them at all times - enough to light up the number keypad, power the earpiece etc. without plugging up to the house A.C. power.

Yes your average surge protector with MOVs is not really a good solution IMHO. They are usually a one-time protection for those strong power surges, and then you can't tell that they are no longer protecting your gear. The dirty little secret of the surge protection industry.