Surge protection

I highly recommend Black Lion Audio PG2. My last power conditioner was $1200 and worth every penny, it saved my gear from a lightning storm but got fried in the process. I bought the Black Lion Audio PG2 and it has better features, better SQ and is only 1/3 the price. Check the user reviews:

@jd57 

Do you know where the power surge originated from? Storm related?

You can install a whole house surge protector right at your circuit box.

Surge protectors can be very, very bad for an amp's performance and aren't generally good for low current components either.  Just about all of my important components have custom power supplies.  BTW, many surge protectors will not protect against minor over voltages that can cause bad damage.   

I use a PS Audio PP10. this is a power regenerator (much different than a conditioner or a surge protector).  

If the surge was lightning, then that is an act of good.  Sometimes your best bet is to unplug during a storm.  

If it was a human error you may be able to be reimbursed for your damage.  I work for a utility and it is not uncommon for a utility to pay for damage to refrigerators etc if, for example, 220 volts gets hooked up to a 110 circuit. 

If it was your apartment building's fault they should be held responsible.  You may have to question their explanation to get to the bottom of it.  

The good news is that human errors are often corrected after they happen once so the same thing shouldn't happen again.

Jerry

This is where I went.  Professional install external to the box by my longtime electrician.  Doubtful it is the only solution, but it is a solution.

This is where I went.  Professional install external to the box by my longtime electrician.  Doubtful it is the only solution, but it is a solution.

Sorry for double post, didn't mean to.  Cheers

The best sounding, and best performing for surge protection devices I know of are Furman with SMP and LiFT. I live in a lightning prone area and based on testing done by Wirecutter and my own listening tests I can honestly say I would never run an audio system here without a Furman.  Keep the feature list in mind though.  They make dozens with a variety of combinations of features but the one's you want are LiFT and SMP.

If you were in a home I would also recommend a whole house surge protector in the electrical panel, preferably one made by the panel maker that fits in place of breakers. 

Surge protection does NOT degrade the sound quality whoever told you that is an idiot.

I am past the hearing acuity phase of my life so I am not expressing an opinion on SQ.  But in my years of selling audio in a coastal area prone to thunderstorms I have seen plenty of so-called surge suppressors fail to protect from surges. Popular brands like Panamax and Monster in particular…the ones that rarely ever failed were from Surge-X. Recently, Audioquest has been effective.  Furman is now  co-owned with Panamax, but I don’t think their technology is identical.

@crustycoot  - Panamax does have some units (but certainly not all) which have SMP and LiFT from Furman. 

Just to be sure people understand this:

Whole house surge protection is important BUT they have high clamping voltages.  All makers and the NEC recommend you use them in addition to point of use protection for sensitive equipment.

I too have been a crusader for Tripp Lite’s Isobar Ultra series for over 20 years now, and I’ll tell you why. Even though I incorporate them in my home audio system’s (mainly from my experience in the professional field); in my professional radio broadcast applications, where on-site broadcast towers can be struck by lightning sometimes 20 times a year (sending lightning strike discharge currents into the AC system), and two to three annual AC utility neighborhood outages are typical (requiring generator power switchovers) in our broadcast buildings, my broadcast studios required dependable surge protection. I found that in the Tripp Lite Isobar Ultra series. In all of the hundreds of these units that I’ve purchased over the years, never once did I have one fail on me, while at the same time protecting all of the equipment plugged into them. Compared to the hundreds of thousands of dollars of equipment they hourly protect; I’ve determined that they’re fully capable of front-line combat duty. They are considered point of use protection, while the buildings themselves also utilize whole building surge supressors at the utility power entrance.

From an audio standpoint, I feel they really do the job there too. Placing them at home on inductive sources like refrigerators, dehumidifiers, and my furnace; they have filtered out all of the pops and clicks I would normally hear on my audio system when those devices would turn ON and OFF. Current liming? Not from what my ears tell me. I even trust them on my power amps. Current limiting? I’ve seen thousands of amps of power discharge through small 24 AWG telephone wires from lightning strikes, and those wires still not vaporize. Because of that, I’m not sure any wire is current limiting.

Tripp Lite Isobar Ultra 4-Outlet Surge Protector

I totally agree with erik_squires and dpop .

I had my system connected to a Tripp-Lite when the neutral wire to my building broke sending 240 volts into my building , burning out 2 refrigerators , exploding light bulbs and taking out the Tripp-Lite which saved my system from any damage .

I now have almost everything in my house connected to a Tripp-Lite Ultra ,  but I still have the amp connected directly into the wall due to the current rating of the TLU.

I know battery back up is not a replacement for surge protection, but does anyone use UPS for their low power equipment, such as dac and streamer, or CD/DVD player? I use one for my router and modem in a different room have had improved reliability, likely to to less brownouts which are more common where I am at. The unit says surge suppression, but not sure if it works well for that. I don’t think I have many surges.

This is what I use for surge suppression (not UPS). No issues, but like I said, not a lot of surges that I know if in my area.

@12many  I would expect the inverters in cheap battery backups to be noisy

does anyone use UPS for their low power equipment, such as dac and streamer, or CD/DVD player?

I do, and it’s a double-conversion 1500 VA UPS (always on battery power, with zero transfer time).

SmartOnline 120V 1.5kVA 1.35kW Double-Conversion UPS, Tower

Even though this UPS incorporates surge protection in its design, I have placed a Tripp Lite Isobar Ultra before it, along with a Furman PM-8 Series II Voltage/Current monitor (with Series Mode Protection - SMP) after that (to protect the electronics in the UPS). Those two devices in series then feed the UPS. I’m all about protecting my gear as much as possible. Post UPS; two balanced AC transformers then take that UPS power, and convert it to balanced AC.

I would expect the inverters in cheap battery backups to be noisy

If you’re referring to AC THD; when I owned a Fluke 43b Power Quality Analyzer, with nothing plugged into the UPS, the THD was 0.0%, with a perfect 60 Hz waveform. It just doesn’t get any better than that (as far as I know). As gear was plugged into the UPS, the THD did rise, but never exceeded 2%. If you were referring to physical audible UPS noise, well then yes, there is some of that, so in my case, it is located out of my listening area.

I recommend the Furman PST-8 line. Tested by Wirecutter and the let through voltage is low.

I had a different Furman unit a while ago (an M-8, I believe) and it seemed to have protected my equipment while I was away on vacation. Came back to find the 'Extreme Voltage' LED was lit and the unit was off. Once I reset it, all the connected equipment powered on as normal.

@vair68robert

I now have almost everything in my house connected to a Tripp-Lite Ultra

You’re one of the smart ones.

but I still have the amp connected directly into the wall due to the current rating of the TLU.

Keep in mind, that TLU current rating is meant for continuous duty and short circuit protection. If your amp is pulling intermittent peaks of 30 amps or more, that stuff passes right through almost all electrical devices, as it’s considered in-rush current (why audiophiles spend hundreds and thousands of $$ on exotic wall outlets and power cables, I’ll never comprehend). Your refrigerator or washing machine might momentarily thirst for 30-40 amps of in-rush current when they switch on. Normal home circuit breakers ignore that, as does the TLU.

Furman

...another trusted manufacturer when it comes to surge protection.

Came back to find the 'Extreme Voltage' LED was lit and the unit was off. Once I reset it, all the connected equipment powered on as normal.

Glad to hear it did it's job, and probably paid for itself right then and there many times over.

Wirecutter claims the Furman is the best they tried. Where is the list?  I. see mostly cheap strips.

I traded in my Furman and got a ZeroSurge. Easy to put an audiophile outlet in it.

I purchased a couple of the PST-8 units earlier this year and they sound fine.

However, when researching them asking prices were all over map.

I purchased 2 units for around $200/shipped while some venders listed single units in the $200-$240 range.

I also use Monster HTS-2000's from way back (a sleeper in that they sound better than their higher up units of the time).

For non-HiFi stuff I use the following which are surge protection only (living in Los Angeles I surge protect everything except the toaster, the fridge and incandescent lighting).

DeKay

@yage

I've had the Furman Extreme Voltage trip happen from brown outs.  It's a good thing. 

@fuzztone - Furman makes a very wide range of surge strips and conditioners.  You can go from my blog post to find more details but to get the Wirecutter performance you need SMP and LiFT.