Surge protectors--how many $ make sense?

Defense in depth: Absolutely begin with a whole house surgeprotector. It is the cheapest insurance known for everything electric in your home, especially if you lie in thunderstorm prone areas. If you have sub-panels, but one in their as well. Next is your point-of-use devices. Whether you decide to go with a simple quality suege protector, more elaborate power conditioner, or all the way to a battery power generator is up to you and your circumstances.

I would also check out Ting - www.tingfire.com - an electrical arc fault detector. State Farm just sent me one for free. Apparently they can detect 80% of all electrical fires before ignition. I get a monthly email report showing voltage fluctuations, outages, brown outs, and voltage spikes, which is kinda fascinating in a nerdy quasi-paranoid way. But the reassuring note that no faults were found does deliver some peace of mind. They're $99 with a year of monitoring, and include a pretty cool app, if your insurance company won't freebie one.

Given the quality of the rest of your system, I would recommend as high a level as possible. Shunyata good choice. Definitely audition. But a good power conditioner will improve the sound yof all your components other than the amp (directly into outlet). There are isolated reports of a power conditioner not making a difference... very uncommon. Also, consider it a component you may never upgrade as you upgrade the rest of your system. I bought my 75lb power conditioner over twenty five years ago. It remains a core component... and when I have made comparisons... it is still of great comparative value. I’d audition an Everest. You'd never have to think about it again. 

Thanks, Eric. Good point that i should check out whether the power conditioner is also a surge protector. I want both.

David

Thanks, Bob. I will check out the Audioquest, which I know is sold by Music Direct who has sold me a whole bunch of things. I have read many audio reviews where the reviewer is using an Audioquest conditioner. They do get expensive, however. In my mind, $3K is as high as I want to go.

David

@audio-b-dog ,

I would second (third) the recommendation of a whole house surge protector. A licensed electrician can install one at a relatively low cost. And, given that you have a very nice (and expensive system), it makes sense to protect that as well as all the other electronic devices in your home. 

But, if you don't own your home, or don't want to commit to the expense, I would recommend the Audioquest Niagra series of power conditioners. They offer good protection and won't mess up the sound (at least, IMHO).

Bob

I’d go with a whole house surge protector in your service panel to protect all your electrical devices. I’d additionally look into the Furman products for your audio system. I’ve had very good results with this two-layer protection scheme.

I think I am really talking about power conditioners with surge protection.

My biggest question is first and foremost whether a unit has been tested and certified as a surge protector.  Boutique audio "conditioners" rarely are.

Thanks lalitk, I will ask my dealer about an in-home demo. 

“I have no idea at what cost level I should begin.”
@audio-b-dog
RE: Shunyata, Ask your dealer to allow home audition. Pick a mid-tier and another one on top of your budget within Shunyata range, listen and buy what sounds right with minimal coloration. 

I think I am really talking about power conditioners with surge protection. I am curious at what level of price (quality) I would notice the difference in my systerm. My local dealer carries Shunyata and says I would hear a big difference, but Shynyata power conditioners with six or more outlets range from $1,200 to $9,000. When I go in for a demo, I have no idea at what cost level I should begin. Is $1,200 just a fancy surge protector? There is one for $2,900 that supposedly maintains a steady flow of clean current to all six outlets. Truthfully, I have always thought power conditioners were a hoax, but I've read too many reviews that tell me otherwise.

My SC home is 18 years old.  It doesn't require whole house surge suppression vut it was the first thing I dId.  Prior experience plus moving to a lightning prone area made this essential for me. 

+1, whole house surge protection. Given your current system, don’t compromise performance by installing Furman or similar type of surge protection devices. They will choke the life out of your audio system. And they can’t handle high current amp so what’s the point…..

https://www.vhaudio.com/environmental-potentials-ep-2050.pdf

Yep, @erik_squires and there is a 2023 edition with further "clarification" on the subject but it depends, as you said, on the locality. This link purports to identify state by state adoption of the NEC and which version applies: https://www.mikeholt.com/necadoptionlist.php#:~:text=The%20NEC%20is%20adopted%20and%20enforced%20at%20the%20local%20level. 

I don't know (this is where @Jea48 comes in) whether, if the state is stuck on an older version of the Code, a county or city within it can demand that the newer Code edition be enforced within its jurisdiction.

I forgot to mention that on new construction and work done on existing systems, a whole house surge protector is now required as I understand it. 

As of 2020 the NEC requires it, local codes will vary.  Among the things they protect is the house wiring itself, as well as anything else you can't or wouldn't normally put on a surge strip, like fire alarms, GFCI outlets, smart switches...

I forgot to mention that on new construction and work done on existing systems, a whole house surge protector is now required as I understand it. 

Sorry to hear about your loss. Living in San Francisco and Los Angeles I had to pay a lot for real power conditioning.

The absolute safest, and most affordable solution is this Furman with voltage regulation, series protection, and automatic over/under voltage shutoff.

This comes up so often I wrote a blog post with more detail here.

I also wrote specifically about hos a whole house unit and high quality surge protector work here and why you need both.

Basically a whole house unit has a much higher let through voltage than the best surge "strips."  Good for your range, not so much for your laptop or audio/video gear. The manufacturers recommend the use of both.

@whart , @cleeds

+1 on the addition of a SIEMENS surge protection. on the electrical panel.

i did it when I Reno”ed the house two years ago. I moved my “A” system to a new room and ran two new 20A dedicated lines into the new room

unless I go away on vacation, the high-end integrated amp and the high-end streamer-dac both remain powered up full-time according to their manual specs .

The panel solution works like a charm.Highly recommended.

I use a whole house type II (at the main service panel) from Siemens plus on the main system, a surge board in the iso transformer that protects the outputs- 4 gauge to a sub panel that feeds 10 gauge dedicated lines. For most appliances, computers and my vintage system, I use point of use surge protectors. I keep the antique Quad Loudspeakers in the vintage system on constant charge using a Zero Surge.

"Whole house" may not be sufficient (some surges are within the household system and the "whole house" will not address these); in the realm of "point of use," a lot of the conditioner/surge protectors have a sound. That’s where you have to experiment through try before you buy or buy with the right to return with minimal penalty. The Siemens FS 140 is overbuilt, but still uses MOVs and has gone up in price; I used an Eaton before that. There is an "audiophile" whole house by Environmental Potentials that is now about twice the price of the Siemens, have not tried that unit. There are also more industrial/commercial units that can be even more spendy.

My go-to on electrical systems is @Jea48. Others here are also knowledgeable.

If you are looking for true surge protection, I suspect the SurgeX products would fit the bill.  Of course, there are those that would never accept such a "non-audiophile" product.

I suspect on many systems, current limiting would not be an issue and surge protection would far exceed what many "power conditioners" afford.

@cleeds Power conditioners generally provide a level of protection against surges.  Now the power condition could end up being sacrificial, which will bother some because of the price, but it is really hard to protect everything.  I will never put a current limiting device on my amp.

Jerry

Surge protection is a good thing for all the appliances in your house. If your utility allows it, a Type 1 protector installed in your meter panel is an excellent first line of defense. My electric utility doesn't allow use of Type 1 protectors, so I settled on the next best thing, which is a Type 2 installed in the electric service panel.

I have power conditioning installed ahead of my audio components, but I don't think of those units as surge protectors.

A system at the level of yours deserves a bit more than a plain old surge protector. But definitely invest in a whole house unit, they are relatively cheap. For your system, do some research and invest in an audiophile level power system, either passive or active. I have tried the passive route with okay results, but now have dived down the regeneration rabbit hole with PS Audio with very good results. 

You may want to consider entire house surge protection instead. There are commercial/industrial solutions like from Siemens with $75K insurance for 10 years. These are REAL things that WILL protect (Monster never protected mine, it is all lies). And they do not cost $$$ more like few hundred dollars. Talk to a professional electrician.

https://www.siemens.com/us/en/products/energy/low-voltage/surge-protection-devices/residential-surge.html

I am sorry, but I will never again buy any "audiophile" or "home equipment" surge protection. I rather get equipment that is used to protect really expensive professional stuff out there backed with money guarantees. I guarantee you, big recording studio is not using any Monster or anything "audiophile".