Home Video Asylum

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Re: UPS/line conditioners on HDTV

205.188.196.47

Hi.

You, my friend, are one of the unlucky persons who must select a line conditioner more for its surge protection abilities than its power conditioning abilities. Not that the two are COMPLETELY anethetical to one another, but typically the better a unit is at one job, the less effective it is at the other. The reason for this is that top notch surge protection usually requires a design that LIMITS CURRENT. By passing current through MOVs and other surge devices, surge protectors actually limit the amount of juice your connected components will receive. That's fine for low current devices such as a VCR or DVD player, but not so fine when it comes to high current draw components like power amplifiers and large screen TVs. Limiting current to these devices can dramatically reduce the dynamics of their performance, essentially leaving you with less performance than you paid for. A select few manufacturers have produced non-current limiting conditioners that actually provide adequate surge protection for most people - Chang Lightspeed and Blue Circle spring to mind - but be prepared to pay top dollar for them. For you, I would suggest something along the lines of a Panamax 2000 or a Monster HTS5000. Both units will limit current to some degree (although the Monster claims to have a "high current" amp outlet on the unit) but will almost certainly protect you from even the most severe lightning strikes, et al. and provide adequate system performance in the process. In fact, both units carry a high dollar guarantee on them which insures your equipment from electrical damage provided that they are hooked up to the conditioners in accordance with certain specifications.

My best advice is to look at the high end Chang and the Blue Circle BC85.1 if you have big bucks to throw at this, or get the Monster or Panamax.

Best regards,

Rob



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