Hi

Im just looking for opinions and any good/bad experiences if anyone can help it would be much appreciated

Im currently looking for some 6 way sockets. I have some new tv/video/audio equipment and id like to make sure its as protected as possible and I also need plenty of sockets to plug them into

Just wondered if anyone has a preference for a surge protected socket? Is surge protection worth it? Do any have guarantees and are they worth the paper they are written on?

Any thoughts on the best ones out there? I am probably in need of half a dozen for my flat as all the others are getting pretty old now (ie green light for surge protection no longer switches on).

Do I need to spend a fortune or should I be fine with the cheaper models

Thanks

most of our extension cords are surge protected.

From experience, when I helped out a friend of the family with their new (Sony) tv a few years back, they found that several times a day it would switch it's self to standby by its self (no Eco shutdown or timer configured). After putting in a 6 way individually switched surge protected extension cord the tv never did a self shutdown again. Maybe this was to do with old wiring in their house (very old) and modern electronics protecting themselves.

The basic surge suppressor 6 way extension sockets from B&Q etc contain a voltage dependent resistor which fails in the event of a large voltage surge blowing a non replaceable internal fuse and hopefully protecting the equipment. The VDR may give some protection against fine voltage spikes caused by washing machines etc as well and may be the reason for their success in post 2. These sockets cost very little extra and in my experience have no down side. Unless you live in the countryside with overhead power distribution the chances of a harmful voltage surge are close to zero. Your existing sockets are probably OK, not sure what the surge lights actually represent or what feeds them but it is possible the lamps have simply failed. The VDR hasn't gone S/C or they would not work at all.

My location does have overhead power cables as well as overhead telephone cables.
Does this make us more at risk then?

From my experience when I lived in a rural area there is a risk during thunderstorms although from what I saw at one house a surge suppressor socket wouldn't have done much as it blew several wall sockets out of the wall. Presumably the overhead cable suffered a direct hit. A near ground strike would no doubt induce a surge and someone I used to know at the end of a lengthy overhead line used to experience noticeable voltage swings that caused light bulbs to fail prematurely. In suburbia voltage surges are very rare indeed although the supply often looks rather dirty on a scope due to all the appliances, fluorescent lights, switched mode PSUs etc.

Surge suppressors give a small extra layer of protection, and 'may' help save things against a minor nearby strike.

It really depends if you think it's worth it or not, as long as it's not much more expensive than a non-protected one then go for it.

I bought my latest surge protected 6way, individually switched, 2m extension cord over the Xmas hols. It seems masterplug who make it and the previous ones I have, recently put up their prices for this specific product. It seemed to be £8 more, whereas in the past the difference was only about £2 more.
Btw, my broadband router is the key important thing plugged into it (along with other less critical devices).

The flaw there is that more damage is done by lightning up the phone lines than down the mains

Some units though have phone line suppression as well?.

Shop around. The last suppressor extension sockets (Masterplug) I bought were from B&Q and on a special offer that made them cheaper than the normal ones. Sometimes cheap at large supermarkets as well. Some I have by them have a phone loop through as well. I have also seen, but do not own, ones with an aerial loop through as well. Can't remember who made those.

They can do strange things to the broadband affecting the snr.