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Background: Monster Cable® Products, Inc. is the world's leading manufacturer of cables for audio, video, home theater, car, computer, satellite, and custom installation. Monster began manufacturing premium speaker cables 21 years ago. Monster has since grown to encompass several different new divisions that manufacture and market a variety of superior quality products including Monster Game®, Monster Power® power conditioning solutions, Entech® audio and video components and Monster Sound® loudspeakers. Monster products have become an indispensable accessory for music lovers, audiophiles, recording studios, sound professionals, musicians, custom installers, computer users and home theater enthusiasts throughout the world. With their entry into the PS2 market, gamers can now expect the same quality cables and surge protectors that audiophiles the world over have enjoyed for many years. Ergonomics: The PowerStation 600 is a nice compact surge protector that forgoes the normal inline power strip look and goes instead for a nice oblong appearance. The main base of the PowerStation 600 is a nice matt black that is seriously contrasted with 6 almost neon color-coded outlets (purple, blue, red, yellow, orange and green). There is a little red LED to indicate your equipment is being protected, a green LED that confirms ground and a lighted on/off/reset toggle switch. There is a nice long, thick cord that is…get this…terminated with gold plated plugs! One thing is for certain; this is one mighty "snappy" looking surge protector. Performance: After we got over our initial pleasure with the "looks" of the PowerStation 600 we decided to actually start plugging some of our gear into this puppy. Now I must say, we here at API are almost fanatical with our equipment. We have our PS2's, TV, receiver, stand-alone DVD player and subwoofer actually connected into a UPS (uninterrupted power supply) device which not only gives us surge protection, but also supplies line filtering and provides us with around ˝ hour of additional play time if the power should so rudely go out. What I am saying here is that we truly believe that if investing in fine gear like the PS2, you would be absolutely foolish to not get a device like the PowerStation 600. As consoles become more sophisticated, they are also more prone to damage by unexpected electrical surges. The worst part is that power surges are far more common than one might suspect. They can be caused by any high power drawing appliance in your house like the compressor of a refrigerator or air conditioner kicking on. These constant surges if left to there own diabolical devices will ultimately over time weaken and eventually permanently damage the sensitive components of a PS2, receiver, VCR or PC. Another big headache can come in the form of a power outage when the house electric cycles off and then on again…this is power surge city folks. It was extremely easy to plug our stuff into the PowerStation 600. The six color-coded outlets are also labeled for convenience (speakers, VCR, Game Console 1 and 2, TV and controller). You can of course plug whatever anything into the outlets. Two of the six outlets are also spaced apart from the rest to accept AC adapters without fear of covering up other outlets. Since each outlet is on a tab, empty outlets can be "slid" off for child safety purposes…a very nice feature. There is even outlets for phone and Ethernet plugs - when the PS2 goes online. The unit itself is rated at 555 Joules which means it can limit and control bursts of up to 6000 volts in less than a billionth of a second. While I would still recommend unplugging equipment when in the middle of a severe lightning storm, if away from home you can rest easy in the knowledge that everything is pretty well covered. Features: · Online gaming protection provides surge/spike protection for phone and ethernet connections. · Labeled for game consoles (console, TV, etc.). · Six Color Coded Outlets. · 555 Joules of surge protection · Child safety outlet covers Reliability: The PowerStation 600 is a nice solid well-made surge protector. The innards are comprised of decent-quality wire, resistors and inter connects. To back up their surge protector not only does Monster tack on a lifetime replacement warranty but they also include a $10,000 connected equipment warranty!! To me that shows a great amount of assurance in their product by Monster and should make anyone that purchases this unit feel pretty damn confident. Opinion: We were extremely pleased with the PowerStation 600. Everything is logically laid out, and the box itself is rather compact and easy to place too. While it certainly isn't going to replace our UPS system, we liked it enough to chuck the existing power strip we had been using for our other consoles and powered front speakers. Personally I feel much better knowing that our DC, PS1 and N64 are much safer now than they have ever been. For the money you will be seriously hard-pressed to find another surge protector in the same league as the Monster PowerStation 600. Couple that with the incredible $10,000 equipment protection guarantee and this is one hell of a bargain. |