Monster hts5100 ?'s

boston1450

Are these worth using & what should i know about this & how does one hook up things to it ? Do i run my Comcast cable coming into the house to it & then to the dvr ? Can i put TOO many cords to it ? I have not read the online manual yet & i take it the digital meter on front is for what power is passing thru it ? Would a certain number detect a warning ?


Im using some other cheesy unit & this & a Pangea AC9se came up local & i traded off a piece of gear i didnt need for them. So im gonna try hooking it up some time this week

Dennis Gardner

That is a great way to start up your system with one switch. It does have circuitry within it to help condition line noise out so that your system can sound better. The voltage meter on the front is nice to have to let you know when you have a drop in power or changes that could affect your gear. They also protect gear somewhat from spikes or surges in power. The only thing that many won't hook through a conditioner is a large amplifier that they like to power directly to the wall.

They are nice units that give a central place to power up your gear. You can plug in each item and control the order that they come on to avoid "power on" thumps in your system.

boston1450

Thanks for info. I have the amp going direct to wall. I have probably 6 other things i can plug into it. I put dvd into back of receiver. When i saw this i thought this might help tame down the issue im having when i turn my tv on-i hear a slight hum in speakers when we watch movie. All other sources it is no issue

Dennis Gardner

That hum may be caused by a ground loop from the TV cable being grounded in a different place than the ground on your wall outlet which is usually grounded at your breaker box/meter housing. Running your TV cable through this unit might take care of it or you may need to "lift" the ground which you might be able to do on this unit or possibly use a 3 prong into 2 prong adapter on the main power plug of this unit.

boston1450

Tonyb said the same thing. I havent tried that yet & wife had me on the go today. That issue will be hopefully taken care of asap. Ive been moving around the HT set up a few times in the last month or so. So its been baby steps & i think its coming along great. Thank you for advice

Dennis Gardner

Glad to help and hope you enjoy that piece. I love having a single place to power my gear from. I use that type of power center in every pro audio rack that I use for my sound gigs.

tonyb

The top number on the dial tells you your line voltage, the smaller number under it tells you how much of that your actually using. You plug everything into it except the amp. It stays on all the time. mainly to protect against surges. You can run your cable thru it, might clean up the video a bit too.

You have the dvd player plugged into the back of the receiver ? If I read that right....don't do that.

As far as the cheater plug goes, try using the Power conditioner first and see if that helps some. If not, put the cheater plug on the receivers power cord and then plug it into the power conditioner. You just need to lift the ground on one piece, not all of them.

boston1450

Ok. Dont plug dvd into receiver. Does that effect ac power from the receiver &or strain on it ?

tonyb

It does put some strain on it, those plugs are really meant for low voltage stuff like plugging in small fans to keep your cabinet cool. Individual pieces that need good voltage/current to sound their best should not be using those plugs on the back of receivers. With a DVD player, your probably not going to harm anything, but it's also not optimal for the player or receiver.

honestaquarian

I have one
Great unit
As you can see the voltage in my bedroom is high even with the stereo turned on.

honestaquarian

honestaquarian

What I like about this unit and the HTPS7000MKII Signature series in the living room is that they allow me to turn on the entire stereo or home theater system by simply turning on the receiver or preamp.

Emlyn

I had one of the signature editions for a few years and liked it until I upgraded to a PS Audio unit. I wouldn't bother running the cable company's cable through one, but would recommend powering everything except a power amp with one. The conditioner throttles the output from a power amplifier based on my experience, and may attenuate the signal from cable a bit. The biggest improvement I saw was the visual clarity improvement when watching DVDs on a big screen tv. The conditioner did its job of shutting off during power surges a few times so was a good purchase.

honestaquarian

I haven't had either problem with my amps or cable company cables running through mine.

boston1450

Ok. We got it fixed. No more HUM after doing what tonyb & others said it went away. It was the tv cord itself !!!!! I dont know why/how. But it is fixed now It was driving me crazy & i didnt want to keep using it till it was fixed (cause i love my crs's) i ended up hooking everything to the Monster unit & running the Parasound straight to the wall. Thank You all for the advice & also feedback on the Monster. I was leary about getting it because bad reviews & i got a wicked deal on it & another Pangea which i always have spots for those. I did NOT have my dvd player hooked to the receiver (thought i did) i have the CS1000p hooked to it. That way when i turn receiver on it comes on & shuts off when receiver goes on. I cant remember if there was a automatic shut off (i will belooking at manual asap) on that beast-it is up high on shelf & to move it is a workout & a half. Time to enjoy it. Ty

Thorton

Awesome. Glad you got everything resolved. Ground loops can be a PITA.

tonyb

Atta boy....a little experimentation and problem solved. Now go rock the walls.

boston1450

Got it all installed & placed on butcher block VS floor/carpet & yes its spiked

honestaquarian

Looks GREAT
Now replace that bloody Comcast box with a TiVo and watch how it BLOWS IT AWAY!

boston1450

Thats not mine & she is ok with it. Tad bit easier than having to adjust the rabbit ears the right direction

gwh

So what kind of surge protection will an amp have if you just plug it into the wall?
Do these Monster units not supply enough juice?
I've been thinking about updating my Monster SP.

honestaquarian

I don't have any problems with my Carver or Sunfire amps. Of course since they have signal tracking power supplies it's not a surprise.

tonyb

gwh wrote: »

So what kind of surge protection will an amp have if you just plug it into the wall?
Do these Monster units not supply enough juice?
I've been thinking about updating my Monster SP.

Most modern transformers can take surges all on their own. Now, I'm not talking about constant brown outs, lightning strikes near by, different story.

The Monster units are good enough for protection against surges, might even clean up the signal a little bit....and I do mean a little bit. PS Audio's entry level stuff is better imho, and I've owned the 5100 Monster.

The Monster is a device that uses MOV's. They get weaker over time and with constant surges. Mine bit the dust when lightning struck about 100 feet from the house. The only thing it didn't save was the cable box....and itself. Once they take on that kind of charge, they are toast after that.

So again, depends on the area your in, if you have constant or just occasional problems with surges and brown outs. Otherwise they are pretty much standard fair and will do the basic job of surge protection.

boston1450

I wish my cable box would blow up. Seriously i hate the F'n thing

boston1450

I like it. I am prepared. I have a stereo & speakers & a good heater in the dog house

honestaquarian

TiVo!!!

tonyb

Doesn't even look like a HD box or their current boxes.

boston1450

That is a brand new box last year from Comcast. It has a remote you talk to & records & pauses dvr unit. HD no idea. There is very little tv i enjoy & when i do have time to watch it-someone else is watching Kardasians or soap opera's. Thats why i have tv i got a wall bracket the swivels near workbench

pitdogg2

boston1450 wrote: »

I have a stereo & speakers & a good heater in the dog house

good to have a good plan B....