Customer Reviews

Monster Cable Home Theatre Powerbar 2100 with Clean Power Stage 2 v2.0

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

At first, I was highly skeptical when the guy at the electronics store told me that the Monster Powerbar would dramatically improve the overall quality of my HT system (55" Widescreen/HDTV, Yamaha HTR 5560 digital reciever, JVC 7-Disc DVD/DVD-A changer, ICBM-1 bass manager, and the good ole VCR all plugged into one power strip). The only reason I was there in the first place was to upgrade my stereo floor speakers. The salesman was so adamant of the value of the Powerbar 2100 that he offered me a $100 discount and a 30-Day no-questions-asked guarantee. So I figured, "What do I have to lose?"

I first tested my new speakers without the Powerbar. Later, I hooked up the powerbar, plugged all of my components into it, and listened again. The difference in audio quality was immediately noticeable. There was enhanced clarity in the mid- and high ranges and the bass was much deeper and more defined. Next, I tried the television picture. Again, the clarity of the picture was remarkable (as was the clarity of the DVD picture).

Finally, I tried radio reception. While there was slight difference in clarity in the FM stations, the AM stations came in CRYSTAL CLEAR, with absolutely zero interference from the TV or air conditioner.

All of this in addition to the enhanced protection from severe power surges. If there was any negative criticism at all, it would be the sheer length of the power stip itself (almost 2 feet long), which is necessary to effectively separate the audio protection from the video protection.

All in all, though, definitely worth the investment!

I bought one of these about 4 years ago along with a pair of high-end speakers. I never really bothered to compare things with and without it - I just plugged all my audio and home theater components to it.

Earlier last month, I got a new Dish HDTV model 622 receiver . I also just got a new HDTV projector last week, the Sanyo PLV-Z4.
The Dish 622 was connected via a 6ft component video cable to my A/V receiver, and the A/V receiver to the projector via a 35ft component video cable from bluejeans.

I was seeing a lot of ghosting in the HDTV picture, especially on text in the DVR menus. On the 106" screen, it was very visible - the ghosting was 2 to 3 inches to the right of each character. But I didn't see this ghosting in the picture of my other video sources, such as my older Dish 921 HD DVR , or my Pioneer DV-655a DVD player; which were also connected via component to the same receiver and projector. I went as far as swapping the short component cables between the 622 and 921 and the receiver, but it made no difference - the 921 picture had no ghosting, and the 622 picture did.

This saturday, I was rewiring things in my system. I noticed that my Dish 622 was plugged in directly to a wall outlet, unlike all my other components. That's because my Monster 2100 powerbar was mounted on the wall, behind the two A/V racks, and hard to access. I hadn't bothered to plugged in the Dish 622 to the Monster powerbar when I got the 622. So, I finally did. And guess what : the ghosting on the component HDTV picture completely disappeared !

So for me, the Monster 2100 made a very noticeable difference. I'm thinking of getting a couple more now. My PJ and the sub in the back are plugged directly into the wall. And my audio recording gear upstairs is also on the wall directly.

This product is useless.
I bought it probably just over 5 years ago.
Power went out for maintenance with my big screen TV plugged in.
A surge blew out the PM board and the capacitors on it.
Dead TV. ~$500-$750 to fix.

Only has a 5 year warranty on any product plugged in.
Even worse. With everything you need to do for a claim and repairs, it will be 2-3 months before I would have my TV set fixed.
After all of that, If I want to get a new TV they will pay "blue book" on my TV that worked fine but probably is worth $100 or less.

DO NOT USE. It will not protect your equipment and their warranty is worthless.

If you have any electronic item of value, then protecting it is a must! Monster Cable has a $300,000 guaranteed connected equipment protection and product warranty on this item against surge pulses! Why buy a PSP (Product Service Plan) when you can get a much better one through product warranty! Plus you get all the other features like "Clean Power", "Power Regulation", 24K gold contact connectors, etc.

I made the mistake of buying the 4-year Best Buy PSP on a $2500 TV for $400! My 4 years are almost up and I just flushed $400 down the toilet! I didn't know about Monster's guarantee until a friend of mine told me about it... and I'll never buy another PSP again!

Electronics Expo is selling these for $120 each plus $15 S&H. At that price I picked up 3! Best investment I've ever made!

In my opinion, it's probably the only powerbar on the market with low, slim profile with 12 outlets that makes power cords really stealth.

Pros:

1) It's slim profile, just 1.5 inch high with plugs facing sideway, not upwards. That means - no dust on the plugs or cords. It's MUCH easier to clean

2) It has 12, TWELVE. outlets. 4 are unswitched and 8 are controlled by the on/off switch. Majority of similar products on the market have 8 outlets. With modern TV setup I at least require 10:

*TV
*AV receiver
*Internet cable modem
*TV pass thru Motorola cable amplifier to fix Comcast signal issues
*Wi-Fi router
*NAS storage, which holds all media for the kids and adults in the house
*HD media player
*All-zone DVD for kids. Unlocked cheap Phillips, but at least I don't care if they kill it someday.
*BlueRay drive for daddy and his high dynamic range high def movies
*Wii console.

3) plugs are facing side way, not upward - it hides all the plugs away from little hands securely

4) Control lights are just enough to provide necessary information without becoming a distraction for kids, and when watching movies in low light condition

5) Finally, I can hide the enter thing under my TV stand. No other product would allow me to do that.

As a surge protector, I hope to never review this side of the product. All I can say, that voltage display is accurate, on/off switch is solid, and powerbar's body - is casted aluminum, which is also a good thing. When listening to the AM radio on my receiver I did notice less hum and noise. But I rarely do that anymore, since we got Sirius with the news channels.

Moster, if you read this - reincarnate this great product and I'll buy another one for my next setup.

After hearing and reading much about Monster Cable and not to mention the great price at Amazon, I chose to go with the Powerbar. I am quite happy with the purchase. The Powerbar is solidly built with attractive and fine finish, and performs no less.

save your money for some real protection for your gear (panamax, furman, etc.). i have a powerbar and during the recent storms in southern california lost my rotel av receiver to a brownout despite it being hooked up to one of these. never mind the bold claims about how these glorified surge protectors will enhance your system's sound and picture. spend your money, instead, on protecting your investment.