CEDIA 2011

SurgeX on a Stick

Darryl Wilkinson  |  Sep 8, 2011

Surge protection is great and – take it from someone whose equipment recently suffered from the effects of a wayward bolt of lightning – really, really, really important. Unfortunately, most of the serious surge suppression components on the market have the bad habit of taking up valuable rack space. SurgeX’s new XC series separates the protection from the plug, giving you the ability to mount a strip of 18 or 24 outlets vertically along the back of your AV rack (or elsewhere) whilst the serious surge-suppressing circuitry (with SurgeX patented Advanced Series Mode protection technology, a remote interface, an Over/Under Voltage Protection LED, a Power On/Off LED, and a highly interactive Self-Test LED) sits separately. SurgeX says the company’s XC series are built to withstand a 6,000V, 3,000AMP AC power surge at least 1,000 times without failing. (They’re probably telling the truth, although since I had to leave after the 965th surge, I can’t say I saw it with my own eyes…) They’re also backed by an 11-year warranty and are built in the USA.

COMMENTS
JustinGN's picture
Submitted by JustinGN on September 9, 2011 - 2:27pm

SurgeX should have gotten their IT guy to wire the demo rack - as a former Data Center grunt, I look at the cords going through loops and the super long power cords, and I just shudder. Any professional installer who wires that way should be fired on the spot, but that's because I'm a perfectionist about rack cabling.

Back to the product itself, it's nothing new really. APC made similar strips for Data Center racks for years, even including IP and RS232 control and monitoring, a digitized readout of Amps in use (so you know when your equipment might be nearing the top of your circuit breaker's capacity...), and 3-phase power in both 120 and 220 volts ranges. Arguably they weren't priced for the end consumer (or even custom installers), but this sort of thing isn't new regardless. What is new is the fact it's from SurgeX and built in the USA with such an extensive warranty. While I would entrust UPS duties to APC kit, I've seen enough performance and protection from SurgeX that I'd definitely make use of them as the first line of defense against rogue electricity.

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