This review is based on three years of experience using this product. I originally purchased this to protect my home theater investment from surges and spikes. First, let me say that the pictured depicted on the Epinions site is incorrect. It is an image of the HTS2000 and not the HTS1000. Here are my findings:

Ease of Use- It is as simple as plugging your devices into the unit. Each AC socket is clearly labeled and color-coded for each device you plan to connect to it. There are only two switches on the unit. The first one is used to turn on/off the switched outlets which are four of them. The second switch which is a push button, is to reset the unit.

Display Lights- There are two green LEDs to signify if the protection is on and the ground is OK. Also, the switch for the four switched outlets glows red when it is on.

Device Plug-Ins and Power Ratings- On one side there are four switched plugs. One each for a TV/Monitor, DVD/LD, CD and Receiver/Amp. The other side which is unswitched, there are four plugs. One each for a VCR, Cable/Satellite, Accessory 1 and 2. There is a bank of three coaxials, each with an input and output for Cable, Satellite and Antenna. Lastly, there is a phone bank for one telephone line. The switched outlets combined are rated for 1500 watts, the unswitched for 500 watts but the total maximum the HTS1000 recommends is 1875 watts. Can't explain the difference. You would think the HTS1000 would be rated for a combined maximum of 2000 watts. I think I am being shortchanged 125 watts here. Maximum joule rating is 1300.

Features- In addition to what I have described above, the HTS1000 has what Monster Cable describes as Stage 2 clean power which helps to reduce EMI and RFI noise in the AC line to provide a better video and audio performance. Included are a set of Monster Cable phone line and coaxial cable. The HTS1000 is attached to a heavy-duty 8 ft. power cord and can be rack-mounted as well.

Video Performance- There was a noticeable reduction in video noise and an increase of video definition no matter what the source was. I would rate the overall increase in video performance as a 20-25% increase. Even high-resolution sources such as DVDs benefited. Blacker blacks and reduced video grain were the results after using the HTS1000.

Audio Performance- There was very little, if any, change to the audio performance that I noticed. After seeing the video performance increase, I was disappointed that the audio performance did not benefit as well.

Protection- My home theater system recently took a surge hit and guess what, the HTS1000 did not react fast enough to protect my modified DVD player. The modified DVD player took a large electrical surge that fried the power supply and fuse protection circuit within the DVD player. Unfortunately, the HTS1000 did not do it's job as intended.

Warranty- Lifetime for the product and protection of your devices. Their limit of liability is $100,000.

Customer Service- Their customer service is excellent. Reported my problem and someone live answered my call on the first ring. They immediately sent me a replacement unit at no charge and issued me paperwork for reimbursement for the work performed on my DVD player. Their customer service is first-rate.

Conclusion- Even though I received a new replacement unit, I decided that since the HTS1000 did not protect my DVD player and the newer surge protectors on the market are now more sophisticated, I opted to replace the HTS1000 with a Panamax Max 5100 which monitors over and under voltage conditions and features a remote trigger for the switched plugs to completely turn them off. As you can guess, I cannot recommend the HTS1000 since it did not perform as designed. I hope this information proved useful in your decision on the purchase of this product.

Associated Test Equipment:
Mitsubishi 45" RPTV
Parasound HCA-1205A 5-Channel Amp
Parasound AVC-1800 Pre-amp
Eminent Technology LFT-IV speakers
Eminent Technology LFT-XII center channel speaker
Martin Logan Scenario speakers
Velodyne HGS-12 Series II subwoofer
Sony CDP-CX240 CD Player
APL Hi-Fi Mod Pioneer 563 DVD Player
Pro-Ject 1.2 Turntable
Cobalt Cable Interconnects and Speaker Cables

Recommended: No