This review is based on a couple of months of use with this product. It was originally purchased to replace a Monster Cable HTS1000 surge protector which I reviewed: http://www.epinions.com/content_154394922628. Here is what I have found out using this product:

Front Panel Appearance-
Very clean and minimalist in design. There are 15 LEDs total, 10 that display the voltage in 5 volt increments from 90-135 volts and 5 what they call diagnostic lights that inform you of the status of things. There is only one push button on the front that is designed to activate the switched outlets.

Build Quality-
First rate. Upon initial inspection you would think that this was a high-quality power amp. The chassis is made of thick metal and not thin sheet metal and has a weighty feel to the overall presentation.

Actual Use-
Initially I did not expect much, this based on my previous experiences using surge protectors. The Panamax actually exceeded my expectations. Video improvements were noticeable. In Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, the scene with the dead king and his army in the cave was rendered smoothly and film-like. There was very little grain in the dark areas of the scene to be found. Likewise, in the movie, the Pirates of the Caribbean, the opening title with the gold coin was rendered with vivid colors against a very black background. Audio improvements were even greater. Listening to Gloria Estefan's Greatest Hits on SACD, instrument placement was more detailed, no sibilance with greater bass impact while Gloria's voice on tracks like ,"Words Get In The Way", were more haunting with greater presence. Even conventional CDs like Natalie Cole's Unforgettable received similar improvements. It is as if there was a greater separation from the artist and the background they were signing from. Overall improvements I would rate as 30-35% for audio and 20-25% for video.

Features-
Four AC outlets are fed through a "balanced L filtration circuit to eliminate EMI/RFI noise on all three power paths L-N,L-G&N-G so even equipment with 2-blade plugs receive clean uncontaminated power. These can be set as either always-on or switched with delayed turn-off controlled by the one push button switch on the front panel. There is a 3-position switch on the back that controls the delay turn-on time from 0, 10 and 30 seconds.
Four more always-on outlets utilize a separate balanced L filtration circuit to provide power for audio/video components requiring constant power.
Two delayed-on outlets for high-current components such as amplifiers and powered sub-woofers, provide clean, filtered power without limiting the current available to the connected equipment which is also controlled by a 3-position switch on the back for delayed turn-on time of 0, 10 and 30 seconds. This is a great feature of those who have power amps that don't have a built-in delayed turn-on or soft power-up as others would describe. This soft power-up protects your speakers from a sound spike that can damage the speakers upon initial power up. Included what Panamax calls is SurgeGate Plus Circuitry. It is a power monitoring system that acts as a gate to prevent unsafe voltages from damaging sensitive electronic equipment. It automatically detects a prolonged over or undervoltage condition and disconnects the power to equipment, then reconnects it when the power returns to a safe level. This special circuitry acts as a gate to prevent unsafe voltages from damaging sensitive equipment.

Included is what Panamax calls SignalPerfect Technology. It is for 2 coaxial- 1 satellite TV & 1 off-air/cable TV lines and 1 pay-per-view telephone line which provides optimized, application specific protection against signal line surges. Also included is a protection circuitry for catastrophic surges. One nice convenience feature is the
DC Voltage trigger input for initiating a start-up/shut-down sequence. This is great to remotely trigger on your power amp if equipped with a trigger input. It uses a 1/8 inch mini-plug. As I mentioned before there are 15 LEDs, 10 which act as the LED Voltmeter which indicates line voltage. Using three different colored LEDs to indicate over/under voltage conditions, green LEDs show you are in the recommended voltage, orange LEDs when you are slightly above or below recommended voltages and red LEDs when you are definitely above or below recommended voltages to operate your equipment. The 5 diagnostic lights are green that show the Switched Outlets are on, the DC Voltage Trigger is on, the Ground is OK, and are red LEDs when the Line Fault and Unsafe Voltage have been detected. There is a 3-position switch on the back that vary the light output of all the LEDs from low, medium to high for viewing pleasure.

For you turntable users, there is even a ground lug to connect your turntable to. On top of the Panamax, they etched in white lettering a diagram which outlets represent what to make it easier for you to correctly connect your equipment to the correct plugs. Lastly, there is on the back panel, one 15A circuit breaker that you can push to reset. Included with the Panamax are two coaxial cables, one phone cord, one user's manual and one warranty booklet.

Specifications-
17.25"w, 12"D and 3.5" H
Weight 14.5 lbs.
Noise Filtration 50dB
Maximum Current Rating at 15A and 1800 watts
Joule Rating of 1790
Response Time of less than 1ns

Warranty-
3 Years for the unit but lifetime for any recommended equipment connected to the Panamax. Coverage of liability is $5,000,000. Other competitors usually cover from $25,000 - $1,000,000.

Improvements-
The only thing I would like to see Panamax offer is a detachable power cord. It would give me the option to upgrade. The power cord is built-in but is of high-quality.

Conclusions-
If you have a high-priced, high-end home theater system, I would highly recommend this unit to protect it. It also has the benefit of improving your audio and video performance as well. I hope this information helped you in your decision if this Panamax product is right for you.

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: Yes