Best Home Theater Power Managers

We’ve compiled the best home theater power managers. Creating the best home theater isn’t cheap. Is a home theater power manager worth it to ensure your investment is protected? We think so. We’ll break down exactly what a power manager is and who it makes sense for.

Table of Contents

What Is A Home Theater Power Manager?

Home theater power managers are electronic devices that monitor and regulate the AC power distribution to your home theater equipment. By doing this, a home theater power manager delivers two primary benefits to your home theater. Surge protection and improved performance.

Home Theater Power Managers Provide Surge Protection

Protection from power surges is a critical function of a home theater power manager or power conditioner. While providing filtered power to your equipment, power managers monitor for spikes in power. They also manage the distribution of power to all connected equipment. This allows power managers to physically disconnect home theater equipment during a high voltage situation. That includes things like electrical surges, lightning strikes, or any electrical accident.

Power Managers vs Surge Protectors

Surge protectors provide basic surge protection for your equipment. Most use a metal oxide varistor or MOV to ensure connected devices receive a stable power supply. Surge protectors are activated when excess voltage is detected. This voltage limit is referred to as a clamping voltage. Surge protection does not happen immediately though. There is a delay from the time the excess voltage is detected called the clamping response time. Surge protectors can fail if clamping response times is not quick enough. Some can also fail if they absorb too much power. Many don’t realize surge protectors only have a certain amount of protection rated by Joules. Either type of failure could result in instant or gradual damage to your home theater equipment.

Not all surge protectors are created equal and some aren’t high quality. Home theater power managers can provide more specialized capabilities like Extreme Voltage Shutdown or EVS. Extreme Voltage Shutdown actually removes connected devices from the source of excess voltage. A power conditioner or manager can provide more extensive home theater power management.

Home Theater Power Managers Can Improve Performance

A home theater power manager can also improve the performance of your home theater equipment. In addition to protecting from power surges, it can filter power. This can be a solution to the issue of dirty power. Dirty power has many causes, but the general result is an inconsistent flow of power. This and other electrical issues like improper grounding can deteriorate the performance of home theater equipment. Ever turn on a vacuum and the lights in your room flicker? This can similarly happen with your home theater power supply. Power conditioners can regulate filtered power to ensure more stable power.

Dirty power can increase the possibility of unwanted noise in your home theater system. This can sometimes even be heard through your audio system. Home theater power managers with AC noise filtering can reduce this type of interference. Most power managers use similar functionality to manage power spikes that can negatively impact the performance of your audio equipment from damaging power spikes.

Should I Buy A Power Manager for My Home Theater?

We understand home theater expenses are high enough as is. It can be difficult to justify additional expenses. Do you need a home theater power manager? No. While it’s not a must-have product, proper electrical equipment to protect your devices. How much are you willing to spend on it? Just a surge protector may be enough, but you should not skimp on that either. Power managers for your home theater ensure quality protection for electrical surges and dirty power that can hamper performance. In addition, it also has a number of convenient benefits including easier cable management.