The lowly power strip

[MultiScaleMale]

I generally just use whatever cheapo power strip I have and make do, but last night I forgot to load a power strip and I thought I 'd just grab one to leave in the car and then I never forget it. But, since I'm looking at them on Amazon and they have hundreds, I might as well find the ideal one for me.

1) Just a power strip for me, I don't need to provide power to the rest of the band. 3-4 outlets would work, but if there were a few more it wouldn't be a bad thing.

2) Orientation - I want the outlets to line up vertically along the length of the power strip, not perpendicular where if you plug in a 1Spot, you lose 2-3 outlets.

3) Plug orientation on the wall side - I've seen discussion on whether the plug should go straight into the wall or hang down. I want the straight plug so that I only take one spot and if I have the plug that hangs down, you can only use the bottom outlet. In a living room, the hanging plugs are probably better so the sofa doesn't run into it and damage the outlet.

4) No smart power strips. I don't need nor want anything that could do anything funky on a simple power strip.

5) No USB - They're always USB A anyways, we'll soon be on USB C for everything so why bother.

6) Only need ~ 10 feet or so.

7) Metal casing is preferred, but I guess plastic doesn't conduct

The winner of pages and pages of Amazon searching: Furman SS-6

Yes, far too much effort and thought put into a power strip

 

[Egg250]

I bought a kobalt from lowes and a red colored walmart brand, specifically because they have usb chargers built in. Very handy to keep my wireless thingies charged.

 

[Bob_Ross]

Plug orientation on the wall side - I've seen discussion on whether the plug should go straight into the wall or hang down. I want the straight plug so that I only take one spot and if I have the plug that hangs down, you can only use the bottom outlet. In a living room, the hanging plugs are probably better so the sofa doesn't run into it and damage the outlet.

fwiw I have become a huge fan of short AC jumpers with a flat, right-angle, rotating plug -- e.g., the Stellar Labs Power+ #28-20090, or the Wattbox WB-PWR-EXT360-0.5FT -- because they address both of your concerns: It only takes up a single spot on the duplex wall outlet, and it doesn't protrude so the sofa won't bang it and/or the singer won't trip over it. Plus, since the whole thing can rotate 360° you can sometimes cheat a little extra length to add slack to an otherwise too-short extension cord.

I now own way too many of these things, but they are invaluable.

 

[MultiScaleMale]

fwiw I have become a huge fan of short AC jumpers with a flat, right-angle, rotating plug -- e.g., the Stellar Labs Power+ #28-20090, or the Wattbox WB-PWR-EXT360-0.5FT -- because they address both of your concerns: It only takes up a single spot on the duplex wall outlet, and it doesn't protrude so the sofa won't bang it and/or the singer won't trip over it. Plus, since the whole thing can rotate 360° you can sometimes cheat a little extra length to add slack to an otherwise too-short extension cord.

I now own way too many of these things, but they are invaluable.

Never knew those existed. Good thing to add to the gig bag

 

[Geri O]

This is my favorite for onstage power boxes….

Furman SS-6B 6-outlet Surge Suppressor Strip

I’ve taken two of them and added a pigtail female plug coming out of the box so I can daisy-chain them together.

I actually do not recommend adding that pigtail to the box. It voids any UL certification the unit had.

 

[MultiScaleMale]

This is my favorite for onstage power boxes….

Furman SS-6B 6-outlet Surge Suppressor Strip

I’ve taken two of them and added a pigtail female plug coming out of the box so I can daisy-chain them together.

I actually do not recommend adding that pigtail to the box. It voids any UL certification the unit had.

That was my second choice. Ended up going with the longer strip. That sounded dirty.

 

[mapleglo]

Although it was expensive, I've really come to like the ADJ Pow-R Bar 65. Six A/C outlets, 5 USB outlets, removable neutrik power cable, built like a tank.

 

[Jeff Bonny]

I've managed to get rid of the power strip by using a Y-cable into a 12" hour grade 3-prong to IEC cable to power my amp and preamp/DI. The preamp also has 2.1mm jacks to power my tuner so everything is now going into one wall outlet. May or may not be useful to you but thought I'd throw it out there.

The 6 outlet Furman surge protector I bought close to 20 years ago still works perfectly. Their stuff always seems a bit overpriced but mine definitely paid for itself a couple of times over.

 

[SharpCat]

Power strips now available in a tower configuration. I’ve found those useful sometimes. Smaller footprint, plugs on four sides allow more wallwart type plugins.

 

[Jeff Bonny]

Although it was expensive, I've really come to like the ADJ Pow-R Bar 65. Six A/C outlets, 5 USB outlets, removable neutrik power cable, built like a tank.

View attachment 5183522

My first thought was I like the usb ports. My second was will that power cable plug into a speaker cabinet?

 

[mapleglo]

My first thought was I like the usb ports. My second was will that power cable plug into a speaker cabinet?

No, it doesn't fit in a speaker cabinet. It's a different connector, though developed by the same company.

 

[Parzival]

I am a big fan of the Furman SS6B Pro. I have a regular SS6B as a backup or if I need an extra for some reason or if someone needs to borrow one. These have always made me think of the trap the Ghostbusters would use.

 

[Jeff Scott]

My lowly power strips, a SL Waber rackmount power strip (I have two of them).

 

[mapleglo]

When I looked at the website for the Pow-R Bar power strip, I saw it had been discontinued. There is still stock in stores, so I bought a second unit because they won't be available for much longer.

 

[Cazman]

This configuration has been working very well for for quite a while.

 

[marc40a]

I just ordered an 15’ APC power strip yesterday from Home Despot. It has about twice the joule rating and twice the emi/rfi attenuation as the Furman SS6.

I plan to do shootout later this week between it and the Furman. Two will enter the Thunderdome, only one leaves.

 

[CTW68]

I've been very happy with my Tripp-Lite Isobar. The slight hum I was getting in my powered monitors disappeared, and the surge protection specs are top-notch. Not cheap, but I'm plugging thousands of dollars worth of equipment into it. They come in multiple sizes.

 

[mapleglo]

I've been very happy with my Tripp-Lite Isobar. The slight hum I was getting in my powered monitors disappeared, and the surge protection specs are top-notch. Not cheap, but I'm plugging thousands of dollars worth of equipment into it. They come in multiple sizes.

I have the big brother:

 

[Jeff Scott]

I have both the 4-outlet and 8-outlets models; oldies but goodies from the '80s.

 

[Robal]

I like the D'Addario power strip. I have several and they are very solid; eight A/C outlets with three outlets spaced to accommodate larger wall-warts; and I like being able to wrap the AC cord around the unit when I pack it up. TourGrade Power Base | Accessories | D'Addario