08.31.2007 — Increasingly, one of the hottest industry trends has been the attachment sale of power and cabling products with flat-panel displays.

This trend, while helping installers recoup some of those lost flat-panel margins, requires a greater attention to detail.

Installers have to pay greater attention to balancing their bids to ensure that component costs all line up. Helping installers to accomplish this balancing act is Tripp Lite's HT7300PC power conditioner.

The unit incorporates 12 outlets, power conditioning, a front panel voltage and amp display, four programmable outlets, provisions for coaxial, Ethernet and telephone line protection and dog ears for rack mounting.

Setup of the HT3700PC is standard fare. I plugged my various components into the power conditioner's back panel and its corresponding analog, digital, high current and IR outlets.

Then, I let the unit do its job for about a week, without paying any attention to it. For power conditioners, the failure to protect from a surge is one of the only times you will ever notice the product.

The HT7300PC is effective. I did find it a little noisy when my Bryston amplifier or Hitachi HDTV were turned on. However, those high current devices demand an immediate in-rush of power. So, I could understand the noise.

The Tripp Lite unit is, by far, less expensive than my Transparent Audio PowerIsolator Reference. It also offers more outlets and other features. Conversely, the Transparent product employs a sturdier build, hospital-grade outlets and a detachable 15-amp Transparent IEC PowerLink Super power cable (the Tripp Lite is hard wired).

Both products, though, provide surge protection and RFI and EMI filtering.

This brings me back to my original point of balanced bids. I was pleasantly surprised that the Tripp Lite offered as much as it does for so little money.

In fact, I thought the HT7300PC was a $1,000+ product, and I didn't realize it was so affordable until I looked up its MSRP.

MSRP is $499.95.