Power strip all day........ ............Joey

I do.

I use Isobars on all my electronics including pinballs. They have the best suppression I've seen for the money and they're very solidly built. I like the 8 outlet version with the 12 foot power cord. That gives you plenty of outlets for a few games and a couple subs with plenty of reach no matter where your outlets are. If you were going to use a $5 power strip then I'd say don't bother, but one of these will make the ball travel faster and reduce STDM drains.
http://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0000511U7

Yes, I have my whole electrical panel on surge protection. Call your local electrician and have him do it.

I've learned that most power strip surge protectors don't do much - first hand. I live in a small town with a crappy electricity provider that has constant surges in power. I originally went with a "Line Conditioner" - exactly this one:
http://www.amazon.com/APC-LE1200-Automatic-Voltage-Regulator/dp/B00009RA60/ref=sr_1_1

I used it for my pins and it was fantastic. Then I learned that you could install an entire home line conditioner at your electrical panel of your house and protect EVERYTHING. I've never looked back.
I know my issue is an aberration from most experiences. But I'll always recommend a voltage regulator/line conditioner. Pins are too expensive.

I use a decent -- $35 -- surge protector. But, in the warmer weather, when there is the possibility of lightning, there is no substitute for simply unplugging.

Voltage regulator is the best way to go, those surge strips do nothing, get a good voltage regulator like this

ebay.com link: APC H15BLK 1440VA 12 Outlet H Type Rack Mountable Power Conditioner 5270 Joules

Not only does it have protection, but it regulates the wall voltages and will boost or reduce the power to maintain a steady 120.. Stops the Williams reboots..

Keep an eye on Ebay, I scored 2 of them under 100 bucks, and it has 12 outlets on it.. best thing you can buy!

I use them... but only as outlet strips and do not expect any real surge suppression.
I bought several of those Tripp lite Isobar4's from somebody dumping a ton of new ones on ebay ... $5 each. At $5 each, quite nice and beats any of those cheapie walmartish outlet strips.

I gave up. My neighbor is and electrician and had the whole house protector. He got hit by a (fortunately) small surge and it blew everything in his house anyhow. I'm at the point of figuring "why bother". As he said...the only true protection is to have everything unplugged or power switched.

If I were in the position to plan my basement all over again I would have put all the wall switches on a separate power circuit that could be turned on when I enter the basement. That would give you the option of using an arc fault interrupter too. A little bit of planning would give you the option of running a separate circuit for your TV (memory features) and fridge that could be left on.

power strip with surge protector + wireless remote
http://amzn.com/B003P2UMOE

Here's something I've wondered: if my wall outlets are all on a switch, are the games protected when the switches are in the OFF position? Or does the lightning just jump the gap on the switch anyway?

I also wondered: if the lightning strike hits the wires from the panel to the outlet, doesn't that completely bypass the whole-home protection and fry your stuff anyway?

No..

Direct lightning strike - nothing will stop it. Considering how far the lightning has already traveled, that couple millimeter gap in the wall switch would be a momentary delay before arcing over and striking your machine. It won't bypass the whole-home protection but will fry the whole home protection... then proceed to fry the rest of your stuff.

Indirect lightning strike - depends on how far away the strike is.
Pretty unlikely to strike your wiring after the panel - usually comes in thru power mains. But I have seen one house take a strike to a gas line on a fireplace then jump over to close electrical wiring and taking out nearly all electronics, appliances and water pump. Fortunately, the gas line was disconnected at the time and didn't start a gas fire.

That monetary guarantee caught my eye too, but, it only covered up to $250!

I use a surge protector (please note a power strip may not have surge protection), and added a remote power switch from Home Depot (they have this 3-pack for $20). Perfect for starting 3 machines up individually.

http://t.homedepot.com/p/Home-Accents-Holiday-Indoor-Wireless-Remote-Control-Kit-RC-015-3/202353567

I'd recommend battery backup UPS (uninterruptable power supply) for the electronics. spikes and surges are bad of course, but under voltage can kill electronics just as quick is also a reality. the spike surge protector doesnt see something like that very well, even though voltage drop usually means a big increase in current draw trying to make up for it. a decent UPS can be got for about 100 bucks.

I managed an airport. Got hit in June, were still fixing stuff in Sept. Not all of it blew immediately, but things crapped out over time. The best was a runway strobe that had the connector literally vaporized, but when reconnected, worked fine.

Yes. If it helps, it is worth its money. If not, well, the cost is a drop in the bucket of the cost of the pin.

yup, use them. I recently got in the habit of just unplugging everything when not in use. This way you are really sure. I live in Tampa, Fl. Lightning abundant here!

I use an Isobar as well, except I just bought the two outlet version, because I only got two pins!

Absolutely. In a Colorado summer you can expect at least ten to twenty surges per season. I should look into the whole house protector. I had a lightening strike once at my house in the early 90's: cooked everything. TV, answering machine, VCRS, you name it. Luckily, the microwave survived. Pre pinball days.