Audioquest Niagara

Hi-Fi Corner
156

A friend of mine has the In-Akustik and loves it. He has a non Naim system though.

158

Itā€™s not really a simple question to answer to be honest . With a 1200 you would definitely plug the SN3 into its single High Current outlet , Iā€™m not sure if the HiCap would also require high current even though I think it powers the SN3 Pre section so should be fine .
As others mention the HiCap is a perfect partner to the SN3 , however the rest of your system should be taken into account as a Niagara will benefit everything thatā€™s plugged into it . I have tried the 1200 , own the 3000 and can recommend both . The 3000 won for me as it has 2 High current outlets with current reservoir for my Active Speakers . Iā€™ve taken the Niagara completely out of my system, then just sources connected then back to everything connected which won comfortably.
Option 1 might be all you need as long as it meets the HiCaps current requirements.
Try one .

160

Youā€™re right ā€¦ sorry I forgotā€¦ of course.
Option 1 :+1:.

161

Hi @Pete.T,

I will receive the 1200 in a couple of days. I made sure to be able to return this version in two weeks time. Hoping to test the setup (a.o. NDX2, SN3, Sony CDP-5000X) soon.

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162

Interested to see this pop up - missed it before, but when Chris Brookes was installing my LP12 he said I should try an audioquest niagara 7000 - I went to a dem at his shop earlier this year where they used this as the final upgrade (running through lower versions to start with) on some Linn kit. Not about to try it now (hopefully new speakers are coming first) but may do so at a later date. Certainly not going to rule it out

1 Like
163

I have the AQ 1200. My SN2 and HiCapDR are plugged into the two available high current outlets, both are using Powerlines. Seems to be working out very well. I had the HiCap in another outlet on the 1200 and I am not sure if there is any difference than when in the high current outlet. Try them out to see what works best for you.

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164

I have the AQ 1200 as well and it has provided an improvement that can be summed up as just sounding more musical. There was no loss of dynamics, if anything it seems a bit more punchy with a deeper and slightly more controlled bass. Also marginally improved the clarity and smoothness of the top end. I plugged the amp and TT2 into the two high current sockets, the Project Stream in one of the set of 3 and Mscaler in one of the set of two (these two sets are isolated from each other).

Overall a really good upgrade that seems to offer good value and has the bonus of potentially improving everything thatā€™s plugged in. Highly recommend trying.

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165

Hi,

Iā€™m thinking of getting an Audioquest Niagara. I read all the blurb on their website but couldnā€™t see any info on TV or Router. Can anyone tell me if you would plug your TV and/or WiFi Router into the Niagara?

Cheers,

Will

166

I plug my TV and Sky box into my Niagara 3000 with no issues . There is plenty of isolation between sets of terminals .

167

Thanks Pete,

I think thatā€™s also answered another question I have which is can I plug my Naim Powerlines into the Niagara?

Would you know of any benefit of plugging a WiFi router into the Niagara?

168

Thereā€™s no reason why you canā€™t plug a Powerline or a router into a Niagara ( AQ recommend one of their own cables from the wall socket , for performance not commercial reasons) . At present I have Active ATCā€™s into the High current outlets. The remaining outlets taken up by my source , a Panasonic plasma TV , Sky Box and an Amazon Fire Stick . No ill effects detected from any new plug in .
See below for a connection guide to the Niagara 3000 .

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169

Thank you for all the very helpful info Pete. Given me lots of food for thought :+1:

170

PS in the bottom picture the Energized switch is in the off position as Iā€™d had everything switched off whilst moving a couple of things .

171

So, do you think the audioquest power cables such as ngr z3, y3 and Monsoon (without the Niagara) are good and suitable for their spec. and constructions with Naim Stuff?

Thanks!

172

Iā€™m sure the AQ cables are excellent on their own so thereā€™s no reason not to but without using a Niagara and spending that kind of money it might make sense to stick with Naim ??? Iā€™ve always felt power cables on their own are the icing on the cake but adding something like a Niagara makes the difference IMO .
I had a play around a couple of weeks ago with my Activeā€™s using standard cables and the Monsoon directly into wall sockets and then using the Niagara . Differences were clearly Audible but the Niagara made the biggest difference, significantly.

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173

In case you are still interested in this comparison, I have just swapped out my old wireworld matrix 2 for a niagara 1200 and in my opinion it is better. To my ears, the sound is cleaner, better bass, and the music is easier to listen to. Also no loss of dynamics. I tried an isotek mains block previously and that made the music sound constricted.

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174

For the price of the Niagara you should also consider Shunyata Research. There are several models. The Audioquest units are quite good but Shunyata has been doing Power for 25 years longer than AQ. I use a Denali 6000s/V.2 and am very very pleased with it.

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175

Thanks for the update. Good to hear the Audioquest Niagara is an upgrade over the Wireworld Matrix 2. I donā€™t use the Wireworld Matrix 2 anymore as my power cords all go direct to the wall. Fortunately I have enough outlets at the wall for my equipment.

A caveat is I now use power cords with US terminated plugs instead of UK plugs hence I donā€™t need the Wireworld distributor anymore (since it comes with UK outlets).

176

Thanks for sharing your experiences - very helpful. I was wondering if there are any audible differences between the different banks of outlets (apart from the high current ones)? Iā€™m not sure which ones to use for the Supercap & XPS.
Also, how easy is it to bend/fit the monsoon cables? Iā€™m considering buying one to connect the AQ 1200 to the wall socket but it is quite a tight space and the cables look very thickā€¦

177

Hi , I havenā€™t noticed any difference between any of the remaining outlets tbh . Just make sure the Power Amplifier with PS use the High Current as you know . A couple of weeks ago I switched the Energized switch to off moving things around and forgot to switch it back on for a couple of days . During that time I began things started to sound just a bit off and far less engagingā€¦ I eventually checked around the back to make sure everything was alright and noticed my mistake. I flicked the switch and boom everything was back in abundance. Whatever the Niagara does , it does it well .

The Monsoon cable is heavy as you note but you can manoeuvre it but I wouldnā€™t bend at a right angle . Iā€™ll take 1 out tomorrow and take a pic of rolled as much as I think is possible .