Audio Quest Niagara 1200

Malcolm and Alex from hi-fi attic were nice enough to let me demo an Audio Quest Niagara 1200 Power conditioner. As soon as I got home with it I rerouted all of my power from my Rotel 15 series preamp / amplifier and Bluesound Node 2i. Then I immediately started playing What A Shame About Me by Steely Dan and I'm pretty sure I could hear a distinct improvement. Even my girlfriend heard it. What were we hearing? I think a greater sense of control, clarity, and the system seemed to provide a little more DB at my usual volume settings (in other words it was louder).

I used to run a $200 Panamax Power Conditioner that I bought from Amazon several years ago. Unsure of how to determine potential improvements in sound quality with power conditioners, I researched online and decided to listen to my system with the Niagara for a week and then switch back to the Panamax for a week. I'll repeat this experiment four or five times to yield conclusive results.

The Audio Quest Niagara is the company's least expensive power conditioner offering, priced at $1200 in Canada. It features seven plugs, two of which are for high current amplifiers. I'm not sure what's inside, but the unit is weighty and exudes robust strength and class. It's definitely a piece you'll want to have on display to impress your friends, or at least yourself.

In any case, stay tuned for my impressions in a few weeks and enjoy the music in the meantime.

Update

After using the Niagara 1200 for about three weeks and switching back and forth between the $200 Panamax Power conditioner and the $1200 Niagara, I can say that there is a consistent and noticeable (yet slight) improvement in the overall sound when the system is connected to the Niagara. I assume these improvements would be magnified if the Niagara were connected to better equipment.