AudioQuest Niagra and Storm Power Cable Review

There was also a favorable if a bit odd comment from Mikey Fremer in the latest Stereophile, pledging loyalty to AQ now.


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The fuse in my Diablo 300 just blew. I thought the Niagara 5000 should have stopped that from happening?
 
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The fuse in my Diablo 300 just blew. I thought the Niagara 5000 should have stopped that from happening?
Fuses can blow from many different causes. If there was a power surge then it's likely the Niagara 5000 would have protected your connected equipment, but if there's an issue with the Diablo 300 which caused it to draw more current than expected the fuse should blow to protect it from further damage. I'd strongly suggest checking with your dealer first but you could try replacing the fuse and everything may then be fine, but if it blows again there's likely a problem indicating that the 300 should be serviced.
 
I just completed the power upgrade chain: Dedicated 20 amp circuit > NRG 20 amp outlet > AQ Hurricane cable > Niagara 5000.

I sincerely hope folks give this scenario a try (or at least a storm cable and a Niagara 5k or 7k). For all of the money we tend to spend in this hobby I do not know if I have ever had a more complete change to my system for such a "reasonable" price. This is new technology that changes the game in a big way. Yes, some of the other power units do slightly different things, but this is the ink black noise floor I have always dreamt about. The high capacity power delivery to power amps also makes a huge difference... especially with the dedicated 20 amp circuit. Every unit in the system gets an upgrade and system coherence is tremendous. I know in years to come some type of upgrade will also surface compared to this power system, but wow... I'm REALLY happy with this, and have trouble imagining how it could get a whole lot better. I don't gush very often, as I have heard a lot of gear at home and in full professional recording studios... I think the Niagara 5/7k, and the storm cables change the game.

As a side note, it seems all of the AQ NRG power cables are selling through in order to get to a product launch that is coming soon... I'm interested to see what they have come up with, as I suspect a trickle down of the storm technology.
 
Glad you guys are enjoying these power cords. I’m not sure if you recall, but I have had a full set of Thunder, Hurricane and Dragon (source and power) in the store since December. They’re wonderful power cables - all of them.

The jump from thunder to Hurricane is subtle, but worth it. The jump from Hurricane to Dragon is substantial - but so is the cost!

I found putting Dragon on the source components (DAC or CD) made the greatest impact. But I heard improvements on the preamp, amp and Niagra 7000 as I went down the line.

Back in January, I held a blind power cord shootout. Customers brought WW platinum, Nordost Odin/Odin 2, Valhalla 2, Ansuz Diamond and three or four others, including a DIY cable. Rance (from the forum was there too). Hopefully he will chime in. Anyway, they wanted to compare Thunder and Hurricane to all these other power cables they had brought because Rick and I had been raving about them. I didn’t bring the Dragon.

It was unanimous. The AQ cables won. Hurricane specifically. Let’s just say, I sold an awful lot of Hurricane’s and Thunders that day.
 
I’m loving my Tornados. I thought there was a small but noticeable step up to the Hurricane and that will likely be an upgrade for me sometime in the future.
 
Glad you guys are enjoying these power cords. I’m not sure if you recall, but I have had a full set of Thunder, Hurricane and Dragon (source and power) in the store since December. They’re wonderful power cables - all of them.

The jump from thunder to Hurricane is subtle, but worth it. The jump from Hurricane to Dragon is substantial - but so is the cost!

I found putting Dragon on the source components (DAC or CD) made the greatest impact. But I heard improvements on the preamp, amp and Niagra 7000 as I went down the line.

Back in January, I held a blind power cord shootout. Customers brought WW platinum, Nordost Odin/Odin 2, Valhalla 2, Ansuz Diamond and three or four others, including a DIY cable. Rance (from the forum was there too). Hopefully he will chime in. Anyway, they wanted to compare Thunder and Hurricane to all these other power cables they had brought because Rick and I had been raving about them. I didn’t bring the Dragon.

It was unanimous. The AQ cables won. Hurricane specifically. Let’s just say, I sold an awful lot of Hurricane’s and Thunders that day.


Mike,

how does Thunder/Hurricane compare to Shunyata Alpha NR. does either brand work better with tube gear, and also are the AQ cords flexible enough for tighter spots (behind a rack)
 
I got to hear them at Mike's and was blown away. I heard the top three with Garth when they were in prototype and was blown away. I was in shock at how much better the Dragon's were. Its one of the rare times in high end, that I can honestly say it's not a subtle upgrade. I've heard the Enkleins and Elrods. The Enkleins are used by many of the uber high end systems and I know why. They really are special. That said, I will be doing a shootout soon (hopefully) with the top David and a Hurricane and Dragon if I can get them. It will be with a Rockport Lyra system and we will be using a rebuilt Revox reel to reel unit. I'll keep you posted.
 
I got to hear them at Mike's and was blown away. I heard the top three with Garth when they were in prototype and was blown away. I was in shock at how much better the Dragon's were. Its one of the rare times in high end, that I can honestly say it's not a subtle upgrade. I've heard the Enkleins and Elrods. The Enkleins are used by many of the uber high end systems and I know why. They really are special. That said, I will be doing a shootout soon (hopefully) with the top David and a Hurricane and Dragon if I can get them. It will be with a Rockport Lyra system and we will be using a rebuilt Revox reel to reel unit. I'll keep you posted.

Anxious to hear your comparison! ;)
 
Anyone have any views on how the AQ Hurricane's compare to the Shunyata Sigma NR cables?
 
Glad you guys are enjoying these power cords. I’m not sure if you recall, but I have had a full set of Thunder, Hurricane and Dragon (source and power) in the store since December. They’re wonderful power cables - all of them.

The jump from thunder to Hurricane is subtle, but worth it. The jump from Hurricane to Dragon is substantial - but so is the cost!

I found putting Dragon on the source components (DAC or CD) made the greatest impact. But I heard improvements on the preamp, amp and Niagra 7000 as I went down the line.

Back in January, I held a blind power cord shootout. Customers brought WW platinum, Nordost Odin/Odin 2, Valhalla 2, Ansuz Diamond and three or four others, including a DIY cable. Rance (from the forum was there too). Hopefully he will chime in. Anyway, they wanted to compare Thunder and Hurricane to all these other power cables they had brought because Rick and I had been raving about them. I didn’t bring the Dragon.

It was unanimous. The AQ cables won. Hurricane specifically. Let’s just say, I sold an awful lot of Hurricane’s and Thunders that day.

Hi Mike, During the cable shoot out, what kind of power distribution did you use, in my "experience" the Ansuz power cables start to play there strenghts when used with one of the mainz 8 power distribution blocks. (earthing 10mm)

Olaf

When reading again I see it was the Niagara 7000
 
Anyone have any views on how the AQ Hurricane's compare to the Shunyata Sigma NR cables?

I personally feel my Hurricanes are more neutral and have better tonality. I highly value that. I need body in my sound also, but I get that with the Hurricanes. I had the Shunyata Sigma's in, not the NR's. The Sigma's are an awesome cable, I just like the Hurricane better as it gives me a lower noise floor and is a bit more dynamic with better extension on both ends. The difference in sigma vs Hurricane isn't night and day, but subtle enough that I wanted the Hurricane.
 
AQ Dragon Original.pngAQ Dragon Reissue.pngAQ Hurricane Original.pngAQ Hurricane Reissue.png

I find AQ policy outrageous! They have indeed modified both the Hurricane and the Dragon...
These are print-screens from the 2018 and 2019 AQ pricelist. As you can see, the Hurricane become
bluer and with inferior AWG and the Dragon went from PSS/PSC+ (more AWG) to PSS (less AWG).
But you have to do some research in order to find out about this change...
 
View attachment 25040View attachment 25041View attachment 25042View attachment 25043

I find AQ policy outrageous! They have indeed modified both the Hurricane and the Dragon...
These are print-screens from the 2018 and 2019 AQ pricelist. As you can see, the Hurricane become
bluer and with inferior AWG and the Dragon went from PSS/PSC+ (more AWG) to PSS (less AWG).
But you have to do some research in order to find out about this change...

Not happy about this apparent deception. The current Hurricane HCs were represented as the same except for the color of the jackets where the old color would be used for the new Firebirds. Now it might appear that AQ wants to further promote Firebird HC comparative performance by subtracting a bit from the revised Hurricane HC's performance??
 
hmmmmm... this could be a disappointing scenario for many of us. I have spent a lot on various hurricanes pre/post the changes. I look forward to hearing more.
 
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