Stereophile Denali Review
 

Anyone have any comments on the Stereophile Denali review just published in the June 2017 issue?

Michael Fremer compares it to the AudioQuest Niagara 7000 and when comparing a version of Bert Kaempfert's "That Happy Feeling" found:

He did however find the Denalis to be better than what he remembered of the Hydra Triton v2.

He notes one can't make a quick A/B comparison of the two.

YouTube Comparison

Wasn't clear to me which he preferred? I am currently considering both and felt left without a clear favorite. On the power amps I understand he likes the Denalis. What did I miss?

No, that's about right. On the components it seemed he preferred the 7000, but noted the Denalis were more explosive with transients, seeming "more exuberant and punchier."

In the manufacturer's comments, Grant noted "These impressions, including the fact that his recording seemed louder, are attributable to our patent-pending QR/BB technology, which improves peak current compared to products that use current-limiting transformers and toroids."

yeah, when one looks at the 'guts' of the component do you ever wonder where the msrp comes from ?? Holy Cow ...... and I thought jewelry and clothing had big mark ups !!

Thank you for your post. I am trying to decide between the Denali 6000 and Niagara 7000 for my system. Which one is first and which one is second on your video link? I preferred the second one by a good margin.

Thanks,
Ken

Sorry, Michael Fremer's video, not mine, and he hasn't yet revealed which is which.

Hi Bill,

Thanks for your response. Please let us know the result when Michael Fremer reveals it. Which one did you prefer and why?

Thanks,
Ken

Quite a thread. I'm just headed back from Munich.

Unfortunately, looking at "guts" is a very poor indicator of cost in construction. We have some of the lowest wholesale margins and retail prices in our market segment, so you are entirely wrong about high-markup percentages and the Denali products -- or our cable products. Everything in the US Denali models is custom designed and manufactured. The solid-copper CopperConn outlets, custom-designed medical-filters, QR/BB module, CCI filters and VTX (hollow core wiring) are all one of a kind parts. Buying and modifying a heavy choke or iso-transformer does not necessarily equate to great value.

One point that doesn't get mentioned in comparisons with AQ's Niagara is retail price. We manufacture a Denali Shelf unit, which has the same performance as the Denali Tower, for $3995. While I'm working from memory, the Niagara retails for $7995, I believe. The better price comparison would be to the Triton v3, but regardless, the Denali-Niagra comparison has been done many times and commented on in detail on forums such as Audio Shark and a couple of others.

The Denali's have proven themselves in a resounding way in reviews and throughout world markets thus far and our feedback from customers and dealers has been consistent. Like our other products, we take great care in pricing the products fairly, following a strict parts-labor-overhead to retail formula. We have no $30,000 speaker cables and no $20,000 power cord, yet we use entirely custom-made parts, materials and unique, patented technologies. It doesn't take a math-wiz to see we are treating our pricing policy and market differently when comparing not only our products , but retail prices with other, far more expensive designs.

Best regards,

Grant

I have several Shunyata power conditioners and several Shunyata power cords and a ton of Shunyata duplex outlets (which I combine with Furutech stainless steel outlet plates).

I appreciate the science, the quality, and the (relatively) sensible pricing.

I never responded; he answered the questions about which was which here:

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