Opus Powerisolater and Shunyata Denali

[Still-One]

A week ago I noted in another thread that I had brought home a Opus Powerisolater with a Opus Power Cord to audition against my current Denali 6000T and Alpha HC PC. This was never intended to be a apples to apples comparison. The MSRP of the Opus pair is three times cost of the Denali and about $8500 more when the Alpha HC is considered.

I also brought home two additional Opus Power cords and was going to insert those between my Momentum amps and the two power units during the trial. That went out the window when I realized I had brought 20amp versions and not the ones with 15amp connectors that I need for me amps.

I want to start off by noting that the two products/changes that produced the most noticeable impact on my system: 1) swapping out the 1.2ks for my Momentum amps and 2) inserting the Denali 6000T in my system. The Denali is a wonderful product and I currently have both amps and my pre-amp connected to the 6000T.

For simplicity when I saw Opus I mean Opus Powerisloator and Opus PC and when I say Denali I mean 6000T and Alpha HC.

Thinking I would limit the number of variables in my comparison of the two units I initially powered off the amps and the Denali, moved the power cords from the Denali to the Opus and then plugged the Opus into the same 20 amp outlet I had used for the Denali. Well that created it own issues. Every time I powered off the Denali my Momentum pre-amp would shut down and that resets the volume to zero. I didn't want volume differences to impact my comparison so I ended up leaving the Denali powered up all the time and just muted the pre-amp and shut down the power amps. Not the 100% safest way to remove power cords. By leaving the Denali powered up I had to plug the Opus into a 15amp circuit which is not dedicated for my audio. :Thumbsdown:

The results were mixed and it is quite possible others would hear things differently. With my amps connected to the Opus Powerisolater I heard more defined notes, clearer vocals with no haze around the sound. The Denali softened the sound a bit and was relaxing. I wondered if the Opus somehow increased the volume just a tad, and that is why I wanted to make sure volumes were not changed.

Remember, I was connecting my current Transparent MM2x between the Opus and Denali units, so that variable was removed. If I was using Shunyata's newer Sigma cable from the unit to the wall that probably would have had some impact on the results. I am sure the Opus Power Cord had some impact on what I heard.

With the Opus Powerisolater I can only connect the two amps and would need at least one additional unit for my pre-amp and one other device. So unless I wanted to purchase two Opus units I would still need to keep the Denali. That is a lot of money for a small improvement in SQ and it would add more clutter to my set-up.

For the present I am keeping my Denali and have returned the Opus product to my dealer. I still might grab it just for my amps but not until I decide if there are other ways to spend my audio kitty.

[2fastdriving]

Interesting, thanks for writing this up. I also noticed a slight haze around the sound with the alpha HC vs. Opus pc. I didn't test power conditioning units. The alpha HC sounds very good, so the haze is really not something that you would ever notice unless you do a direct comparison. And don't forget, the opus pc is nearly 6 times as much as the alpha pc! This is why I'd like to get my hands on the shunyata sigma for a similar test.

[jfrech]

Interesting. Did you ever get 2 Opus power cords in 15 amp versions for your amps? I have my amps straight to the wall with Opus cords, then use the Opus Isolators on the front end equipment, also with Opus or Opus Source cords...

Maybe I should try a Opus Isolator on my amps....

I've also found, like most power conditioners, the Opus Isolator benefits from proper support...like you'd put a cd player or preamp on...

Thanks for posting your impressions !

Speakers: Rockport Altair 2
Preamp: Robert Koda K10
Amp: Nagra HD Amps
Cables: Transparent Opus Gen 5 & Magnum Opus phono
Power Transparent Opus, Opus Source Power Cords & Opus Power Isolators
Power Shunyata DPC-6 v2
Digital dCS Vivaldi full stack w/ Transparent Reference XL Digital cables
Phono: Grand Prix Monaco TT, Spiral Groove Centroid, Clearaudio Goldfinger Statement v2, Nagra VPS/VFS/MPS
Racks: Grand Prix Audio Silverstone F1

[Still-One]

No I never went back to swap out the 30 amp for 20 amp power cords. It would have been about a 90 minute drive roundtrip.

[SuperD]

Jim,
Thanks for the write-up. I mentioned in your other thread that I'm going to try the Reference Powerisolator next week with an XL power cord. Would love to try Opus but 2 outlets vs 8 on the reference keeps me from spending too much plus i'm running out of room to put new equipment.

[joey_v]

Good read. Thanks