When you have been in the Audio industry for a long time, you start to get a certain amount of intuition when it comes to new products. You can make a fairly accurate judgement, taking into account price, company ethos, previous models, before you even listen. Every now and again though a product will come along that takes you totally by surprise ... it doesn't happen often, I can only think of a handful of occasions over the last 30+ years. The AR EB101 turntable in the 80s, the Krell KSA80 power amp also in the 80s...more recently the Tom Evans Groove Phonostage and the reworked Kiseki Purple Heart cartridge.. Each of these was a 'hang on.... do that again' moment, products that had you diving into you record collection. Now we have a new member of the club. The new Energiser from Stax, the SRM T8000 is so far and away better than the previous 'Top of the Line' the SRM007iiKIMIK that at first I didn't actually believe what I was hearing.
Ok, at £4395 this has got to be very good, but even with that in mind this is still an astonishing product.
I've never heard this sort of level of detail and delicacy ever before. Even on a favourite CD of mine. one I picked up at a concert by the support band, Jake Cogan and the Liberty Roses, not an amazing recording, but well written and played. I heard so many new things, texture in the strings, extra layers in harmonies, the acoustic of the studio ... totally enthralling. With other material it became apparent that the 8000 was supplying quite a bit more body to the sound, fuller, but also faster, not an easy trick. There has always been a assumption that as Stax are Electostatic Headphones that they only really suit Classical or simple Folk music, the 8000 certainly puts that to rest, it will happily Rock, and does so effortlessly.
If you would like to hear the T8000, give us a call on 01270 580734
To see the range ..
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