Stax SRM-700T
Electrostatic headphones/energiser £1195 headphones £2895 energiser
Ask any seasoned audiophile about high-end headphones and it won’t be long before the name Stax is mentioned. The company launched the world’s first electrostatic headphones in 1960, laying the foundation for a richly deserved and glittering reputation that continues to this day.
We’re talking about headphone royalty here, and having spent some considerable time in the company of the SR-L700 MK2/SRM-700T, we can understand why. There are two parts to these headphones – the SR-L700 Mk2 headphones and the partnering SRM-700T energiser that drives them. Stax makes a range of energisers, so there’s a choice of partner for any of the company’s headphones. You can’t use a conventional headphone amplifier with electrostatic headphones, though, as the voltages required are far higher than usual.
STAY AT HOME
One look at these headphones will tell you they are strictly for domestic use. Their design is simply too large and cumbersome for portable use, and the need for an energiser means that mains power is a must.
If you think the SR-L700 Mk2 headphones look old fashioned, we can’t blame you. To our eyes, there’s little difference between these and the original Sr-lamda model the company made back at the end of the 70s.
These headphones aren’t discreet; they don’t blend in and make us look more like Doctor Who Cybermen than we’d care to, but they are wonderfully comfortable. At a touch over 370g, they’re fairly light for high-end headphones and those bluff-looking rectangular earpieces fit our ears well, having just the right amount of padding to make a good seal.
The open-backed design leaks sound like a sieve and provides no meaningful isolation from our surroundings, but it prevents our ears from getting hot over longer listening sessions. And, let’s not forget, there’s the sonic advantage an open design brings.
Build quality is good, though it would be a stretch to call the SR-L700 Mk2s luxurious. They’re all about functional engineering, with materials chosen to do a specific job rather than to impress by their appearance or feel. Alongside the lovely soft leather on the headband and earpads, there’s more plastic used here than we would have expected. But it all seems fit for purpose and saves on weight over the metal alternative.
The SRM-700T energiser is a more conventional design than the headphones, but that doesn’t make it ordinary. It’s a nicely made box with an immaculately finished front panel and a rather workmanlike casing. It all feels solid and built to last, though. The unit gets pretty warm over
“These headphones aren’t discreet and they make us look more like Cybermen than we’d care to, but they are wonderfully comfortable”