'Blok' furniture

[Roy S]

Anyone know if these are any good?

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/BLOK-Direct?_trksid=p4340.l2563

They look the part but seem cheap?

[Covenant]

I have the Stax 300 in oak. It's fine, shelves are thick toughened glass. Recommended.

[zygote23]

I got an email from I think it was Audio Affair with some of these in their Sale.......sadly their sale prices were more than the direct from BLOK prices.....weird that. I've seen a few of them in use and I quite like em. I'll probably have one if I can ever get rid of my Stands Unique rack!

[Roy S]

Thanks Jerry.

How about with a turntable? Have heard differing opinions about turntables sounding better on a wooden base rather than glass?

[bluenose24]

Anyone know if these are any good?

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/BLOK-Direct?_trksid=p4340.l2563

They look the part but seem cheap?

Agree with what's been said so far I had the 5 shelf version solid blocks with toughened glass looked the business !

Nev

[Covenant]

Thanks Jerry.

How about with a turntable? Have heard differing opinions about turntables sounding better on a wooden base rather than glass?

Sorry Roy, I am strictly a digital streamer man these days. I have some of my stuff on a granite chopping board with Sorbothane feet beneath sitting on one of the shelves. I wouldn't swear it makes any difference though.

[hifi_dave]

Nicely made furniture, nice people but not the last word in sound quality, if that bothers you.

[Roy S]

Thanks Dave. I was just wondering if it was worth a couple of hundred quid to get an additional shelf over and above the small Ikea unit I've got my system sat on at the moment or to maybe go for a turntable shelf.

[morris_minor]

A mate of mine had a unit custom made by Blok. Don't know how much of a premium that was over off-the-peg units, but he's over the moon with it . . .

[hifi_dave]

Thanks Dave. I was just wondering if it was worth a couple of hundred quid to get an additional shelf over and above the small Ikea unit I've got my system sat on at the moment or to maybe go for a turntable shelf.

If you have a suspended floor, I would suggest you would do best with a strong wall mounted shelf.

[Roy S]

If you have a suspended floor, I would suggest you would do best with a strong wall mounted shelf.

Concrete floor on London Clay (does that make a difference:scratch:) they knew how to build council houses in the late '40s.

Think I may go for one of these, don't think my kit's esoteric enough to do nuances whether on glass, wood, granite etc.

[hifi_dave]

Probably right.

I find that customers, nowadays, never question what a rack sounds like - they go for the one they like the look of. After all, they are a piece of furniture and usually are sited in the family living room.

[realysm42]

Nice one Roy, I think this balances the price and looks perfectly. They're just down the road from me too :)

[hifi_dave]

They're just a couple of miles from me in Saffron Walden - NW Essex..:scratch:

[realysm42]

They're just a couple of miles from me in Saffron Walden - NW Essex..:scratch:

Sorry, the ebay seller is near to me lol :mental:

[hifi_dave]

They're out in the middle of nowhere, up a dusty/muddy lane which leads to a farm. I've gone to visit them twice but no answer.

[realysm42]

I'm not sure if you're contesting what I've said or not?

[hifi_dave]

I'm not 'contesting' anything. I merely pointed out that Blok are in the middle of the countryside, in a farmyard..:scratch:

[realysm42]

Happy days.

[BLOK]

Hi
This thread came up on my Google feed for our brand name. Assume it's ok, if I give a few answers...
1] You are both right. We are in Saffron Walden, and we are also sited in a converted barn on a farm. [Abbey Farm Barns on the Audley End Estate..off the Wenden Road.]
2] The STAX range is changing dramatically in 2012. We installed our own factory on-site in November, [our main business is custom design/install AV cabinetry etc] and are re-launching the STAX range early this year as a more versatile, highly customised, UK-manufactured product. It will also be a completely different price-point. [The STAX was originally a UK manufactured product, but we switched to the Far East a few years back, which enabled us to lower the RRP's. We are currently preparing to reverse this change.]
3] The ebay seller [blok-direct] is our in-house outlet. [generally, we use it for ex-display, design prototypes & clearance product.] The STAX product that is available there will continue to sell through at those prices until all the imported stock has gone.
4] We are open [at the Barns] Mon-Fri 9.30am - 5.00pm..but also open by appointment at weekends.

Dave...I will email you and catch up if that's ok. We are looking to re-engage with trade customers n 2012.
Apologies if anyone thinks this is spamming or inappropriate, however I am just trying to answer the various questions raised.
Dan
BLOK direct
www.blokdirect.com

[Roy S]

Thanks for the post Dan.

May wait and see what your new range has to offer.

[BLOK]

Ok, will notify here when we everything's ready to go.

[synsei]

Hi Dan. Your Stax range looks sensational in the flesh and at some point down the road I'll be looking into acquiring a four shelf unit. What sort of price difference are we talking between the current and revamped ranges?

Welcome to AoS by the way ;)

[BLOK]

Hi Dave
Glad you like the design.
The current [imported] 400's were due to go up to £349.99 on Feb 1, due to dollar rates & raw material inflation..and when we talked it through...we decided that if we were going to have to force through a price rise, then it was time to look at bringing the brand entirely back within the UK, and provide a mass-customisation service at the same time.
So, the four shelf is going to be back to its original price of £499.99. But it will be fully customisable, [size, colour, glass, etc] with FSC wood, all UK components, and with "signature" crown cut vertical veneers..which will look stunning.
Each unit will be individually made to order on a per-customer basis...with a 7 day lead-time.
We are basically taking the design, build quality & provenance up to another level...and offering some design options that just aren't in the market.
In the meantime, we are holding the price of the current 400's at £269.99 until they run out...which will be sometime in the Spring
Dan

[synsei]

That's excellent Dan, thank you ;)