Over the vinyl revival? Sick of CDs? You can now buy this futuristic reel-to-reel tape player in the UK

(Image credit: Metaxas and Sins)

The latest sculptural reel-to-reel analogue tape machine from Dutch brand Metaxas & Sins is now available in the UK, but you'll need deep pockets if you want to get your hands on the TR-X Tourbillon.

Inspired by high-end wristwatches, the TR-X Tourbillon is named after a component added to the mechanics of watch lever escapements to increase accuracy and derives from the French for 'whirlwind'. Metaxas & Sins claims that the TR-X Tourbillon is the first reel-to-reel tape machine to use the same concept to regulate tape speed, creating a hybrid of horology and hi-fi that you didn't know you needed.

Inside, Metaxas & Sins says that the TR-X Tourbillon contains discrete circuits for a sound quality that "puts classic reel-to-reel machines to shame." Designed for 10.5-inch reels, the Tourbillon is built to be compact and transportable for recording on location, with an optional battery box available.

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Like all Metaxas & Sins products, the TR-X Tourbillon is handmade with its adventurous design originating from the brain of company founder Kostas Metaxas. The company describes the TR-X Tourbillon as "an entirely newly designed professional reel-to-reel tape location recorder and playback machine that meets and exceeds the highest demands of recording engineers and the most serious audiophiles, combining 2020s technology with 1960s soul.”

The TR-X Tourbillon comes in two versions – one for recording and playback, the other for playback only, with UK pricing of £59,998 (around $69,405/ AU$102,505) and £46,998 (around $54,360 / AU$80,280), respectively. The optional Lion battery box is £3200 (around $3701 / AU$5467), and the matching stand is £9398 (around $10,870 / AU$16,054)

Papillon Studio reel-to reel — (Image credit: Metaxas & Sins)

Availability in the UK is only through Absolute Sounds, which offers the TR-X Tourbillon as part of its Ten Collection, an elite portfolio of curated high-end audio products with preamps and power amps by Robert Koda, Trafomatic and HSE, and speakers by DeVore Fidelity. The Ten Collection also includes an even higher-end reel-to-reel offering from Metaxas & Sins, the Pappillon Studio 15-inch open-reel tape player, with prices starting at £72,998 (around $84,418 / AU$124,754).

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Mary is a staff writer at What Hi-Fi? and has over a decade of experience working as a sound engineer mixing live events, music and theatre. Her mixing credits include productions at The National Theatre and in the West End, as well as original musicals composed by Mark Knopfler, Tori Amos, Guy Chambers, Howard Goodall and Dan Gillespie Sells.