Shangri-La Jr
I got to test a few upper end HPs that the distributor brought along. The first was the Shangri-La Jr, which is an electrostatic HP driven by a tube amp that goes for around $8K. The Shangri-La provides good body and density to its vocals, while offering great transparency despite a lightly warm tone. It managed to convey an emotional and captivating vocal presentation, with a generally nice midrange tone. The upper mids were relatively more forward, with the lower mids being a bit laid-back. Even so, the overall tone is more predominantly neutral with a brighter touch. Its bass was tight and controlled with a quick decay, but slightly distant within the presentation, so it didn't provide much warmth. But most importantly, the lower treble is pretty aggressive, while the upper treble is not dominant but noticeably brightens the treble tone.
I was initially working under the assumption I would be hearing a smooth, romantic sound one might expect from a tube amp, but only later learned the HP itself was an electrostat. So the combo wasn't necessarily warmer than the Burson V2 amp (which I consider to be pretty neutral), paired with a regular HP. The midrange leaned towards natural, but the treble is simply a bit discomforting for me. However, I switched from band-based music to electronica, and found it to match better. Same for classical, where it provided a nice timbre. I guess it just didn't fare well with cymbals and high hats, which Utopia also tends to produce a bit brighter and sharper due to its 10 Khz peak.
Mr. Speakers Voce
The distributor also had an electrostat Mr. Speakers connected to the Shangri-La's tube amp, the Voce priced around $3K. Compared to the Shangri-La, the Voce's vocals had a slightly distant stage position, so they seemed to be a bit less impressive in terms of density and presence. However, there was a far greater balance throughout the signature. Specifically, the treble was significantly smoother, and more line in with midrange. As a result, the signature was not only smoother, but more coherent. The extension of the bass was not outstanding, but the control and resolution of the mid-bass was impressive, even if it could be a bit warmer to sound true in tone. But overall, this was a very nice combo, and to me, significantly more pleasing than with the Shnagri-La HP itself. A special mix between the presumably brighter electrostat tech, and warm tube amp (just like how my warm SP Cu pairs nicely with the brighter Utopia to create a special blend).
Final D8000
The D8000 costs around $3.5K I think. It has what is perhaps best described as a smooth neutral tuning, with a slightly laid-back vocal position. It offered good resolution, although it didn't feel as especially high as the Utopia for instance. Most importantly, it was a coherent sound. It had a slightly lifted bass with a natural decay that added some warmth to the sound, although the tone stayed predominantly close to neutral. Treble was in line with the midrange, and details were not exaggerated. Overall, I found the tuning highly reminiscent of the HD800s in terms of type of sound. It was of good quality, but I missed something. I would have preferred if it was either a touch warmer to sound natural, or a bit more lively and aggressive like Utopia. Now it seemed to lack character, and I didn't really find myself enjoying it.
Meze Empyrean
I ended with the Meze Empyrean, which is priced somewhere above $3K. The Empyrean for me was a clear winner, offering a beautiful tonality - an excellent execution of neutral/natural. Just very lightly warm, but still clear, and a beautiful instrument timbre. The mid-bass was relatively neutral in quantity, but had a natural decay that provided a natural flow to the sound. Its vocals had a neutral stage position in terms of forwardness, with average body and density. So not necessarily powerful in terms of presence, but they had a nice tone, and were presented smoothly. Similarly, the note size was pretty neutral. I would say its performance was good, but again not as exceptional as Utopia. But the ever so lightly warm touch in its instruments, and the overall coherency of its sound, gave it a very satisfying signature. Pretty much like an upgraded Auteur, or Mr Speakers Aeon closed for instance. Maybe somewhat similar to LCD-4Z, with a less bodied midrange and powerful bass.
Yes I think they probably retuned it. This wouldn't classify as particularly aggressive to anyone's standards, compared to something like an LPG for instance. From what I understand they are still working on it.
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"Perhaps this cable could push Phantom to reproduce Beethoven at an even grander scale." 
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