Anyways, back to the SR-X9000. I went to The Source AV outside LA to try the X9000, but alas, it wasn't there! The store had been burglarized a few weeks ago and the X9K was stolen in the robbery! It took an hour and a half to get there from Pasadena, so it was quite disappointing (for both me and TSAV). I had hoped for a second, more critical listen to follow up on my CAF experience and see if I really wanted to buy it. But I had a good time anyways listening to other headphones. If you see any suspiciously cheap X9Ks on the used market, it might be worth double-checking its origin.
I also learned a few interesting things about the business backend of Stax. According to Jason at TSAV, only 12 SR-X9K units are shipped to the US every 6 months. The vast majority of produced X9Ks are kept in Japan for the domestic market. Only 6 units have been shipped to Canadian dealers since the headphone was released two years ago. Honestly, this makes me tempted to import, because it seems they are relatively plentiful in Japan and the yen is so weak compared to USD right now that I'm basically getting 30% off the list price.
Another dealer comment on a different forum was that in late July of this year, Stax shipped their 1000th X9000. It took just under two years to build 1000 units.
Horrible to hear about the Source getting robbed!
I wouldn't import an x9k. My first set (and many here) have had severe channel imbalances.