Power delivery in its final form: Industrial-grade engineering and audiophile finesse combine to create an island of energy bliss.
Being able to work in peace – it’s a common wish in a world where noise and distractions constantly intrude from all directions. Who wouldn’t sometimes like to be alone on an island? Completely self-sufficient, with zero background noise (aside from the ocean), centered and focused. Imagine how well you could perform.
Audiophiles feel the same way. But their island is made of energy. Just think how your system could perform if the sine wave coming out of the wall were actually a clean sine wave – rather than a jagged Alpine panorama – and the specified 50 Hz were the only frequency riding the line. Unfortunately, everything that broadcasts or operates on high-frequency switching power supplies leaves traces on the outlets, burdening the power supplies of hi-fi components in all kinds of ways. Power conditioners help. But the real royal road is: disconnect. Remove the system from the grid entirely. And that means: batteries. Voilà – the Stromtank.
Stromtank, the company, was founded in Berlin in 2014, though its story goes back to the 1970s. Behind Stromtank is none other than Wolfgang Meletzky, founder and longtime head of MBL. With his new venture, he could rely on immense experience and an intimate understanding of this demanding clientele. That’s why his battery-based AC sources – brilliantly named “Stromtank” (“current tank”) – are not simply photovoltaic tech transplanted into high-end enclosures, even though that’s where the roots lie.
Meletzky spent some time exploring future-leaning energy technologies, collaborating with the Fraunhofer Institute and developing a highly sophisticated control software for energy storage systems – only to eventually return to hi-fi. He recognized the obvious: that a well-engineered power storage unit – crafted by a true high-end expert – contains real audiophile potential. The rest, as they say, is history.
The Stromtank S1000 is the smallest model in the Berlin lineup. Its “SourcePower” designation indicates that it’s especially recommended for source components. Reasonably frugal amplifiers shouldn’t overwhelm the 41-kilogram battery beast either – just don’t expect an energetically self-sufficient heavy-metal party until dawn.
Inside the S1000 are eight battery cells – 40 amp-hours total – using the latest, highly durable and inherently safe LFP (lithium iron phosphate) chemistry. The batteries are overseen by the company’s own Fraunhofer-derived battery-management system. Longevity and reliability come first: Stromtank quotes 6,000 charge cycles, translating to 15–20 years of service life. After that, the battery pack and controller can simply be swapped out. Should problems arise, remote diagnostics are available via a special interface on the unit’s LAN port.
€13,300 is a lot of money. Yet the Stromtank leaves little room for criticism. You get real value for it. The massive enclosure alone makes the compact S1000 look perfectly at home in a true luxury system. The rear sports four high-quality Schuko outlets and a Furutech NCF-series IEC inlet. The front is dominated by an analog meter whose needle indicates charging in one direction and discharging in the other. A button toggles between blue LED illumination (charging mode) and green (fully isolated battery operation with all-phase grid disconnection). It looks like something that belongs in Iron Man’s chest. Awesome.
In my system, the S1000 handles only the preamp and source components, just as intended. I don’t subject it to the heavy Rowland monoblocks – their 100-watt idle draw per channel is no joke. For comparison, I have my classic AudioQuest Niagara 3000 line conditioner and a hefty 1.6-kilowatt isolation transformer.
Paolo Pandolfo’s Travel Notes is both musically and sonically a highlight – great test material because it captures natural space and richly harmonic instruments. I listen to the album with the entire system plugged into the AudioQuest, then move first the CD player and later the preamp to the Stromtank. Separation improves, the soundstage opens in all directions, and the slightly right-leaning mix gains breathing room on the left channel and becomes more balanced. The subtle harshness in louder vocal passages softens – not via rounding or compression, but because the voice sits more naturally within a more coherent acoustic space. In short, it becomes easier and more exciting to listen to.
Next, Fanta Vier – MTV Unplugged: first stromtanked, then filtered. Even the announcer at the start of Track 1 sounds less defined without the battery; the audience applause feels flatter and less engaged. When the band kicks in with acoustic backup and string ensemble, a certain vagueness reappears – gone instantly when the Stromtank is active. Bass and drums, on the other hand, sound very similar regardless of power source.
Now I leave the Silvercore preamp on the line conditioner – I want to know how the digital, high-frequency section of my system reacts to the Stromtank’s designer sine wave. Three devices are involved: the Aqua La Voce DAC, the Innuos Zenith MkIII streamer/server, and the SW-8 switch from young Chinese brand LHY Audio, built to audiophile standards. All use solid linear power supplies with toroidal or C-core transformers.
I cue up the day’s new release on Qobuz: Life Rhythm (Live) by German top drummer Wolfgang Haffner – a rhythm-driven project he produced himself (clearly – the drum kit is the boss). Sonically it’s a bit plump, punchy but quite rounded. I wouldn’t mind more bite, a hint of sharpness to spice up the funk interplay. DAC, streamer, and switch move to the battery. Holy power fairy! Please erase everything I just said. Did Haffner have a Stromtank in the studio? Now it rocks: the rhythm makes your feet move and your head nod. A tremendous difference compared with the excellent – and fraction-of-the-price – AudioQuest Niagara 3000. The effect is even stronger than with the CD player. Possibly because isolating the network gear from the analog side already brings an inherent sonic advantage.
I keep browsing and find a new recording of Ligeti’s Violin Concerto with Isabelle Faust as soloist. The energy in this work lives in the overtones, and given what I’ve learned, the thrilling immediacy I’m hearing owes much to the (presumably unmeasurably) pure freshly generated 50-Hz sine wave. I continue streaming and come across a new recording of Bruch’s Violin Concerto with Korean violinist Bomsori and the Bamberg Symphony. Bomsori – whose name, a little inside joke among Korea enthusiasts, literally means “the sound of spring” – plays this classic freely and organically; a young top virtuoso who has already found her voice. Again, with the Stromtank, the fine overtones and spatial cues are front and center; without it, the last degree of clarity and three-dimensionality is missing.
Finally, I bring in the isolation transformer. It has a character all its own: forceful, groovy, perfectly in its element with rhythm-heavy music and strong low-end content. In terms of drive, the Stromtank can’t match it, but in all other disciplines – resolution and openness – the transformer trails far behind the spectacular S1000.
What a lesson. Everyone knows clean power is fundamental. But what truly lies behind that audiophile cliché – how much there really is to gain – only becomes clear when you experience the Stromtank. I rediscovered familiar recordings and learned a lot in the process. Highly recommended – if your budget and available space allow it.
Accompanying Equipment
Turntable: bauer audio dps 3 | Tonearm: bauer audio | Cartridge: Lyra Kleos | Phono preamp: Hagerman Trumpet Wood | MC transformer: Consolidated Audio Silver/Nano | CD player: Electrocompaniet EMC 1 UP | Music server: Innuos Zenith Mk III | DAC: Aqua La Voce S3 | Switch: LHY SW-8 | Preamp: Silvercore linestage two | Power amps: Rowland Model 12 | Speakers: Ayon Seagull/c | Power conditioning: AudioQuest Niagara 3000, Martion isolation transformer | Cables: Fadel Art, Phonosophie, AudioQuest, Solidcore | Accessories: Creaktiv racks, granite bases, Andante Largo Silent Mounts
Power Conditioner Stromtank S1000 SourcePower
Concept: fully grid-isolatable, battery-based AC power supply | Input: 1 × mains in | Outputs: 4 × Schuko or 4x duplex | Battery configuration: 8 LFP cells, 24 V nominal | Storage capacity: 1000 Wh | Output power (continuous/3 min/3 s): 450 VA / 700 VA / 1800 VA | Features: switching between grid and battery in <15 ms, optional remote | Finish: black aluminum | Dimensions (W/H/D): 48 × 22 × 47 cm | Weight: 41 kg | Warranty: 3 years | Price: approx. €13,300
Stromtank
Rathenower Straße 45
10559 Berlin
Tel. +49 30 52688330
info@stromtank.com