Eversolo T8 Streaming Transport Review

This is Eversolo’s first dedicated streamer, touted as a “professional-grade streaming transport” no less. Many audiophiles are already using the company’s highly successful A6 and A8 streamer/DACs as stand-alone streamers, whereas the new T8 is aimed at DAC owners wanting streaming functionality piped directly into them.

A streaming transport’s job is to output bit-perfect data to a partnering DAC with a stable and accurate clock signal. In the case of asynchronous USB, the timing is handled by the DAC. Otherwise, the DAC is dependent on recovering the clock signal from the incoming digital data stream. While it sounds straightforward, the quality of the signal can be degraded by interference from the streamer’s digital circuits, network and power supply noise.

Eversolo takes several approaches to achieve a high level of performance. The first is a linear power supply, which is featured in the company’s high-end models. According to Eversolo, a custom 4N oxygen-free copper toroidal transformer and Teflon-insulated wiring achieve noise levels as low as 30μV. Further, Accusilicon AS318-B Femtosecond-accuracy clocks provide a low-jitter clock reference. To address noise, the USB, coaxial and AES/EBU digital outputs are isolated. If the SFP network port is used, there is further galvanic isolation of the unit from upstream ground noise.

Up close

Appearance-wise, the T8 adopts the Eversolo house look, namely a black rectangular box with horizontal heatsink fins running along the side panels. Interestingly, however, the 315x230x88mm chassis doesn’t stack neatly with any of the company’s DACs, which have different footprints. The front fascia is clean and bereft of knobs or physical buttons. The aluminium shielded 6” colour touchscreen is placed centrally, and comes to life once you hit the power button on the left side.

Turning to the rear panel, there is an IEC mains inlet and power switch. Two network ports (Gigabit and SFP fibre), or dual-band Wi-Fi, connect the T8 to your home network. If you are using the wired ports, the unit can also be switched on via wake-up on LAN. Digital outputs include AES/EBU, TOSLINK optical, coaxial, I2S via HDMI and a USB-A socket. The Eversolo also has a 12V trigger input and output. The only thing likely to be missed is provision for an external clock input.

Two USB 3.0 sockets provide access to external storage like a hard drive or thumb drive. A bay on the underside of the T8 also takes up to two SSDs of up to 8TB each for a total of 16TB of onboard storage. The bay cover is secured by a thumbscrew, and you can finish the installation in a minute or two without any tools. Eversolo even provides a thermal pad in the box to provide better heat transfer to the heatsinks on the bay cover.

All popular file formats are supported, and the T8 outputs data streams of up to 768kHz for PCM, and DSD 512 for the USB and I2S output ports, and 192kHz and DSD 64 (DoP) for the S/PDIF and AES/EBU output.

In use

The Eversolo supports Tidal, Qobuz, Highresaudio and Amazon Music streaming services, and is also compatible with Tidal Connect and Qobuz Connect. For music servers, the T8 is Roon Ready and DLNA compatible. Support for new music services is constantly under development, and this list is not exhaustive.

Like the company’s other products, this unit is loaded to the hilt with functionality and custom options. These include its proprietary room correction software ‘evotune’, and a 6-band graphic, or 10-band parametric equaliser. You could even import FIR filters generated by room measurement software like REW. Armed with a miniDSP UMIK-1 measurement microphone, I ran evotune to perform automatic room correction. The generated correction curve shrank the soundstage, and music became flat-sounding and uninvolving. Instead, I preferred the results with light-handed adjustments with the graphic or parametric equaliser.

To ensure compatibility, the I2S output has 8 configurable pinouts. This is crucial due to a lack of industry standards for pin configurations. You can also adjust the sample rate switch latency for the USB and S/PDIF outputs, which helps prevent pops and glitches when changing sampling rates.

Themes and display modes are selectable, e.g. VU meter and spectrum modes. Whether you want the display lit up like a Christmas tree or austere, the choice is yours! The bundled remote control is nicely built, with metal and plastic construction. It communicates via infrared or Bluetooth, which usefully requires no line of sight. For maximum fidelity, you can also disable Wi-FI/Bluetooth and just use infrared. It has limited functions, though, and you need to use the touchscreen or Eversolo’s excellent app for full functionality.

Special mention should be made of navigating internally stored music. Unlike some of the competition that use nineteen-nineties-style computer-like menus, albums and files are neatly sorted with full album art. This makes the Eversolo fully viable as a media server, and you save some pennies in not having to buy a separate Roon or DLNA server.

For testing, the T8 was paired with a Totaldac D1-Six DAC and LAiV Harmony μDAC. The rest of the equipment consisted of a Conrad Johnson GAT-S2 preamplifier, ART 27A power amplifier and Vivid Audio Giya G4 speakers. A Melco S10 network switch was also used to test the Gigabit and SFP network ports.

The Listening

The Eversolo sounded highly impressive from the outset, with a natural and detailed rendition of music. Timing and control were notable strengths, with a firm hand even when things got busy. While it sounded good on a wide range of material, the T8 excelled with acoustic music.

For example, IU’s vocals on Love Wins All sounded sweet and natural, with an accurate portrayal of her effortless singing style and airy, ethereal voice. While this track can sound harsh and thin on some equipment, it was treated kindly here, with an absence of sibilance or hash.

The T8 kept unruly and complex mixes like Satomi by Nels Cline under tight control. The messy opening of what almost sounds like an orchestra warm-up failed to trip it up. Instruments were kept separate and distinct in the wide and deep soundstage, and could be easily followed during busy moments. There was an excellent sense of timing throughout, as the tempo downshifted halfway to a slower and more pensive pace. From drum beats to breathy saxophone and crunchy electric guitar notes, the recording sounded realistic.

Listening to Pavel Haas Quartet’s performance of Prokofiev’s Sonata for 2 Violins in C Major, Allegro was a delight, with the strings sounding rich, vibrant and textured. The Eversolo got this just right, avoiding stridency while letting the strings bite when needed. The contrasting moods of this piece and the captivating energy from their intense and dramatic playing style were well conveyed.

Testing bass power and scale, I cued up Mountains by Hans Zimmer. The clock-ticking at the start, and the build-up of tension that followed into deep organ notes sounded powerful and convincing to me. To nitpick, the Eversolo wasn’t the class leader in this aspect, and I’ve heard more low-end power from other gear, albeit at a much higher price bracket.

The digital outputs on the T8 sounded different enough to offer further flexibility in tuning things to your taste. For example, the coaxial out had more forceful bass and precise imaging. In comparison, the USB output sounded more delicate and airy, but with a slight reduction in bass power. To test the I2S output, I hooked up a LAiV Harmony μDAC. There was no contest – compared to its coaxial input, the I2S connection uplifted the μDAC’s performance with an increase in imaging precision, resolution and dynamics, akin to an equipment upgrade. So if you have a suitably equipped DAC, the T8 should be at the top of your audition list.

Experimenting with the network ports, the SFP port gave music a slightly more focused and detailed character. Inexplicably, my FS SFP module stopped working towards the end of my review window, and I had to revert to the Gigabit LAN port. To be fair, Eversolo provides a list of five compatible SFP modules (the FS is not one of them), so do follow that for best results.

The Verdict

The T8 offers tons of flexibility and is backed up by great and easy-to-use software. It sounds exceptional with the SFP and I2S port, but the baseline performance of the Eversolo is really good, too. Its claim to be a professional-grade streaming transport is deserved in my view, and its accessible price means it offers outstanding value. Wider compatibility with its fibre network port and external clock inputs would have made this the perfect product for me, but it’s pedantic to complain given its reasonable cost.

For more information visit Eversolo