New heights
TAD Evolution One Floorstanding Speakers
You never know what a new day will bring, and this one brought me the best speakers I’ve ever heard in my life. No big deal.
I’ve heard a lot of great speakers. I’ve listened extensively to PS Audio’s Infinity IRS V system, the Infinity Beta system, and TAD Reference One, and at audio shows I’ve gravitated toward the big speaker rooms and heard Tidals, YGs, massive electrostats like the Martin Logans & Sanders Sound, Focal Grand Utopias and big Wilsons galore. And a whole bunch of others I’m forgetting.
I even got a chance to have Arnie Nudell demo his “IRS Killer” speakers for me at his home before his passing. My audio memory of that is brief, so it’s difficult for me to say with 100% certainty that these TAD Evolution One speakers are better than Arnie’s, but the fact that I’m wondering says something about these dynamic speakers from the TAD Lab.
Something I’ve noticed here at The Music Room is that many speakers need attention heavily placed on their, well… placement. Some have out-of-the ordinary requirements, like those that are made to live on the back wall, or have their bass reinforced with corner positioning.
Some need tons of space in front and behind. Some need the exact amount of space behind and in front to integrate the front and back waves correctly.
And then, in contrast, you fire up some of the world’s absolute best speakers and you realize… huh. Placement doesn’t really matter as much, does it?
Obviously you can’t point them away from your ears or ignore all of the laws of audiophilia.
But when you fire up a top of the line Wilson, or, case in point, these TAD Evolution One speakers, the music leaps from the 3-D space around the speakers so instantly and effortlessly, you’re tempted to just leave them wherever you put them originally and enjoy the experience.
In fact, if a professional setup and installation isn’t part of the equation, I bet that more people do an eyeball setup of these TAD speakers than any other brand.
If I’m right, it’s because these speakers do everything so correctly, so instantly, that you have a real cognitive difficulty with the idea of changing a single thing. These speakers are an adrenalin/endorphin hose.
Some of my favorite spatial tracks, like Yosi Horikawa’s “Bubbles” or “Bump” appeared so distinctly outside of the speakers… I’d say this is the best I’ve ever heard the tracks. My eyeball setup took all of 30 seconds.
Bear in mind, I’m getting mind-blowing sound even when powering these with a Class D amplifier, albeit one with a Class A input stage — no bi-amping here. No exquisite massive A/B or Class A amp. The notion that these can get even better is hard to fathom.
At the price, I cannot think of a better option for any room, period.
Very insightful. And nicely written. However, I have doubt all (great) loudspeakers have that unique quality-dimension that enables great sound when plopped down 'eye-ball' style, although some appear to perform admirably well.
ReplyDeleteExamples (few and far between in my experience) may include the excellent (current) KEF REF-1 and surely one of the finest $2K-$3K pair ever -the long discontinued PSB Stratus Goldi.
The PSB in particularly never failed to impress almost regardless of room placement . It remains a mystery to me as to why this remains so -although I have my suspicions. Such a loudspeaker 'characteristics value should not be underestimated. At the other end of the spectrum was the Vandersteen 2Ce -requiring considerable breathing room. The same was demanded for some of Verity Audio models.
In fact, most loudspeakers (rightfully) require careful room positioning -simple matter of minimizing room boundary interactions. From a frequency response perspective, loudspeaker positioning 6-fee/5-feet from front/side wall results in no lower frequency 'boost' due to wall reinforcement.
Additionally, as my high-end hi-fi experience grew, it stunned me to realize that sound 'qualities' many would reasonably attribute (influenced by) room acoustics/speaker positioning was immediately "corrected" by inclusion of superior cabling (i.e. Kimber SELECT and similar). The same must be said of a handful of AC Power Cords -its contribution to high-resolution LF performance is yet another shocking, repeatable discovery.
I'm pleased to know that TAD's impressive 'Evolution One' may belong to the rare breed of insensitive-to-room-placement group of loudspeakers. The 'E-One' would surely 'fit' into far more listening environments than the physically imposing (albeit excellent), massive top-line floor-stander.
Should the KEF REF-3's share the placement ease of its stand-mount brother (1's) it too must be considered another example of exceptional sound -likely priced well below the TAD 'Evo One'.
Thanks for sharing your experiences.
pj
Hi PJ,
DeleteThe reason I went this direction with the blog post was that I was very surprised to hear what I heard with minimal setup! It's just rare for super-fi sound. And you're right, it is not the only quality that makes these deserving of that title in my book. It shouldn't be -- some of the E One's contemporaries in the super-fi list are very particular about amplification, cabling and source. When they're set up the way they were designed to operate, pure sonic Heaven. Case in point the Von Schweikert VR 33 that need to be against the wall.
Interestingly, I've heard a pair of modern Vandersteens absolute shine in a less-than-ideal room and placement. The trick to lift them from good to great? Switching out the Cambridge integrated for a BHK preamplifier and BHK 250 stereo amp. Like your experience where cabling can "fix" the room problems, this wasn't a change in speaker position -- in this case, electronics.
I've also heard qualities that my friend Darren and I thought were crossover-related be relieved with superior cabling. This hobby does a job on your head, man!
Regarding the TAD, I think they hit a sweet spot for most high end fans that can afford them. Usually, top of the line means more sensitive to environment and less forgiving on bad recordings. I've actually heard the Reference Ones sound no so great before (the room's fault, I thought at the time). I like that the E Ones launch you immediately into that upper crust sound but can be forgiving in ways as well.
Hi Duncan: Indeed, you say it 'right'. Again. The choice of electronics, cabling, power source , equipment positioning (rack type) are key contributors. Along with other factors. System 'synergy' a factor.
DeleteI was pleased to see (note) the suspected x-over problem (you mentioned above) to be alleviated by cable selection. I recall a similar situation with a friend's PSB Stratus Gold i's (before he went high-end crazy -lol); positioned In a smallish room, I believed what I (and he) was hearing was room placement related -the L-channel speaker positioned maybe 2-feet from the left wall, whereas the Right-Channel (speaker) enjoyed a wall opening at its (otherwise) first-reflection boundary.
Once some premium cabling was employed (Kimber SELECT I believe) that touch of mid-range 'glare' -would be the best way to describe it-, vanished. Along with far great musicality. I was very, very surprised. And impressed.
The way I see it, there is so much more (for science) to learn/discover that will shine a new light on these yet-to-be-discovered factors. I believe there is hope in the Quantum Physics field -in terms of a mathematical understanding.
When you said: " This hobby does a job on your head, man!", I realized then and there that it's precisely this quality that folk like you and me (the audiophile community at large) possess. We can think, feel and see 'outside-of-the-box'; a glaring weakness for those who cannot -yet feel compelled to argue the merits (or lack thereof) of the pricey stuff ? Very strange.
For decades now, passionate audiophiles/music lovers have noted these 'oddities' (things that have a significant impact on SQ yet very little explanation as to why).
You see, those of us who understand the immense role cabling imparts on SQ have the required sensibility to both move forward and more importantly enjoy immensely such discoveries. Those who remain in the Jurassic Period (I honestly thought the "cable thing" was put to rest last century-1990's latest) simply are a very insecure bunch. If someone says "it's so" -it is SO for these folks. No matter what is felt, heard or experienced, these clowns must have it written in numbers to believe it. So unfortunate for them.
Moving on, superior equipment (highly-resolving) must also be tonally realistic. (Only a handful of 'systems' in my experience can lay claim to such characteristics). To me, a great sound-system is one that makes ALL and every recording sound great; the way it was recorded.
Even compressed, limited bandwidth recordings from the past can and does sound wonderful. No, we won't revel in the typical terms used to evaluate sound quality, but great sound systems will expose the intricacy's of all and any recordings -for what it is. And there are delightful discoveries that can be thoroughly enjoyed via less-than-stellar recordings.
A premium sound-system (to my mind) should sound great with all recordings. And never, ever, unlistenable. With that said, there are a handful of recordings (mostly CD's) that truly have earned the dubious distinction of: "Who the heck engineered that album" ! (lol).
Discoveries. Repeatable. Enjoyable. Enlightening. That's what hi-fi is all about.
Let's keep sharing, learning and enjoying ...
Thanks for sharing Duncan.
peter jasz