Amplification options with TAD speakers

RdW

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Apr 8, 2018
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I have been listening to many configurations including sets with Nagra , Soulution, Alieno, Trafomatic, Magico's etc. and also TAD amps. But one way or the other, my already a bit older brain is not wired (yet) to accept class D amps...;) I really liked the Constellations, Soulutions and Alieno's, but also the S250 of D'Agostino. Unfortunately, I haven't auditioned the Dartzeel 108's.

There are however so many different factors that makes a set magic or not. I concur with the fact PGA that some additions/changes to the a set can generate the "huh" effect. To you, this was the convolution filter. For me these were the CR-1's in the first place. Entering the room of my HiFi friends in NL where the CR-1 were steeling the show, my reaction was "huh - can I have two of those please" :). Never heard before (just borrowed that from Dartzeel....). Adding an Audioquest Niagara 5000 with tornado and hurricane power cables was the other one. The silence, definition and depth you get additionally by simply adding these are incredible. And last but not least, some Schnerzinger stuff. If you have quality gear at home, you must try this one day. Cannot be explained.

I am happy with my Soulution 520 pre. Pairing it with the ARC ref 150SE, AQ Redwood speaker cables and my CR-1s does the job. But listening to a lot of gear at auditions and reading here on this forum, I am actually leaning toward moving to solid states that would probably give me more definition, articulation, additional depth and some extra power to let the CR-1's even more shine. Coming back to the fact that one component can make a big difference, it can also destabilise the whole set-up. You might end up with worse if an amp does not match with the rest.

All in all, yes, I need to audition in my listening room, I know. Listening somewhere else gives you an impression, but you cannot decide on that alone. As I cannot ask my friends to come up with so many options, I was consulting here to see what the experiences are, above what has already been written in the forum earlier. It was some time ago already after all.

So thanks for your feedback so far!

René
 

bonzo75

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Feb 26, 2014
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Soulution pre into valve power amps is generally one of the best combinations for such speakers. I haven't heard this combination with a speaker like TAD, but the only thing you will be able to improve with is a more powerful ARC, VAC, Cat, or lamm hybrid in my guess, if they can drive your speaker. Keep that Soulution pre for the same job. Otherwise go SS
 
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RdW

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Apr 8, 2018
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Soulution pre into valve power amps is generally one of the best combinations for such speakers. I haven't heard this combination with a speaker like TAD, but the only thing you will be able to improve with is a more powerful ARC, VAC, Cat, or lamm hybrid in my guess. Keep that Soulution pre for the same job

Thanks and indeed, the 520 and valve amps are doing a great job. That makes the short list even longer... The Ref 160M seems to have a complete different character than the traditional ARC signature. Interesting to have a session with those.
 

knghifi

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Dec 6, 2014
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While the CAT JL7 in factory for SE upgrade, I picked up a TAD M2500 from TAD of NA through my dealer. I'm driving it directly from a Soulution 560 DAC w/leedh.

For a tube guy, I'm very happy with the sound. It's organic, transparent, detail, 3D ... no SS nasties. Plenty of power and runs cool. It's a nice change having SS amp where I can leave it on without worrying about tube wear.
 
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RdW

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Apr 8, 2018
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While the CAT JL7 in factory for SE upgrade, I picked up a TAD M2500 from TAD of NA through my dealer. I'm driving it directly from a Soulution 560 DAC w/leedh.

For a tube guy, I'm very happy with the sound. It's organic, transparent, detail, 3D ... no SS nasties. Plenty of power and runs cool. It's a nice change having SS amp where I can leave it on without worrying about tube wear.
I have heard about the TAD M2500 before and that it is an enjoyable amp to listen to in combination with the CR-1 and soulution pre.
The M2500 might be a good choice for the summer when my tubes are boiling my room.
Still leaning to Trafomatic Pandora or Aries Cerat Essentia although all the advices here on this forum are against it as they would not be able to drive the CR-1
 

Amir

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Vitus MP-S201 (500w/8ohm Class AB) maybe good
 

PGA

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Dec 29, 2013
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Most recently switched from a pair of Constellation Centaur Mono (that were excellen) to 4 Benchmark ABH2s, each running in bridged mono. One Benchmark is running each coax, and one is running each pair of woofers. This is by far the best sounding amplifier that I’ve owned. No surprise, it was designed by Andrew Jones’s twin brother. My long list of amplifiers included Spectral, vintage Levinson, Pass, MSB, Cello, NRG (these were fantastic but had noisy transformers and ran very hot).

The noise floor and distortion on the ABH2 is absurdly low. I was shocked with how big a difference this made versus the Constellation. Also the ABH2s have the same texture and detailing of a small class A amp, but they also have explosive powe, particularly when bridged mono.

I ended up with 4 ABH2s because I eventually plan on bi-amping the R1s. For now, it’s just a vertical bi-amp. All the amps run full range, and see the full voltage swing, but not the full power delivery since there is no current outside of the passband. They sound stunning and at a fraction of the price and heat of just about everything else I’ve had.
 

Flamenko

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May 13, 2019
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Salve a tutti, volendo sostituire Boulder 1160 con tad m700S, cosa devo aspettarmi nel bene e nel male? Gli altoparlanti sono cr1tx, pre koda k10.
Grazie!
 

Amir

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I have no idea about boulder/tad matching but i think Going for TAD M700/CR1 has no risk.
TAD CR1 needs high power amplifier to show you full dynamics and i recommend over 600w/4ohm for medium to large rooms.
i have listened to 6 diffetent amplifiers (gryphon , aavik , krell , ...) driving CR1 but non of them were better than M700.
List of high power amplifiers for CR1:
TAD M700 (700w/4ohm)
Vitus MP-S201 (1000w/4ohm)
CH Precision M10 (600w/4ohm)
Symphonic line 400
 
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Avidlistener

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Feb 18, 2013
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The PS Audio BHK300 monoblocks are also 600 watts into 4 ohms. They have a tube input section and work extremely well with the CR1’s. At least in the US are an absolute bargain.

I’m in a fairly large room, in feet 29x30x15

I do have subs however.
 

kimurastanley

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Mar 16, 2019
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I planning to pair M700S with CR1 in the future :p
 

Amir

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I have seen Some TAD owners only buy TAD loudspeaker and they do not try TAD electronics (cd/pre/power).
I recommend them to listen Full TAD system (TAD cd/pre/power) before going for other systems.
Perfect Matching (speaker/amplifier) is game changer and connecting best amplifiers to best speakers does not warranty best matching/sound.

Audiopax designer (Delima) has a article about matching between speaker and amplifier.
CH Precision allow you adjust negative feedback in M10 series in both channels separetaly .
speaker amplifier matching is very complex subject.
 

kimurastanley

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Mar 16, 2019
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I have seen Some TAD owners only buy TAD loudspeaker and they do not try TAD electronics (cd/pre/power).
I recommend them to listen Full TAD system (TAD cd/pre/power) before going for other systems.
Perfect Matching (speaker/amplifier) is game changer and connecting best amplifiers to best speakers does not warranty best matching/sound.

Audiopax designer (Delima) has a article about matching between speaker and amplifier.
CH Precision allow you adjust negative feedback in M10 series in both channels separetaly .
speaker amplifier matching is very complex subject.
I have heard TAD spks with other well-known high end brands electronics vs TAD electronics and I agree with your points.
 
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kimurastanley

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Mar 16, 2019
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since you have it at home would you say something about m700s? thank you very much!
This is what i think about m700s. After listening to Nagra classic amp, my impression remains the same


However I never compared with Nagra HD amp and other popular amp such as Memphisto etc..
 
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PGA

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Dec 29, 2013
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Has anyone tried Luxman amplification with the TAD CE1’s?
With CR1 and R1s for me hands down best amplifiers have been Benchmark AHB2s in mono. Had many other options at 10x the cost. None came close to the Benchmark that coincidentally was designed by Andrew Jones’s twin.
 

Avidlistener

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Feb 18, 2013
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Has anyone else ever heard the Bascom King (of Constellation fame) designed BKH300 or BHK600 mono tube hybrid amps on TAD?
I’ve been using the BHK300’s with Siemans CCA tubes on my CR1’s for years with fantastic results. Now that the BHK 600’s are available, I’m wondering if anyone has heard this pairing? When the BHK300 was released a PS forum member compared them to his all SS Constellation and liked the BHK better. I’m thinking the tube input stage/SS output stage is a great match for such a highly resolving speaker (in my case made even more resolving with the addition of stat super tweeters and subs.
 

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