The TAD horn's smooth, microresolved response was a refinement upgrade from my multicell Altec horns; plus, the TADS' French-polished wood looked radically less industrial than the soldered-tin, tar-filled 1005/288C horns they replaced. None of my horn-fanatic friends had anything sonically or aesthetically comparable, and all of them were envious. I didn't keep the TADs long, because the friend who admired them most made me a very "friendly" offer.
That was my first experience with Japanese loudspeaker design, and it exposed me to a level of engineering precision and fine craftsmanship I had not yet encountered in American-made speakers.
Thirty years later, I find myself listening to a pair of brand-new TAD speakers, and once again, none of my friends have anything sonically or aesthetically comparable. This time, though, it's a living room-friendly, three-way, dynamic-driver standmount/bookshelf called Compact Evolution One - Bookshelf Speaker System. The model number is TAD-CE1TX-WN. It is exposing me to a level of fit'n'finish and sonic insightfulness that is rare among contemporary speakers, even at the highest prices.
In the beginning
The company everybody knows as Pioneer was founded by Nozomu Matsumoto in 1938 as a radio store and speaker repair shop in Tokyo. Over the ensuing decades, Pioneer grew into a revered brand with a global reach. In 1978, Pioneer decided to break into the professional speaker market with a line of all-out recording studio monitors manufactured under the name Technical Audio Devices Laboratories. TAD's first product was the TD-4001 compression driver mentioned above.
According to the TAD website, that driver and its associated TH-4001 horn "found its way into famed recording studios around the world, including those designed by Tom Hidley, who was a toprated acoustic designer of the time, as well as AIR Studios, Capitol Records studios, and Record Plant.
This story is from the June 2023 edition of Stereophile.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the June 2023 edition of Stereophile.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
INSTANTLY ICONIC
AUDIO SALON HOST/ENTREPRENEUR/SYSTEM AND FASHION DESIGNER DEVON TURNBULL'S RECORD-BREAKING ART OF NOISE SHOWING AT SAN FRANCISCO MOMA.
Buckeye PURIFI EIGENTAKT 1ET9040BA1
Back in 2016,' I documented the rise of class-D amps using the early Tripath technology. Used in the Bel Canto eVo 200.2, TriPath cracked open the door to the High End but was never admitted due to a dim and opaque treble.
Moon 891
No less than eight boxes, powered by six after-market power cables, comprise my current reference front-end.'
Clearaudio Signature
The Clearaudio allowed each mix, each sonic artifact, to reveal its unique character.
Gryphon Audio Designs Diablo 333
What's in a name? Denmark-based Gryphon Audio Designs laid down a marker when company founder Flemming Rasmussen chose that name in 1985. Browsing through the current Stereophile Recommended Components list, I only found one other manufacturer that utilizes an animal moniker.
The Rega Naia Turntable. Add Lightness.
To watch as Rega very slowly expands its turntable offerings upmarket requires the patience of a Thomas Pynchon addict waiting for each new tome from the notoriously slow-working and reclusive author.
Phono Preamplifier Seduction
Give me the seduction, give me the pleasure,\" Ron Sutherland was nearly shouting into the phone. \"I want to turn off the analytical mind and just enjoy myself!\"
Record Player Revelations
Like romance or car racing, the act of playing records is tactile by design. Like drifting through curves or making out, spinning vinyl is a learned skill that requires users to touch everything with practiced assurance.
Taking Care of Business
As Jim Austin wrote in this space in the December 2024 issue, following a medical procedure that he had in mid-October, he needed to take several weeks' leave to recuperate. He delegated the magazine's production to Managing Editor Mark Henninger, AVTech Editorial Director Paul Miller, and myself. The three of us worked with copy editor Linda Felaco and longtime art director Jeremy Moyler to produce the issue you hold in your hands.
Estelon X Diamond Mk II
Taste is a funny thing. Love cilantro? Millions swear it tastes like soap.
