Home Review TAD CE1TX monitor – off the scale

Review TAD CE1TX monitor – off the scale

6

Pros

  • Insane build quality
  • Very neutral
  • Insightful display
  • Layering

Cons

  • Pricey
  • The whole chain must be appropriate

Price: € 36000

Build quality
Controlability
Sound
Price
Alpha-Audio Approved

Intro

The Japanese brand TAD we know pretty well at Alpha Audio. Well before we started using our own TAD E2s in the reference system, we enjoyed those (sort of) wacky speakers with their famous coax drivers a few times at shows and demos. We now have the ‘Compact Evolution 1 TX’ in the listening room. Although TAD calls them ‘Compact’, you should take that with a large grain of salt…. they are anything but small.

TAD stands for Technical Audio Devices. It is a Japanese manufacturer of speakers and electronics. The brand stems from the founder of the well-known Pioneer brand. The TAD project was established in 1975, which makes the brand almost 50 years old now. During those years, TAD has refined the coaxial driver and has also taken a firm grasp of beryllium technology. Look at models like the R1 or the E2 that certainly don’t show any sharpness in the treble area. Provided the rest of the chain is clean and controlled of course.

The TAD CE1TX – supplied for this review by Audiofeel – is the “Compact Evolution series 1” monitor. Above the Evolution is still the Reference series. Now, at some point we too get the feeling, ‘how can this be improved?’ Well… that definately applies to this monitor from TAD: the speed, transparency, ease and sophistication is undoubtedly impressive. But we are getting ahead of ourselves.

Layout

The TAD CE1TX is a monitor model with a coaxial driver for the mid and high – the TAD CST driver (Coherent Source Transducer) and a MACS II woofer for the bass. Thus, it is a three-way model. The tweeter is beryllium. It extends to an impressive 100 kHz. The mid driver is magnesium and the woofer is created from five layers of woven and non-woven aramid fibers. The reason they are non-woven and woven is the improved damping characteristics.

TAD does not directly use a bass reflex system, but it is vented. TAD calls this a bidirectional ADS port. These are behind the metal panels on the sides of the speaker. This bidirectional system is supposed to counteract port noise. The E2 has partially adopted that system, but there it is in the base of the speaker.

The finish of the heavy cabinet (29Kg each and a mixture of MDF and plywood) is, in a word, sublime. It is absolutely a work of art. It fits seamlessly into many an interior and will also be a positive eye-catcher. The high gloss finish fits this speaker beautifully and gives an incredibly luxurious feel. Which it should, considering the price. The color scheme is also very successful, with the metal side plates fitting beautifully. Top notch.

TAD also has a pair of (19Kg) stands that you can order with it. These obviously fit perfectly and offer the possibility of securing the monitors, which is nice. The stands also have spikes and cups. Mount these, as the difference is definitely audible in more air in the imaging. Experimenting with other decouplers is also possible, of course. Our experience with AAI is good with the TAD E2s.

Type test
Single Test
Speaker class
Monitor - bookshelf
Speaker type
Dynamic
Speaker system
Bass reflex
Signal control
Passive
Frequency range
34 Hz - 100 kHz
Crossover
3-way
Efficiency
85 dB
Impedance
4 Ohm
Dimensions
  • Width: 29 cm
  • Depth: 45 cm
  • Height: 51 cm
Weight speaker
29 Kg
Production country
Japan
Sound Samples
Measurements
TAD CE1-TX - phase
TAD CE1-TX - phase
TAD CE1-TX - Impedance
TAD CE1-TX - Impedance
TAD CE1-TX - impedance - phase
TAD CE1-TX - impedance - phase
TAD CE1-TX - impulse - 1m - straight
TAD CE1-TX - impulse - 1m - straight
TAD CE1-TX - perceptual simultain distortion - 1m - straight
TAD CE1-TX - perceptual simultain distortion - 1m - straight
TAD CE1-TX - Response - 1m - straight
TAD CE1-TX - Response - 1m - straight
TAD CE1-TX - Response 30ms - 1m - straight
TAD CE1-TX - Response 30ms - 1m - straight
TAD CE1-TX - simultain distortion - 1m - straight
TAD CE1-TX - simultain distortion - 1m - straight

Winkels met TAD

Hennesweg 20
6035 AD Ospel, NL

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