Good afternoon all. Over the last few years I have been building my system, all starting with the start with Focal Sopra speakers running off of a Luxman integrated, which I dearly loved, but mainly because of their style. It took time for me to tame these speakers and eventually ended up with Mola Mola Pre amp and monoblocks.

 

this i have been really pleased with but there was always an itch and I felt the speakers were not quite right. They are notoriously hard to drive and need plenty of current as they can drop to 2 ohms. Discussing this with my supplier after a couple of years of ownership, they suggested several options that I could borrow, but the ones that got my attention  were the TAD Labs CE1's for a "bookshelf" speaker, they have quite a presence. I set up an audition and thought, they sounded pretty good, so I brought them home to trial. 

This is when I started to really appreciate them, a mate came over and we spent the evening listening, these pups were staying

 

i was really fortunate in picking these up at cost price, they had been on loan and had cosmetic damage, something i can get repaired myself at a later date.

 

 

the system is comming on really well, i love the synergy, the system has, i have replaced the Tambaqui with the onboard tambaqui within the Makua pre amp and all works well together, my digitial sources running through roon. The final step has been to include the Mola Mola Phono stage which has really helped with analogue reproduction. 

 

but I'm an addict, and my dealer knows it having just put another fly in the ointment. They are selling their TAD M2500Mk2 power amp demo unit, again with slight cosmetic damage, but at a bargain price. This would mean splitting the Mola Mola kit, so would not look so great., but it is an opertunity.

 

I have the chance to borrow it, problem is, when do you stop. Maybe I should let that one go. 

 

 

Edited December 4, 20223 yr by Urbinator
Piccies

The TAD CE1 is one I love and would choose if the situation allows me to start all over again.

Love the speaker finish of yours and the system setup! I am sure you will enjoy them to your hearts content. 

On 04/12/2022 at 5:09 PM, vinilink said:

The TAD CE1 is one I love and would choose if the situation allows me to start all over again.

Love the speaker finish of yours and the system setup! I am sure you will enjoy them to your hearts content. 

Thank You, they are a great sounding speaker, imaging is quite outstanding. Combined with the Mola-Mola Kula monoblocks, which are class D capable of 400w into 8 ohms. they work well. 

Well, I have been running the TAD power amp for a week now, first impressions are the Mola-Mola are pretty damn good monoblocks. They have great capability in detail and soundstage. The TAD takes things further and it is not obvious at first. What I found was its speed to attack and change the dynamics bringing better rhythm to the music and dare I say, more foot tapping. I am going to listen a little further, just to see how they compare. Both sound really good, but my thought are the Digital power supply of the Kaluga's vs the Analogue of the TAD is where TAD manage to make a class D amp that much more realistic. Oh and the TAD runs damn cold where the Kaluga's warm up and need to be left for at least an hour to get up to temperature.

The mola mola stuff looks incredible in a set. The design really comes together more than a single piece does.

15 hours ago, Urbinator said:

Well, I have been running the TAD power amp for a week now, first impressions are the Mola-Mola are pretty damn good monoblocks. They have great capability in detail and soundstage. The TAD takes things further and it is not obvious at first. What I found was its speed to attack and change the dynamics bringing better rhythm to the music and dare I say, more foot tapping. I am going to listen a little further, just to see how they compare. Both sound really good, but my thought are the Digital power supply of the Kaluga's vs the Analogue of the TAD is where TAD manage to make a class D amp that much more realistic. Oh and the TAD runs damn cold where the Kaluga's warm up and need to be left for at least an hour to get up to temperature.

 

Appreciate you sharing your journey. Look forward to reading more as you post.

I've had a lot of great gear in my time, but nothing has ever topped my setup when it was built around TAD speakers. They are in their own league.

I've demo'd the Mola Mola mono's and they are indeed great mono's. Unfortunately i never had the opportunity to run TAD electronics. I think it would be hard to beat the quality of TAD and the natural synergy of the electronics and speakers 👍

Thanks for the feedback guys. 

TheJT, I agree it is a beautiful looking setup, and since getting the onboard Tambaqui, I feel it looks much better with just the monoblocks either side. Oh and its wife friendly as it does not look like a big heavy electric convection heater.

Wikeeboy, I agree and I am really quite surprised how good TAD speakers sound, I have heard many say that if you ever hit the pinnacle of their R1 speakers you would never look back. I am fortunate in that my local dealer does have these on demo and I have heard them, matched up with the Gryphon Apex monoblock they really are special, but that is just a pipe dreams and sky high prices.

I was really fortunate in being able to acquire the CE1's as had been damaged in transit,  the olive wood veneer  damaged in one corner, this is hardly noticeable and makes no difference to the sound. I am now in a similar situation with the TAD M2500Mk2 which is an ex demo unit and has several dealership scuffs, I could probably get the casing something I could get sorted. The Makua amp is now fully loaded and it one killer of a pre amp having Tambaqui streaming capability and a reference grade phono stage. I have no plans in changing this but the more I listen to the TAD power amp, the more I come to appreciate it. It really does add speed and timing to anything I throw at it, stereo imaging is very precise and solid, but its looks boring and is bloody heavy weighing at just 43kg. For a class D amp that is very impressive and to be honest that is the best class D amp I have heard. I swapped back once again to the Kuluga's, and for the first few seconds felt relieved that they did not sound too bad after all, then started to realise that the sound was more dry and lifeless. They are bloody good monoblocks, but they are not the same level. I am now regretting having borrowed the TAD as it really does drive those speakers beautifully and matched up with a decent source, it is quite addictive. So, symerty could be out the window in preference to sound.

I am going to have to have a long chat with my dealership, maybe I can suggest  Christmas spirit and good will to all men.

Why did I have to borrow that amp, maybe I can erase the last few weeks from my memory and pretend it never happened 😀

24 minutes ago, Urbinator said:

Thanks for the feedback guys. 

TheJT, I agree it is a beautiful looking setup, and since getting the onboard Tambaqui, I feel it looks much better with just the monoblocks either side. Oh and its wife friendly as it does not look like a big heavy electric convection heater.

Wikeeboy, I agree and I am really quite surprised how good TAD speakers sound, I have heard many say that if you ever hit the pinnacle of their R1 speakers you would never look back. I am fortunate in that my local dealer does have these on demo and I have heard them, matched up with the Gryphon Apex monoblock they really are special, but that is just a pipe dreams and sky high prices.

I was really fortunate in being able to acquire the CE1's as had been damaged in transit,  the olive wood veneer  damaged in one corner, this is hardly noticeable and makes no difference to the sound. I am now in a similar situation with the TAD M2500Mk2 which is an ex demo unit and has several dealership scuffs, I could probably get the casing something I could get sorted. The Makua amp is now fully loaded and it one killer of a pre amp having Tambaqui streaming capability and a reference grade phono stage. I have no plans in changing this but the more I listen to the TAD power amp, the more I come to appreciate it. It really does add speed and timing to anything I throw at it, stereo imaging is very precise and solid, but its looks boring and is bloody heavy weighing at just 43kg. For a class D amp that is very impressive and to be honest that is the best class D amp I have heard. I swapped back once again to the Kuluga's, and for the first few seconds felt relieved that they did not sound too bad after all, then started to realise that the sound was more dry and lifeless. They are bloody good monoblocks, but they are not the same level. I am now regretting having borrowed the TAD as it really does drive those speakers beautifully and matched up with a decent source, it is quite addictive. So, symerty could be out the window in preference to sound.

I am going to have to have a long chat with my dealership, maybe I can suggest  Christmas spirit and good will to all men.

Why did I have to borrow that amp, maybe I can erase the last few weeks from my memory and pretend it never happened 😀

 

😂😂 The dealers know exactly what they're doing when they let you demo a TAD product!! No unhearing what's been heard

 

With regards to the R1, i have had several good listening sessions at a friends house. They are for sure an end game speaker. Don't feel too left out though with your CE1's. I've owned the E1's and CR1's and it all comes down to your room. The R1's might not be the right fit for your room. They need space to breathe. In most real world applications (rooms), the CE1/CR1/E1 are breathtaking and possibly greater room matches.

 

I am a big fan of the fully loaded Mola Mola Makua (w/ Dac & Phono). I think you've got a cracking front end there. With regards to the amps.... i'd go the TAD 😁

 

 

 

On 16/12/2022 at 9:03 AM, wikeeboy said:

 

😂😂 The dealers know exactly what they're doing when they let you demo a TAD product!! No unhearing what's been heard

 

With regards to the R1, i have had several good listening sessions at a friends house. They are for sure an end game speaker. Don't feel too left out though with your CE1's. I've owned the E1's and CR1's and it all comes down to your room. The R1's might not be the right fit for your room. They need space to breathe. In most real world applications (rooms), the CE1/CR1/E1 are breathtaking and possibly greater room matches.

 

I am a big fan of the fully loaded Mola Mola Makua (w/ Dac & Phono). I think you've got a cracking front end there. With regards to the amps.... i'd go the TAD 😁

 

 

 

I know; curiosity and a generous dealer make for an expensive pastime. I went in curious about the TAD M1000 and wandered out with the M2500 as it was used stock. The M1000 would still be my choice; it is pretty much the same device but with a lighter chassis and slightly improved internals, plus it is considerably cheaper. The cost of the M2500 seems to have gone into the colossal twin 1kva toroidal transformers and "cut from a solid 90kg aluminium block" chassis.

I should know by now that ignorance is always bliss. But that does not go hand in hand with this hobby.

I have seen the R1's in person, and they are big; there is no way they would ever suit our living room. I agree the CE1s are more room and partner-friendly, although the base plinths seem overly large for the speaker's size. So, I hope they will be my end game for as long as we are in this home.

Thank you, The Makua always pleases me every time I spark it up. It is a killer pre-amp and digital source. But there are some quirks; changes to the volume are not subtle, and you hear the chatter as the micro relays volume control adjusts to its new position. I feel the Makua never really gets much attention; the limelight seems to be hogged by its sibling, the Kula.