TAD Reference loudspeakers-How good are they?

i heard the tad 1s when they were introduced at ces ,in 2004 or so. they were only a beta type , with more design time and resources to spend on the design. these speakers were incredible ,but not a finished, complete product.i've been following them since...with great admiration , i must admit........
at this year's ces the ref.1s were simply transformational with their sound- vey musical and engaging.
these speakers should be on anyone's short list of state- of the art designed speakers.

The feedback on the TAD's from RMAF 2010 is very positive. IMO & IME I find them overall excellent speakers with the typical advantages and disadvantages of Be drivers. That is detailed and needing very fine amplification to sound their best. Not tolerant of a weak upstream chain. If all is set up well; (Sirspeedy's recommendation of Pass XA200 sounds spot on) these might deliver all that one desires from a dyanamic speaker. They do need power and are not a warm or colored speaker. High power tube amplification might be an interesting match to consider but I have not heard. I would definitely put TAD on a short list for a top 10 speaker of all time at any price. But it needs to be listened to as it might be too neutral for some. I still prefer my Maxx IIs overall but I like a little color.

i'm interested too---but they have like no dealers in the US, so an impossible chore even if i could afford them.

Audio Video Logic, out od Des Moines, Iowa just picked up TAD. They are an excellent and trusted dealer and a long time member of Audiogon. Give John or Mike a call.

_Ben

Hello Rtn1,

Sounds like a very good speaker, are they better than the Avalons?

regards,

How much are the TAD1?