![]() And to a large extent, my time with the CE1 felt like a reunion with an old and faithful friend. The primary question is just how much of the CR1’s performance and musicality has made the transition to the CE1? Short answer: quite a bit. The stands just don’t complement the style of the monitor. They have such a large plinth that the CE1’s footprint ends up being bigger than that of either the E1 or even the CR1. Less than inspiring are the awkward single-post floor stands (optional). (The CR1 uses a larger 4″ coil.) Crossover points are set at 250Hz and 2kHz. The cone is coupled to a 3″ voice coil with a powerful neodymium magnet. The 7″ woofer uses a diaphragm made of layers of laminated woven and non-woven fabric. A 5.5″ magnesium midrange has been substituted for the far more costly 6.5″ beryllium unit of the Reference line. Manufactured in the company’s Japanese factory (as are all TAD drivers), the tweeter dome is made by TAD’s own vapor-deposition process, a method that TAD argues yields a grain structure superior to conventional stamped beryllium domes. Always topping the marquee is the CST (Coherent Source Transducer), a proprietary coincident driver that uses the 1 3/8″ beryllium-dome tweeter of the Reference Series. The drivers will be familiar to TAD-watchers. In addition, optimization of the enclosure’s size and port layout are said to have eliminated standing waves up to 250Hz. A fascinating design, the symmetrical front-back, left-right layout extends vibrational damping and eliminates the effects of unwanted sound from a conventional circular or slotted port. The CE1’s physical strength and rigidity are evidenced in the new Bi-Directional ADS (aerodynamic slot) port, constructed of 10mm-thick anodized aluminum side panels with long, thin slots and flared openings to the front and rear. An attractive olive wood veneer vertically wraps around the front baffle, top and rear panel providing a nice contrast of surfaces. The three-way, bass-reflex enclosure, composed of a combination of birch plywood braces and MDF panels, is beautifully executed, however. The thorny issue of cost-containment likely guaranteed the conventional narrow-baffle-box approach. While surprising, the fact that the CE1 cabinet profile departs from the complex and expensive teardrop design of the CR1 is easily explained. The CE1 is less the result of an auteur’s vision than the previous models, and more of a group effort from the TAD design team led by Toru Nagatani. So much so that I was reminded of the line from the delivery-room doctor who, when the new dad worries that his baby doesn’t resemble him, says, “Well, at least we know who the mother is.” That’s the kind of switched-at-birth look the CE1 engenders. It turned out to be a complete departure. I assumed its look would adhere to the same conceptual page that produced earlier TAD efforts. I’m not going to lie: I was surprised when I gave the CE1 the once-over at its premiere at CES. Now enters its little brother, the Compact Evolution One or CE1. First out of the chute, however, was the Evolution One (E1), a delightful three-way floorstander-kind of a midi-version of TAD’s wide-body Reference Model One. My hope was that with the debut of TAD’s lower priced Evolution line a couple of years ago, the company would soon bring to market a more affordable three-way stand-mount to follow in the CR1’s footsteps. It is also among the most expensive stand-mount loudspeakers at a gulp-worthy $42,000 (with stands, at least)-pricey even for the well-heeled among us. In my view it owes the lion’s share of its success to two factors-TAD’s pure beryllium coincident driver technology, and the talent of its lead engineer Andrew Jones. Today it continues to represent state-of-the-art performance and a level of design and finish that leaves audiophiles breathless. When I reviewed it some years ago, the TAD Compact Reference or CR1 was the best stand-mount loudspeaker I’d ever heard in my room-or anyone else’s for that matter.
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