TAD ME1 Stand-Mount Speaker Review

But description aside, The TAD ME1 is designed to give optimal full frequency performance in a cabinet that takes up no more space than a modest tower speaker.

Though this speaker is called Micro Evolution, it is considerably larger and heavier than some of the bookshelf speakers I have reviewed. For example, the Dali Menuet SE is slightly bigger than a shoebox and weighs a fifth of the ME1. To achieve the design goal of a compact speaker that delivers close to full-range audio, TAD has employed a 16cm woofer with a 9cm Coherent Source Transducer (CTS) Driver to provide razor-sharp imaging. To get deeper bass from a smaller cabinet enclosure, The TAD ME1 also has a Bi-Directional Aero-Dynamic Slot (ADS) port on each side of the speaker enclosure. Instead of a front or rear-firing bass port. The slot allows for the speaker to be placed closer to the front wall and virtually eliminates port chuffing when played at higher volumes. The speaker stands are incorporated into the speakers and provide optimal listening height and a solid stable platform. The ME1 comes in a piano black or silver titanium finish.

Technical Audio Devices (TAD) Laboratories is the only high-end Japanese audio manufacturer that specializes in audio components and speaker systems. Also in their product lineup are pre-amplifiers, SACD/CD players, power amplifiers, and a DAC. They have over 40 years of experience in design and innovation. The ME1s share design DNA with the first set of speakers I reviewed for SECRETS back in 2010, Pioneer’s S-2EX monitors. They were partially developed by the legendary designer Andrew Jones. Pioneer has been in the speaker business for over 75 years.

The TAD ME1s are a three-way bass reflex speaker that have a similar driver complement, but the cabinet is not tapered like the S-2EX. The use of beryllium, which is one of the most rigid and lightest metals, gives the coherent source drivers tweeter the ability to reproduce a very high-frequency response up to 100kHz, while the shallow, yet large-diameter midrange can go down as low as 250Hz. The Evolution series consists of the floor standers Evolution One and Two as well as the Micro and Compact Evolution Ones.

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My speakers and stands arrived on a well-wrapped pallet that was placed in my garage. I had to hand-carry each component up to my second-floor media room and I am glad the speaker stands were broken down. Once I had everything up in my room, I moved aside my Sonus faber Sonetto V towers and placed the ST3 stand bases in their footprint. I decided not to use the supplied spikes to protect my hardwood floors and give me optimal flexibility to position the speakers, once assembled.

The stands are made of steel and are heavy and solid. The top board has pre-drilled holes for the speakers to bolt into. The struts have speaker cable clamps along the backside so nothing going from the floor to the back of the speakers needs to be seen. Once in place, I did some minor tweaking with toe-in and remeasured all my distances. These speakers and stands, once assembled, are heavy. The plus side is that they were very stable, and I never felt they would topple if I brushed against them. If you place these on carpeting, I suggest using a couple of those round nylon furniture moving sliders you can get at Home Depot. The speakers are hard to move and minor adjustments in their placement work better if you can slide them. The supplied spikes are great if you are planning on keeping them in place for a long time, and they also provide a bit more height.

I placed the TAD ME1s about a foot and a half out from my front wall with the nearest side wall over five feet away. Speaker cables were Blue Jeans 10 gauge, and components were a Marantz SR 6015 AV Receiver, Oppo UDP-203 disc player, and PS Audio Perfectwave DSD DAC which streams my Qobuz account. Amplifiers were Emotiva UPA-1 200-watt monoblocks. I supplemented the bass with an SVS 3000 Micro sub-woofer which looked like it was designed with the ME1s in mind with its piano black finish and slightly rounded edges.

Once I had all the speaker stands assembled (about half an hours’ work with a screwdriver), I mounted the speakers onto the stands and connected them to my amps. I had them pre-positioned as their combined weight made them a bit difficult to fine-tune. When I stepped back to admire my ingenuity, I was struck by how beautiful the ME1s looked. They stood as tall as my Sonettos, but their physical appearance made them look like they were taking up much less real estate. Firing them up for the first time, I was struck by their big sound. My initial impressions were broad uncongested midrange with a smooth and sparkling treble.

The Bass was tight and accurate but did not seem prominent below 30Hz. My feeling was that to create a solid, natural mid-bass presentation, some sacrifice had to be made on the very extreme low end. The bass was tight and clean but lacked the deep punch of a bigger volume speaker. Voices, both male and female, sounded quite good. Triangles and snare drums had bite and sparkle. Imaging was, as I expected from the point-source driver, exceptional. The sound stage was broad and deep. These speakers do not come with grilles, but I think they looked their best naked. If you have little tots with inquisitive fingers, that could be a problem, but not for me. The piano black gloss finish really makes the ME1s look expensive, which they are, relatively speaking. Fortunately, they sound gorgeous whether reproducing a grand piano or a full-scale orchestra.

The TAD ME1s aren’t inexpensive, but they are a handsome pair of speakers that exude quality in their build and excellence in their ability to reproduce clean, accurate sound.

TAD has put a lot of R&D into creating a compact stand-mount speaker. The ME1s look high quality and sound remarkable for their size. If you don’t like larger towers in your media room, these might be what you are looking for. When mated with a small sub, you have a two-channel music system that sounds amazingly large. I can only imagine what the ME1s larger brothers sound like!