I am also impressed with the body and soul of the 125's. They have an effortlessness to them that defies there diminutive size. They have heavy competition as I am having a runoff between them and a very well-respected SS mondo amp. They are holding their own pretty nicely but I am still in the middle of the eval this week. Stay tuned.
TAD-125 Monoblocks
Category: Amplifiers
Rest of System:
Vandersteen 2CE signatures
Eastern Electric CD
TAD-150 Signature
Project Perspective TT
Chinese ICs bought from local rep
Two PCables from Joe Chow
Most people are aware of Bizzy Bee Audo or Tube Audio Design by now owned by Paul Gryzbek. Paul has put out some pretty amazing products. Many of you have read the reviews on his TAD-150, 1000 and 60. The TAD-125 is certainly worthy of some scruitiny.
Paul has two levels of this amp. "Chicken on the Hibachi" which is the bare bones amp with some Mods and "Beef on the Hibachi" which Paul calls his beefed up version. I have the beefed up version. I won't go into the specs as they can be had at Paul's website. They are Piano black and weigh only 17 # each. Don't expect to save money on your heating bill as they tend only to become moderately warm to the touch.
Understand that I have not had a great deal of experience with the real high priced expensive stuff but, I have had enough "step ups" to at least give a prespective from a relitively modest level. Also, I listen mostly to classic rock so I tend to like systems that put the music up front with a lively pulse.
The claim is that these monos are a tube lovers delight. Well, since I have a tube source and front end I am a bit ahead of the game.
The first thing that I noticed in listening to the Stones CD " Jump Back" is that the music spreads out vertically and horizontally like no other amp that I have ever heard at any price. Keep in mind that the songs recorded on this CD are 30-40 years old. One can feel the air in front and can't help tapping one's feet to the beat. The more I turn up the volume, the more it spreads out.
The sound is warm but, not laid back. Hard to detect any solid state character in my set up. I have Vandersteen's which people tend to classify as laid back. Not with these monos. Very lively up front in your face with excellent air and nice decay. I had a class D 500 watt amp to test side by side (won't mention name) and the TAD-125 won hands down. While the class-D amp came close on detail and musicality, it could not compete in the area of imaging and soundstaging.
Anyway, curious to see other people's views but, these monos are a keeper. The synergy may not be for everyone but, they are a great match for these "laid back" Vandys.
Rest of System:
Vandersteen 2CE signatures
Eastern Electric CD
TAD-150 Signature
Project Perspective TT
Chinese ICs bought from local rep
Two PCables from Joe Chow
Most people are aware of Bizzy Bee Audo or Tube Audio Design by now owned by Paul Gryzbek. Paul has put out some pretty amazing products. Many of you have read the reviews on his TAD-150, 1000 and 60. The TAD-125 is certainly worthy of some scruitiny.
Paul has two levels of this amp. "Chicken on the Hibachi" which is the bare bones amp with some Mods and "Beef on the Hibachi" which Paul calls his beefed up version. I have the beefed up version. I won't go into the specs as they can be had at Paul's website. They are Piano black and weigh only 17 # each. Don't expect to save money on your heating bill as they tend only to become moderately warm to the touch.
Understand that I have not had a great deal of experience with the real high priced expensive stuff but, I have had enough "step ups" to at least give a prespective from a relitively modest level. Also, I listen mostly to classic rock so I tend to like systems that put the music up front with a lively pulse.
The claim is that these monos are a tube lovers delight. Well, since I have a tube source and front end I am a bit ahead of the game.
The first thing that I noticed in listening to the Stones CD " Jump Back" is that the music spreads out vertically and horizontally like no other amp that I have ever heard at any price. Keep in mind that the songs recorded on this CD are 30-40 years old. One can feel the air in front and can't help tapping one's feet to the beat. The more I turn up the volume, the more it spreads out.
The sound is warm but, not laid back. Hard to detect any solid state character in my set up. I have Vandersteen's which people tend to classify as laid back. Not with these monos. Very lively up front in your face with excellent air and nice decay. I had a class D 500 watt amp to test side by side (won't mention name) and the TAD-125 won hands down. While the class-D amp came close on detail and musicality, it could not compete in the area of imaging and soundstaging.
Anyway, curious to see other people's views but, these monos are a keeper. The synergy may not be for everyone but, they are a great match for these "laid back" Vandys.
7 responses Add your response