Tidal Speakers owners

Hi,

my name is Jörn, designer behind TIDAL and I just want to add some general things to this thread if I may, maybe I am able to answer some questions I see here repeating:

In general, it is nice to read from enthusiastic owners comments who want to share their experiences. As in every other field of men’s toys one finds “fans” and those who are fans of other brands or products. Which is fine, since in the end of the day it will never stop to have fun with arguing about different products and philosophies. We just believe that it makes no sense trying to sell someone who prefers “blue” sounding audio equipment “red” sounding one or fight about what is better. Our products for e.g. are in fact not for everybody in terms of how they sound (and maybe even look), neither we do have the intention making people believe that we do offer the holy grail nor is it “cult”, “the next big thing” or any of that. We try to avoid that. All audio equipment does have more or less a specific texture, a signature or easy spoken – a colour. Everyone can find his very own favourite colour in this wonderful big jungle of products, TIDAL is just for those who like the TIDAL-colour so to say, whatever colour that would be.

If one is saying the Contriva Diacera does sound better then a Sunray, then one is absolutely right: if one heard it in the setup one liked more, in a better room, with better software and just the way one prefers how a system should sound like, then this is true. It is as true as some other say the small Amea did sounded better then a Contriva - under the same circumstances as listed before. We do know better Piano Cera setups then some Contriva Diacera setups. But if one likes to know the direct difference, then one needs to compare it under the same (!) circumstances. In that case the ranking of the performance of the speakers is going hand in hand with the size of our speakers. We know Sunray setups sounding that realistic that a Contriva Diacera is in the best case “mediocre” after it. The Sunray is more accurate in any way and just more realistic then a Contriva Diacera (both can cover about the same size of rooms form the acoustical point) – at the same position, same software, same chain. A Contriva Diacera does not have the slightest chance then. By fact, not be feel. But: how one likes that deeper insight into the chain/recording is again on a different sheet of paper – and this is the point.

If it comes to our black ceramic drivers, we just need to reserve the right to know more about it then someone else. We can assure there is a difference, things one can easily measure. Black or silver anodized aluminium makes no difference, it is both time anodized, I agree. But an additional coating does change things, things we do take care of in return into our filter design. But is the black coating the reason why they do sound different then maybe in other manufacturers designs? For sure not (alone). It is the complex interaction between the driver itself and the adapted x-over (and actually even many things more). It just plays its little part within a “clockwork” of all the things we thought thru when we do offer a speaker. So it makes no sense to argue about black or white ceramic drivers and looking for simple answers out of it, as well out of other single components, especially without a real deep view insight. Trying to bring things down to some parts and making conclusions out of it is as sensible as guessing how the wine is/will be based on the grapes.
A client just needs to trust that a manufacturer does his best for him anyway, just to offer a product which is in a positive way special enough to end up some day in a living room. If one does not trust the manufacturer or does not like the result one hears – then there are plenty of other options. Building own stuff or looking for something else are just two possibilities.

I think threads should be more about sharing personal experiences, not about hypotheses or absolute judgements, fanatic missions to teach others with what one likes the most. I remember a great thread here only written by guys sharing their experiences and then it was erased since some guys started again with the same old boring “no, THIS is the best and YOU(R equipment) stink(s)”-story… One last thing from a personal side: if there are objective technical questions about a product, just ask guys who do know the product the best, which could be the manufacturer or the dealer/importer of your trust.

Enjoy your equipment, whatever it is making you happy :-)!

Thanks for your response Jorn. I couldn't agree with you more. There are many choices out there for everyone to build a system that is just right for them. Each component I have in my system along with my choice to purchase Tidal speakers is based on, yes, some input from others opinions and perspectives, but ultimately what I personally like. Why some find it necessary to disparage others choices is something I do not understand.

I really enjoy reading others and sharing my own experiences with Tidal speakers and I sincerely hope this thread gets back to that. I would suggest that others who do not share the same enthusiasm for Tidal products should start a similar thread for their own products which they enjoy.

Quanmer, Let me first say that I am by no means an audiophile and I will admit that I am pretty ignorant about much in the field of audio reproduction. I am, though, a music lover. The most important thing when listening to the reproduction of music for me is how natural it sounds to my ears. I say "my ears" because what sounds natural to me may not sound natural to someone else.

That being said for several months now I have been looking to upgrade from my Gallo 3.5 speakers. I really enjoy the Gallo's but I did want a pair of speakers that were more expansive when playing symphonic music.

I live in a moderately sized condo so when researching different speakers the size of the footprint was the first criteria I used when choosing or eliminating speakers from which to choose. There are many excellent speakers out there but if they are too big I just could not use them.

Next, through reading reviews, owners impressions and in only a couple of listenings I looked for speakers with, again to my ears, the most natural sound. Natural to me is what music actually sounds like in real life. There are speakers that can give overly romanticized or beautiful sound, that "leaves a tear in my eye" sound. That is not for me. I have listened to the Boston Symphony Orchestra numerous times along with listening to several smaller concerts at Jordan Hall here in Boston. No matter how beautiful the music and how much it moved me it never gave me that "tear in my eye". This may not be clear to anyone but myself. Next there are speakers that separate every note and performer to the point that instead of hearing a whole you end up listening to each note and performer individually. I find this highly distracting and again, not natural. In my experience music in real life has notes and performers overlapping and melding together creating a whole. Along this same line imaging is neat but the overall soundstage is more important to me especially when listening to symphonic or "wall of sound" rock music. I want to hear a 3d or real life soundstage. What was really impressive with the Piano's was I could feel the ambiance of the venue where the recording was done on live material. My only other audition was of the Magico V2, a very fine speaker. It was very detailed but somewhat dry to my ears. This can be very seductive but for me not natural and not something I would want to listen to on an ongoing basis.

Next, price. I was comfortably willing to go up to $35K. Beyond that price limit would have made me uncomfortable. Simple as that.

Bottom line the Tidal Piano's more than met all the criteria I listed above. I am really looking forward to how they sound in my listening area. At that time I will give my impressions of them in greated detail.

Hello, I’m a Tidal Contriva owner and not an active (writing) Audiogonner, but I’m reading this forum for over a year now. English is not my mother language but can read and write Fortran and Pascal very well. I’m a music lover over 40 years and have experience with audio apparatus as well.
I did also play the bedroom guitar (acoustic and electric) and love this instrument and know how is must sound. Here are my findings about the remarkable Tidal Contriva (Not the SE or Diacera):

The speaker has very, very little or no sound made by itself and is one of the very few, which can make a very realistic view of the performers in depth, width and height and get the dynamics right.
This was always a compromise, or there was space and depth and little dynamics or there was great dynamics but no relation to space and depth.
Most speakers with great dynamics do emphasize the first attack and do a bad job with the signal after this first shot. Smash in your face and no real space and depth.
Phase shifts in the signal are responsible for the “Place in Space” and the brain does the calculations with this information and not so much with the relative loudness of the signal. When this is not correct, the brain is working overtime to correct and compensate this (mis) -information. Speakers which are more right in time and space (filters with respect to phase) are less “real life dynamic”, again the brain in uncomfortable with the smoother dynamics and interpreted this as less realistic.
For me this was resulting in buying the Avalon Opus (4-way) (after IMF, B&W, Thiel and more) and feed them with one of the fastest amplifier in the world: the Atma-Sphere MA1. For years this was very involving for me, but then I was beginning to miss the dynamics such as produced by Wilson Audio. Changing cables or amplifiers didn’t add any speed.
I do have two separate (both shielded and balanced) 230 VAC circuits with old fashioned circuit breakers (silver, copper and/or gold fuses) and a dedicated to audio only ground pin, 28 meters (92 feet) in the Dutch clay, and all this doesn’t make the Opus any faster. Yes there is more “gestalt” and the total picture is more life but not live. You can hear all the differences and they worked out very well and makes listening more pleasant. I have done almost anything to the acoustics which is possible in a normal medium sized family living room and end up with 2 large tube traps behind the curtains, carpets on the floor and walls, a air suspended audio rack and the use of Zilplex (a better and less costly alternative for the acoustic system resonators). And to make a long story a little shorter: I found all this “wanted audio aspects” in a speaker from the “unknown” TIDAL company.
I contacted Jörn for just over a year ago and this did result in buying the Contriva in 2011. Jörn and his right-hand Felix personally delivered and installed the Contriva’s in my living room. The Contriva’s are revealing, fast and spacious and oh so naturally sounding. No sound of there own, real dynamics (at low and high volumes). No ceramic sound, but it differs of course from the less stiffer paper cones. The result of using Accuton (Thiel & Partner) is Imo that you can hear more micro information while the cone is doing the macro dynamics and that (with a well engineered filter network) the phase relationship is not corrupted. This means that you can hear a cymbal in space like in the real world: explosive and with all that beautiful “tingle”, “tangle” and “shimmering” and staying on the same position. Not so perfect (engineered) speakers can’t do that and throws the sound (for a short while) in front of the speakers, moving back to the original position after the pulse (attack) is gone and giving the space related micro information again, not disturbed by the large scaled dynamics.
My brain is not working in overload anymore, at least a lot less then before the Tidal Contriva’s.
Sometimes it just appears if the music is going a little bit slower then before, I mean that a second is lasting a fraction longer then before. It’s more relaxing, involving and not tracking attention to itself or it should be the perfect piano lacquer and the beautiful lines of the mighty Contriva.

Regards
Robert (Maceear)

Hello Maceear!

Excellent description of the Tidal sound. What you mention about music sounding slow is something I have noticed so many times with my Piano Cera. But at the end of the day it is just real sounding, satisfying and engaging.

Happy Listening,

Mike