One of the outstanding benefits of the TD1.2 is their enormous soundstage - when set up correctly - which dwarfs many a full-grown floorstanding loudspeaker. This does not mean, however, that the TD1.2 will enlarge or even pull apart every recording to a CinemaScope widescreen format to the lateral limits of the loudspeaker. As evidence, let's listen to the beautiful recording of Franz Schubert's "Symphony No. 3" with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra conducted by William Steinberg (Schubert Symphony No. 3 and 8 - William Steinberg - Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra Spain - HDTT 24/352.8). Here, too, the TD1.2 produces a sound with great spatial depth, but the width of the soundstage doesn't quite reach the speakers - and so the proportions of the recording stay preserved. This is similar to black bars displayed on the left and right of the screen during the playback of a movie.

But with the TD1.2 you can listen to more than just classical music. A good example is "Nothing's Changed" (Joe Stilgoe: New Songs for Old Souls - Linn Records, 24/96): On this track Joe Stilgoe sings his way through a racy wall of brass, while the excellently captured drums really push forward. The horns sound lustrous, but without that overdrawn "bite" and Joe Stilgoe stands genuinely in the room in front of the orchestra excellently staggered in width and depth. In daily use, the TD1.2 proves to be a highly sensitive seismograph for any change in my system. Let me just give some examples: What happens if I use a Toslink cable for the connection between the router and my SOtM switch? What influence do the Ansuz Acoustics Sortz termination plugs have on noise at open inputs (a review is coming up)? Can I hear differences between the different quality levels of the plugs? Yes, the TD1.2 shows every little change as if under a magnifying glass. But lets rather immerge into the music once again.

What always catches my ear after a longer listening session is how playfully easy the TD1.2 reveal subtle details. We can set out to enjoy the relaxing mood with the TD1.2 on the album Remember Love by saxophonist Houston Person and bassist Ron Carter or listen more closely. Then in "Love Is Here to Stay" we hear not only the wind noise of the saxophone, but also how Houston Person takes a deep breath between the passages. But it’s not about these subtleties only that gets me excited about the TD1.2. It’s that certain something that is created by the extraordinarily realistic reproduction of voices and instruments. I contemplated at length about the best way to describe this characteristic feature of the TD1.2: "acutance" is the word which condenses the ability to not let the edges of instruments fade or become slightly blurred. That probably hits the mark best.