TIDAL AP1

With the AP1, Tidal Audio threatens to completely reset the price/performance ratio of the ultra high end sector. With £500,000+ loudspeaker launches becoming almost de rigeur in todays market – not to mention elaborate preamp and monoamps costing at least half as much again – Tidal releases a trickle down Bugatti Royale with limitless headroom, speed and dynamics, and state of the art levels of transparency and purity, for under £200,000 ! Not only that but inside each enclosure lives the very best active amplification that Tidal can build, again derived from the Tidal for Bugatti project. Almost a whole system then, just add the Contros or Bugatti MC1 controller for a one box setup that very comfortably sits at the current final frontier of home audio reproduction.

Tidal Audio have paved a new and unique path. Beginning at Munich High End 2023, they clearly demonstrated with the Tidal for Bugatti system that a whole wall of boxes and cables and a million pound budget is no longer necessary to build what was for many expert’s ears, the greatest sound of that show. Now that same single box form factor and sound quality, is available in an even more affordable pure Tidal form.

TIDAL AP1
Tidal Piano lacquer: Midnight Black £189,000
Tidal Piano Veneer Lacquer: Macassar / Cloud Macassar / Cloud Rosewood / Mahogany £199,000

“Unfolding TIDAL excellence in electronics and loudspeaker design and bringing it together into a new masterpiece – the AP1.
It brings the TIDAL x Bugatti Royale concept into the timeless and unmistakable design language of classic TIDAL loudspeakers. It is a fully powered loudspeaker unlike any other technical concept on the market. With unique speaker drivers paired with equally distinctive power amplification, the AP1 is designed for a seamless plug-and-play performance.

Four omni-polar radiating long-stroke subwoofers, each operating at different crossover frequency points, reproduce the deepest frequencies with exceptional precision. And seamlessly integrate with the four high-efficiency front drivers. These front drivers include two long-excursion woofers, a midrange driver, and a diamond tweeter. Each is custom-built for its specific frequency range and unique role in shaping the AP1’s sonic composition.

To ensure optimal positioning and structural rigidity, all drivers are mounted within a sealed cabinet crafted from the latest generation of our proprietary TIRALIT™ material. Each driver is housed in a hermetically isolated chamber and mounted to a constraint-layer sandwich construction out of aluminum, stainless steel, and TIRALIT™. But this is just the beginning – the real challenge lies in seamlessly merging all elements without the drawbacks of traditional active or passive speakers. The Royale truly paved the way for what we transported into the AP1.

Unlike conventional active speaker designs, the AP1 employs our unique hybrid amplification, integrating different technologies for each frequency range—adhering to our general topology principles that have earned our masterpieces a global reputation. Every signal path remains 100% analog and as short as possible. There is no DSP, AD/DA conversion, or equalizing to compensate for compromises, only to introduce new ones.

The result is eight highly specialized drivers perfectly mounted, seamlessly fused, and amplified into the closest possible approximation of a single, invisible point source with almost endless dynamic headroom. Yet, despite its advanced engineering, the AP1 is designed for effortless usability since it adapts to small and large rooms, whether placed close to a wall or freestanding, with two easy adjustments.

The AP1 is one of the most ambitious projects we’ve ever brought to life—for many reasons. But first and foremost, it delivers a level of performance and results that was once thought unthinkable—not because of what it offers within its given design and concept—but because of it.

And to address the tiny elephant in the room regarding its name, as it stands out a bit from the usual nomenclature of TIDAL speakers: Does AP stand for Active Powered? No—AP1 stands for the statement behind it, being so much more: Amplified Performance, First of its kind.”

4 way closed box design
multi chamber cabinet made out of TIDAL’s proprietary cabinet material TIRALIT™
1 x 30 mm (1,2″) diamond diaphragm tweeter, high efficiency neodymium motor
1 x 80 mm black ceramic diaphragm midrange-woofer, short-coil/long-gap high-efficiency neodymium motor
tweeter and midrange-woofer mounted into 25mm/1″ stainless steel front, mechanically decoupled
2 x 170 mm (7″) aluminum-magnesium woofers, high-efficiency neodymium motor, constraint-layer mounted (TIRALIT™-aluminum sandwich design)
4 x 260 mm long excursion subwoofers with aluminum-diaphragm, constraint-layer mounted (TIRALIT™-aluminum sandwich design)
TIDAL hybrid amplification module without capacitors in the signal way
pure analog signal amplification paths
hermetically closed amplification cabinet, contraint-layer mounted
protection control outside the signal way
analog XLR input
LAN input for TIDAL remote power on/off control (for TIDAL Contros, TIDAL Prisma, TIDAL Camira LC, TIDAL X Bugatti MC-1 and TIDAL x Bugatti MP1)
bass response adjustment: TONE (five specific filter curves) and LEVEL
cabinet finish: original TIDAL piano lacquer in midnight black or polished veneers in transparent TIDAL piano lacquer
metal parts: polished stainless steel
special requests for metal surfaces of choice possible and optional
dimensions without stand-bars and isolators: H 158 cm / W 32 cm / D 58 cm (H 62″ x W 12.6″ x D 22.8″)
163 cm (64″) height with stand-bars and isolators
footprint with stand-bars: W 59 cm x D 64cm (W 23″ x D 25″)
speaker weight without packaging: 2 x 205 Kg / 2 x 451 lbs.
shipping weight with packaging: 2 x 271 Kg / 2 x 598 lbs.
shipping dimensions: 2 x L 188 cm x W 80 cm x H 93 cm