"hificlass" grants BEST BUY and 5 stars to our Platinum F-100 v.3 loudspeakers!

TAGA Harmony F-100 v.3 combines the way precise monitors play with the openness and freedom sound of three-way speakers.

The Platinum F-100 v.3 loudspeaker is an exceptionally successful product… The sound combines features typical for small bookshelf speakers as well as for larger, more complex floorstanding designs. Just a few producers have succeed in that, so TAGA Harmony deserves even more recognition.

In the sound of the F-100 v.3, you can feel energy, dynamics and vitality regardless of the musical genre. It does not matter whether they are driven by a tube amplifier, such as the Leben CS-300F with a power of only 15 watts per channel, or by a strong hybrid, such as the TAGA Harmony HTA-1000B, offering as much as 144W at 4 ohms. With both, these loudspeakers sounded as if they wanted to extract the greatest dynamic potential from each and every sound.

In the music of Jan Garbarek, the reproduction of weaker and stronger transients was not a big challenge for the F-100 v.3. The sound was constantly pulsating with energy and was highlighted by a clearly defined line between sounds reproduced in the micro and macro scale. The great phase coherence between the speakers, as I wrote earlier, translates directly into the reproduction of the sound stage.

TAGA Harmony sounds in a direct way with an above-average clear foreground. The depth of the stage is also amazing, especially in the classical and jazz music. The sound is full, saturated, and the instruments are reproduced almost in their natural size. The dynamics, spaciousness of the sound and order on the stage are undoubtedly the strengths of these speakers. It was especially audible in Mike Oldfield's music, on albums such as "Amarok" and "The Songs Of Distant Earth", and thus sensational records.

The F-100 v.3 will like tube amplifiers as they are speakers susceptible to their sonic characteristics, which is proved by the configuration with the Leben CS-300F. The sound in the midrange was characterized by an exceptionally clear vocal message, but also a highly saturated and vivid timbre. The Leben brought a bit of warmth and brightness to the sound, especially on the line of medium and high tones. In turn, the upper registers were characterized by reliably reproduced dynamics, which is typical for tweeters equipped with a titanium or aluminum dome. However, I must point out that the F-100 v.3 does not exceed a certain limit related to the excessively aggressive transmission of high tones, which is undoubtedly influenced by the refined construction of the dome suspension and the way the tweeter is tuned.

In the treble range, these loudspeakers are among the most transparent I have dealt with (at this price level). Therefore, one should avoid amplifiers characterized by a bright sound, excessively exposing the upper registers. Designs that offer a vivid and balanced presentation are preferred, because only then will we be able to enjoy the high-quality sound that these three-way floorstanders are able to offer us.

Because the F-100 v.3 is equipped with two woofers, supported by the bass-reflex port on the front, bass lovers will certainly not complain about its lack. The bass range is reproduced with adequate power and dynamics.

Moreover, it is so diverse that, even in complex instrumental parts, it is able to bring out the full potential of instruments operating in the bass range. The 30Hz range is impressive and completely sufficient to recreate the sound of the double bass in the pieces of Patricia Barber or the extremely complex and rich bass line in the pieces of Lars Danielsson from the album "Libera Me".

The F-100 v.3 plays freely in the bass area. The speakers are free from excessive coloration resulting from improperly selected tuning of the resonance tunnel or mistakes made while adapting the internal damping. In these loudspeakers, every detail of the construction has been subordinated to the goal of obtaining the best possible sound and I can say that this has been achieved.