Replacing Forests???

Jh2os. Thanks mucho. I also have an I-5, so your volume control metrics make total sense to me. With my vandersteen 1c's, I usually listen to music with the I-5's volume 18-23, when I want to go loud, it's at 25. The vandy's are rated 90db at 6.8ohms nominal.

What I have to add next could shed some light on your blown Forest woofer situation, although it's a little late for you. Once upon at time the red warning light on my I-5 was triggered. After also conversing with Sim Audio, and swapping out cd players, it was definitively determined that this was due to DC offset from a CD player I had at the time. I was able to make that light come on whenever the cd player was turned on and I turned the volume up on the I-5 past 30 or so, even if a cd was not in the player (i.e. no music was playing).

Since then, with a Sim Nova replacing the cd player that had the DC offset, I have never-ever seen that warning light. I don't expect to see it with the Hawks I am getting (better not!) either. From the little I know (and I know just a little), DC offset is usually caused from something else in your system, not the speakers, and it could have maybe blown your Forest's woofers; it was not likely the I-5 (admittedly, I am not knowledgeable about this electrical stuff, but am basing my comments on my personal experience and email exchanges with Sim Audio, who were most helpful). It could have been another component in your stream, like it was for me with my cd player that caused your DC offset (and FYI, using a voltmeter, the technician later confirmed my cd player was indeed emitting DC).

i sold Totem for 2 years and I can say without hesitation that Beheme comments towards the 'Hawk' driver being fragile is garbage. Type in Scan-Speak Revelator in any DIY community forum. I remember in early 2004 we had the Hawks doing HT duty in a 15x25 room powered by Bryston Monoblcoks and the Hawks performed without a hitch. Yes there are mechanical limitations, but this hogwash about them being "too fragile" for HT is simply not true.

Oh, and Jh2os, thanks for testing the levels with your db meter.

Grakesh: what I am about to say is very relative to one's ear but Cary and VTL are not, in general for me at least, your typical lush warmish sounding tube gear (not a CJ) and they can have a more "neutral" sound than some solid state. The dealer I used to buy Totem from would play the Hawks with YBA, SimAudio and Shanling. With the right cable (make it rather lean-clean), the Hawk-Shanling was exceptional while the combo with YBA was not seducing.
I would agree with Jh2os that Hawk can be non-involving sometimes and I do not consider these to be warm speakers.

There are so many factors to consider that my comment on the Cary-Hawk may not fit the bill for others...but it did for me. Their exceptional midrange coupled with the immediacy of the right tube was truly exceptional. When I moved out to the AP Yara, I lost a tad of midrange magic but gained in overall robustness, slam and versatility.

In any case, in a small room with tube gear for 2ch audio only, Hawk are great speakers. Especially at CDN retail prices.... But they are not alone out there!

Walkman, our components are identical then. Simaudio did mention to check all connections as it could be a source component as well. Thinking about it, the light only ever came on while using the Sony 999ES as a source. I have cranked music through the Nova as high as 35 (too loud to listen to for long) with no indication of that light as all. Perhaps the Sony is the culprit???

I will do some db measurements here in a little bit...