Totem Acoustic Forest Signatures

Vince only makes occasional upgrades to his speakers when warranted.  

Nutty, the platforms should make a huge improvement!  Should warm things up and allow for a more relaxed midrange and smoother treble.  Detail should be better and more well integrated into the soundstage, which should also be enhanced.  Low level information will also be more evident!

I’ve been a Forest owner for about ten years and have really enjoyed them. I’ve been looking for a pair of used cherry Signatures for the last few years, but without any luck. They are tough to find. I’m looking for a little more detail and resolution, particularly during dense musical passages. Currently I’m powering them with a Hegel h160. I’ve considered moving up to the h360. Since I can’t find any Signatures I thought that might get me closer to what I’m looking for. Can anyone describe what performance improvements they have had with a better, more powerful amp driving the Forests? Thanks

Hello scthom -
What speaker cable and interconnects are you using with the Hegel H160? Sources??

I’ve had my Forests for a similar length of time as you and have used half a dozen different amps with them over those years. Three of those amps make up the current "fleet". One is a Hegel H200 (200 wpc). I posted comments about Forests and power earlier in this thread. I could try to describe how the sound when driven by the 400 wpc Taranis differs from that with the Hegel (the Hegel is definitely warmer) but power is only a part of that story. One amp is Class A/B the other Class D. Excellent sound with the 20 wpc First Watt F7 underscores that there is something besides power at work shaping the sound.

All that as preamble to say, before you opt for more power - which might or might not get you where you want to go (depends in part on how the amp is voiced) - consider experimenting with the overall elevation and/or rake of the Forests. For a simple rake adjustment just remove the rear "balls" but leave the front one in place. I also found Paul Laudati’s Clear Day Double Shotgun speaker cable provided a big step change over what I’d been using (Morrow Audio SP4) in resolution and clarity while fleshing out the sound in a marked way. Currently using Cardas Parsec cabling.

I’m not trying to get into a dispute with owners who hold that more power is always the better option for the Forests. In general, I’d have to agree with that (the F7 being the exception to the rule, I suppose). Cleaner sound, deeper and better-controlled bass, improved image definition, greater clarity (the usual suspects) is what I heard moving away from 60-80 wpc tube amps to the current gear. But was the improvement simply a function of more watts or also the difference between tubes and SS? Worth noting I run all 3 amps (even the Hegel) with a 6SN7 tube pre-amp. Good luck in your pursuit.

Hi Ghosthouse,

Thanks so much for your input! I'm running Tidal/Roon through a Lumin D1 streamer with an upgraded power supply. It's connected to my Hegel with a Tellurium Q Black XLR cable. I have recent model Shunyata power cables with an older model Hydra 6. My speaker cables may be a weak link. They are Analysis Plus Oval Nines which are about 10 years old. I really liked the improvement when I added them to my system but they may be due for an upgrade. I've considered moving up to the Big Silver Ovals, bit was unsure about the synergy of the silver wire with the metal tweeter. Reviews say that they don't sound like a typical silver cable.

Thanks for the suggestion about the Cardas Parsecs, they were not on my radar. I may see if I can borrow a pair from the Cable Company.

Finally, I did remove the rear balls to change the rake of the speaker and I like the result. It seems to expand the sound stage.That's something that never occurred to me.
Thanks again for your suggestions.