Totem Model 1 Vs. Hawk

Walkman,

Your question is valid. The best way I can explain it is to break this down into specific price points. Lets say you really enjoy the Hawk's and decide to bring a pair home. Now, you may need some decent electronics that form good synergy with the speakers.. but many (most) are not afforded the luxury of price-no-object spending. So at the bottom tier of good electronics that form a good synergy with the Hawk.. we may look at equipment from the likes of REGA - a Mira 3 or Planet 2000 could be purchased new for in/under 1k each and at that price point for both components used. For that price-point, you are achieving great synergy with the Hawk. Will it sound good? Certainly. Will it show off what that speaker is fully capable of? Certainly not.

Apply the same logic/principle the further up the chain you go. The Sim (or Plini) piece are proven to be fairly good matches with the Hawk given their price points (2g-3g new, 1500 or so used).

There is a ceiling with all equipment to where you begin to hit the laws of deminishing returns. That applies to all products and may vary on a per person basis for a plethora of personal reasons.

My statements tend to lean more on the bold side of things, but they are there to let people know that this speaker in particular is quite capable and indeed enjoys electronics a notch or two above the usual mated suspects (sim, plini, unison research, naim etc.. )

Thanks so much for the detailed explanation, Rumadian. I think I get it now...appreciated. - walkman

How well do these various Totem models perform at lower listening volumes?

Baroque Lover,

I dont mean to hijack the thread. I did not see any activity about the current discussion and posted my points. Anyway, this discussion about Model1 and Hawks is very important for me as well as I am planning to put down 2K to 3K for the 2 channel speakers. Let us continue this interesting discussion.

Grakesh

After a few days with both the MODEL 1 & HAWK I can without reservation say that the Hawk is truly a little marvel. Top to bottom is does a lot right. The Model 1 had a smidge more transparency; however, the Hawks reproduced the harmonic overtones on strings and piano so well that it made me forget about the little transparency lost. Balance, cohesiveness, musicality, and harmonics are the best way to describe this speaker. Tonally it is a tad warmer than the Forest and Model 1 and is more musical too my ears. Compared to the Model 1 the Hawks complete the audio “picture” whereas the Model 1’s offer more of the “hi-fi” qualities some might prefer like transparency, extended highs, and point-source imaging. If you like these qualities definitely give the Model 1’s a listen. If you prefer a balanced system flat to 30HZ that conjures up a lush harmonic richness, an ever so slightly warm tone, and a separation and layering of instruments that is almost creepy…the Hawks are your speakers. Believe it or not the Hawk took up less floor space than the Model 1 on stands. Compared to the Forests I prefer the Hawks. Again, If you like the qualities I mentioned about the Model 1’s then you will prefer the Forests. In direct comparison the Hawks had better balance and integration. While the Forest had better bass, but the quality of bass on the Hawks was better. The Forests bass was a little more prominent and I think this was its drawback, it sounds a little boomier on certain material whereas the Hawks just effortlessly produced the bass-lines. I think I found my perfect loudspeaker. The only drawback(s) of the Hawk is its ability to perform well in a very large room (not directly a fault of the speaker) and its slight loss of transparency (I’m really nitpicking). The Hawk allowed the music to communicate, move me even. The Hawks somewhat stray…it still maintains the Totem signature sound, but it is closer in tone to the higher end Sonus Faber. Both speakers had more than 400 hours on them, dealer demos. Overall both speakers performed remarkably well in my room but the Hawk really strutted its stuff, I mean really.