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Small living room speaker options.. Totem Arro?

Hi,

I've recently moved into a small condo and feel like my LSi9s are just not working so well in this small living room (11x14). These speakers need to be a bit away from the wall and are fairly large in stature. I am also doing much more low volume listening now and feel like the LSi9 works better when at mid volume, otherwise it's kind of a sleepy speaker that isn't very detailed, especially missing much of the mid section when listening at very low volumes.

So what I want is a small form factor speaker that has clear and live presentation at low volume. From everything I read it seems that the Totem ARRO is a very good contender for this job, especially since it's small and loves to be close to the wall, which is where I'd have it for aesthetic purposes. 

My gear consists of a Classe SSP AMP2 (Class D), which is a 200w amp, so I think I should have no shortage of power. My pre is an Outlaw 975 which will probably get upgraded over the next year or two, but for now this is what I'm working with.

Would love to hear any thoughts on the Arro in this setup and any other options I might look into at this price point and size. Again, keeping in mind low listening volume requirement and lively/punchy presentation, although I'm not a fan of "bright"  speakers. 

Should I consider the Totem Staff? I would probably like it's tonality better, because it's closer to my LSi9 in the sense that it's a more laid back speaker. But I am not sure if it will work as well as the arro in low listening volume and it is also a larger speaker in terms of dimensions that also probably would not work quite as well backed up against the wall.

Any and all thoughts much appreciated! 
lietuvis91
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akg_ca's avatar
akg_ca
2,294 posts
 
I owned both ARROS and Forests simultaneously in a prior system so I know their sonic signature , their strengths and also their warts, very well.

(1) I preferred the ARRO and Forest over the Staff in my experience with my rig. It is system dependent.
Placing the ARROS close to a back wall will be just fine with ARROS. I had mine 6" from the back wall ...the bass was improved - after all it’s a small mid/bass driver doing the heavy lifting.

(2) Your upstream electronics performance will greatly influence the performance of the ARROS .... Moreso than with many other speakers at their pricepoint in  my experience . As I upgraded my " B" audio entire system from an all-NAD rig to an all-ARCAM FMJ rig, then that’s when the "great" imaging performance talked about in the audio mag reviews of the ARROS finally took hold.

The ARROS were the least power hungry in the TOTEM stable so no worries here ... high current quality rules ...... amp reported WPC by themselves are meaningless .

I don’t know your system, so I cannot comment on their bespoke strengths.

(3) I experimented a lot with many different speaker cables. There was a clear winner in a lengthy list of contenders and pretenders with both the ARROS and also the FORESTs: . TOTEM’s own TRESS speaker cables (silver plated all Cu) probably because that is what the ARROS and Forests are internally wired with.

FWIW....
lowrider57's avatar
lowrider57
5,417 posts
 
Ive auditioned many of the Totem speakers, and in your case I would caution using the Sttaf in your small space. They are fussy speakers as far as placement and need about 3 ft. between rear and wall to get optimal imaging.
  The Arro's are made for small rooms. They are 4 ohms nominal, so they need some power which you have. They image well and throw a wide soundstage. The specs indicate only 40Hz at the low-end, but with robust power and your small space, they may perform well.
akg_ca's avatar
akg_ca
2,294 posts
 
If you are considering alternatives to the ARROS that perform with shallow wall placement and in a small room , here’s what I would consider for audition from personal ownership experience :

REGA RS1 standmounts or one up RS3 Floorstanders. I have them both in my "B" system.

I actually like them much better than my prior ARROs, but intuitively that is in my bespoke unique audio system and my listening environment arena.

The R1/ RS1 bookshelves are Goliath killers that actually have OEM wall mounts as accessories.., they are specifically designed to excel up against a wall.

The new "X" model of REGAs, the RX1 standmounts and RX3 floorstanders are arguably a further audio performance improvement.

Google any the reviews for any of the R1, RS1 , RX1 or matched "3" series ... highly recommended.

Sampler:

http://stereotimes.com/speak121305.shtml

https://www.hifiwigwam.com/rx3-loudspeakers-reviewed-by-jason-kennedy/


http://www.hifi-review.com/151472-rega-rs3.html



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