Totem Arro vs Revel Concerta F12

No expert here, but a couple of years ago I researched speakers for a
second system and the Arro's and Revel's were on the list. I never heard
the Revels, but for whatever it is worth, had formed an opinion based on
reviews and comments (probably a mistake). I decided on the Arro's
because a friend decided to sell his pair and the amplification that I
intended to use seemed like a perfect match. I drive the Arro's with a pair
of Meitner MTR101 mono's which can drive just about anything, and are
known for being dynamic and have generous bass output and control; I
thought it would be a match made in heaven. I now know the sound of the
Arro's well and can tell you that many of it's well-documented virtues are
true: surprisingly refined midrange and highs, and very nice sound staging.
But, I find them to be very lean sounding and dynamically polite; there is
simply not enough dynamic contrast with these speakers. The bass, while
surprisingly extended for such a small driver, is inconsistent in my set-up;
in spite of a lot of experimentation with placement. I always experience a
dip and lack of power in the upper bass and lower midrange, and a
general lack of verve in that range. I know the speaker has a lot of fans
and some will probably disagree with my findings, but if I had to do it all
over again, I probably would look at other options. I am underwhelmed
overall, especially considering all the great press the speaker has
received. Good luck, and I hope my comments are of some use and
remember that many are very happy with the speaker and I am comparing
it to a much larger and full range primary system.

Frogman, a good sub mated to those Arros would solve your bass-shy problem. And it would free-up the Arros to concentrate on the mids and treble. A Velodyne DD-12 or DD-15 would seem to be a good way to go...

-RW-

Hi RW, I have no doubt a good sub would help the bass shyness; I own a Strata III that I will try at some point. I haven't yet because it's not a viable long term solution for me, as I don't want another box as part of this system in this space; small(ish) and simple was the goal.

Even though I know very well to try before judging, I have my doubts about this as a solution (for me) to this problem. I have two very different speakers in my main rig: a large full range system (Paragon Regent), and Stax F-81 electrostats. The Stax are even more limited in bass EXTENSION than the Arro's, but they are much more satisfying in the bass. They have a correct fullness in the lower midrange and upper bass that the Arro's lack; not to mention wonderful dynamic movement (within a somewhat narrow range). In order to fill out the lower midrange/upper bass with a sub one would have to crossover at a very high frequency; probably not a great thing. Worth trying 'though.

Regards.

Revel F-12's......... They are fantastic speakers, and an absolute amazing value. Search here on Audiogon, and read my threads about them. I listened to them side by side with the Arro's during my long and enjoyable "search for new speakers" and overwhelmingly prefer the Revels. Good Luck and Happy Listening.

I have the Arros as well, but they definitely need a sub if you want appreciable bass (I have the Storm). If you look around, you can find measurements for both speakers and it appears that the F12's have a flatter response and more bass, but I would add that may be misleading, given that the charts haven't been done in identical listening conditions.