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Recommend amp to drive Totem Winds?

I'm looking for recommendations for an amplifier (solid-state, integrated) that would be a good fit to a pair of Totem Wind speakers. I've heard that the Winds can be hard to drive, so I'm a bit concerned about what amps will/won't be up to the task.

The Winds are rated at 4 ohms impedence, 87 dB sensitivity, and 250 W maximum power. In general, is it OK to look for an amp that will produce slightly less than 250 W into 4 ohms? Or should I look for an amp that provides 250 W, or more than 250 W, into 4 ohms?

Brands/models I've looked at include:

Simaudio Moon i-3
Simaudio Moon i-7
Krell KAV 400xi

I'm certainly more than willing to consider others, of course.

Thanks in advance for any help/suggestions/opinions....

Cheers,
Barb
bdpetersen
gungun29
1 posts
 
Hi,

I upgraded from the forest to the winds. But I feel that the forests were more three dimentional, transparent, lively and had a tighter bass. So, I purchased the forests again and now I have both. I have decided to keep the forests and sell the winds. Any comments?
tom_hankins
928 posts
 
I've heard them with the Ayre gear(K-5XE/V-5XE) at my local dealer, and they were very nice.
jh2os
244 posts
 
gungun29, having previously owned the forests myself i had some of the same thoughts you mention above. unfortunatley, i blew several woofers on my forests which left a sour taste in my mouth with those speakers (which is unfortunate as i love their sound).

i have grown to love the sound of the winds, and as my system is used for both HT and music the winds fill both roles better than the forests did.
panderso
156 posts
 
If you have access to a Conrad Johnson dealer, the new CJ integrated would be worth consideration.

I remember vividly how wonderful the Winds sounded when I first heard them; they fairly reeled me into the room, like a fish on a line. I believe they were driven by Simaudio separates...

One dealer I have a high regard for had great success pairing the Jeff Rowland Concerto integrated with Totem Mani Sigs - might work well with Winds.

enjoy,
-paul-
audiobroke's avatar
audiobroke
51 posts
 
An integrated with the Winds? Mmmm. For me that might be a stretch. A lowish sensitivity 4ohm speaker will like a lot of current, plus most integrates are well below an appropriately budgeted amplifier for an $8k speaker. If you must though, get the most SS power you can. IMHO
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