I'll chime in here since I'm both a Totem owner, and listen to similar tunes.
I think the Hawks will ultimately work better in your room and with your gear. It's not that the Vandys aren't great speakers, because they are, but I find the Hawks particularly adept at integrating into difficult environments, while still preserving their uncanny imaging. Furthermore, I've done a good deal of listening to Sim and Totem gear, and find that the i-5 and Nova with the Hawks sounds great (and the i-5 is ideally suited to drive the Hawks). The bass, while not gut rattling, is indeed punchy and articulated, and you can always augment the low frequencies (of any speaker, within reason) by adding a sub. The imaging/soundstaging is pretty uncanny, and these are great looking speakers (I have the Forests in Maple, and love the light colored wood vs. the sleek chrome legs and dark drivers).
Ultimately, if you're buying the Hawks used, you could probably resell them with little to no loss, because they are fairly popular. I'm sure the same goes for the Vandys. It seems like you're just trying to see what the next step would be compared to your speakers now, and if you wanted earth shaking volume capabilities and low frequency extension, then you'd most likely end up replacing your i-5 anyway. At this point I think the Hawks represent a great purchase, IMHO.
Enjoy,
Matt
I think the Hawks will ultimately work better in your room and with your gear. It's not that the Vandys aren't great speakers, because they are, but I find the Hawks particularly adept at integrating into difficult environments, while still preserving their uncanny imaging. Furthermore, I've done a good deal of listening to Sim and Totem gear, and find that the i-5 and Nova with the Hawks sounds great (and the i-5 is ideally suited to drive the Hawks). The bass, while not gut rattling, is indeed punchy and articulated, and you can always augment the low frequencies (of any speaker, within reason) by adding a sub. The imaging/soundstaging is pretty uncanny, and these are great looking speakers (I have the Forests in Maple, and love the light colored wood vs. the sleek chrome legs and dark drivers).
Ultimately, if you're buying the Hawks used, you could probably resell them with little to no loss, because they are fairly popular. I'm sure the same goes for the Vandys. It seems like you're just trying to see what the next step would be compared to your speakers now, and if you wanted earth shaking volume capabilities and low frequency extension, then you'd most likely end up replacing your i-5 anyway. At this point I think the Hawks represent a great purchase, IMHO.
Enjoy,
Matt