totem arro

I had a pair of Arro's for a few months. They are very detailed out of the box and throw a very large soundstage with the right material. They go amazingly low for their size, and are attractive to look at. They're going for around US $1350 new, and typically for between $750 and $850 on Audiogon. Build quality is superb.

Granted that my pair weren't nearly broken in (Totem recommends 100 to 150 hours of break in time). Still I found them rather bright for my tastes. Also, the sweet spot in my room was frustratingly narrow... The proverbial ”head in a vise“ situation.

Ultimately, I sold my pair to a fellow Audiogoner (who, ironically, is now selling them on Audiogon himself... See http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrfull&1239573652&/Totem-Acoustic-Arro-(Black-Ash )

I fell in love with the Ohm Micro Walsh talls... Great bass, neutral tonal balance, and a soundstage do die for. And almost identical external dimensions to the Arro.

Dwhitt,

I admit that I am not the best judge of the Arros due to the relatively short time I had them, while acknowledging their many fine qualities. I just fell in love with the Ohm sound and presentation. The presentation of the Totems sounded flat by comparison. But it's a matter of taste, room interactions, associated equipment, and so on.

Tvad,

I'm offering a comparison, for whatever it's worth, with full disclosure of the possible limitations of that comparison, in the hopes that some people may find those experiences useful. Why do you feel a need to chastise me for that? What's that about?

For your part, you have on several occasions shared your negative experiences with Ohm speakers, a sharing of experiences to which you are fully entitled.

Respectfully submitted...

Dwhitt,

Well put, thanks. :-)