Totem Hawk vs. Forest

Latest update: It took a while, but I now have 60 hours of burn-in time on the Forest and still have a ways to go yet to reach the 100-150 hours as recommended by Totem.

Initially, the Forest sounded a bit harsh in the high-end with a narrow soundstage but now they sound much more refined, detailed with a wide sound stage. I really like these speakers. They seem to disappear in my room and I find myself just enjoying the music, which is how I think it should be. I've been listening to all my old CD's again and hearing things in the arrangements that I did not hear before with my old speakers.

BTW, I don't use the subwoofer when listening to two-channel music with the Forest. My subwoofer gets in the way of the Forest and muddies up the sound. The bass from the Forest sounds full, quick and tight and is more than enough for my listening tastes.

Thanks again to everyone for your advice on these speakers.

Congratulations Icsi, please let us know how you like them. I don't know what kind of following this speaker has here, but I've gotta believe it's a real contendor. Please update us all.

I run my Forests with a Plinius 8200 MkII as well. I think the components mate very well together. With the introduction of a new series of integrateds for Plinius, perhaps the 8200 or 8100 will become even more affordable.

totem regularly shows it's products with Plinius at the shows. There are used integrateds on audiogon regularly.

Assuming you go with the Totem Forest speakers, what amplifier will you be using? Is there a high quality integrated amplifier that you would recommend with the Totem Forest Speaker? Thanks..

Thanks. I spoke with Vince since my last post and he recommended the Forest given my mix of equipment and music preferences. Based on his recommendation combined with the advice from other Totem owners in this forum, I ordered the Forest. Thanks to everyone for your recommendations and advice.

I suggest you call Vince at Totem and ask him. Seriously, that is what I did and I was surprised that he took the time to go over the differences between the two speakers and discuss the suitability of each with my components and my musical preferences. Given my situation and components he recommeded the Hawks, however it is most likely your situation is entirely different. It is somewhat reassuring to discuss the differences of the two with the person who designed them. No matter which one you choose you will be very happy but I think you will feel much more confident that you made the right decision after talking to Vince first.

Forest because of base response, power handling ability and overall just more musical, I will never look back on this one. I challenge you to contact a dealer and ask them directly even if they are not in your area. Simply call Totem directly and they will give you dealers in your part of the country. I realize that some dealers may direct you to the more expensive unit, however, once a relationship is established, I believe a good dealer will direct you to what's best for you. Bottom line, dealer input, Audiogon message boards and personal auditions are the three areas to gain info on such an important decision. Good luck!

Thanks to all for your comments and advice. Unfortunately I am unable to listen to the Forest since the local dealer does not have them in stock. Your advice has helped me get a better idea of what I can expect to hear.

For those who chose Forest over Hawk, can you tell the reasons for your choice?

I just hooked up my Forests yesterday, huge sound from a diminutive cabinet. Break in will occur in the next few months, but right now I'm very pleased. I love them, go and hear for yourself, my decision was based on quality of sound. The Forest is a speaker to be respected.

I've heard them both and own the Forest. Hard to imagine the Hawks being "better". Can't go wrong with either if you like the Totem sound.I like them both but bottom line is which will work better in YOUR room with YOUR system etc and whicn one YOU can afford and which one YOU can life with... GOOD LUCK

Icsi
I played the hell out of my Forest's. They are very nice speakes for the price used. They were replaced with Dynaudio contour 3.0. I never found them to be harsch at all. The guy who bought them had been looking around for a couple months and was quite amazed with their performance. He bought them on the spot.

Tim

Forrest is more-likely immitating a large speaker performance being in small cabinette. Bass is certainly greater and even mids are more sharp and precise. Forrest is about precision while Hawk is more softer and musical.