Totem Winds are Too Bright

Could be the amp, more likely the set up in your room, but its not the because they are not biwired. The differences on biwiring are subtle. You should make sure that you have optomized your listing position and you speaker seet up before you start spending money. If you need help in that area, post you room dimensions listening position and speaker placements and folks will give you some good suggestions.

Jcbach, you are definitely underpowering them. I heard the Totem Wind speakers at the Stereophile show in 2002 on that large Totem intergrated amp. It looked the size of a Krell amp. The bass was great on the Winds. It was upbeat and tight. It had a very smooth sound. There is no way in history these speakers were bright. I wouldn't use a tube amp on the Totem Winds. You need a good solid state amp.

WINDS WITH 45/CH TUBE AMP???
YO GOTTA BE KIDDIN' DUDE!

Figure 200Wpc at least.

I would guess that it's the room. Hardwood/tiled floors? That's the biggest culprit. Bare walls/mirrors? Also, anything between the speakers can cause early reflections (uncovered bay window, equipment and racks, TV etc). Are the speakers toed-in? Try toeing the speakers out (straight ahead). Also, CD's are particularly nasty sounding if the sources are not quite so good. Silver cables? That too. The correct impedance tap on the tube amp? Many many things...but try the room first. I would use a sound meter to see where the problem is and consult an acoustics specialist (Rives Audio, eg) for tips or solutions.

My guess is its the room as well. Don't bame the speakers just yet.

You probably have flutter echo. Do you have bare walls facing each other? If so hang a blanket on 1 wall and see if it helps.

Rob

They need much more juice than your 45WPC tube amp provides. Sorry to say. I heard the Totem Winds in a Boulder Preamp and Amp system. It was a match made in heaven. The trebble was extended but NOT bright. We played everything from jazz vocals to big symphonic works (Mahler). On one disc (Susan Graham's C'est Ca La Vie), it was as if Susan Graham was walking around within the center stage. I had goose bumps all over.
Good luck.

a 45 watt amp wouldn't do justice to the totem arros let alone the winds. i have the smaller totem mani 2's and they need 200+ watts plus 'powerful' amp. if you like your tube amp, biamp the speakers using your tube amp for the top end and a solid state 200+ watt amp for the bottom. the winds are not shy in the bass department if driven properly.

Bi-wiring will with good cables will help with the bass response. However, I would guess you are under-powering your Totems. I auditioned the Forest's and found that 120/per side(SS)was about the minimum. I'm not that familiar with tube power amps, as I have only used tube pre-amps in conjunction with SS power amps. Replacing an amp is usually easier said than done, unless money is not an issue. You should try to audition your Totems with something quite a bit beefier (SS or Tube) then make your decision. Perhaps you can get a decent trade at the dealer you purchased your amp through. I'd try that before making any online transactions.

Good Luck

2chnlben

2chnlben,
I found very pleasant to run my Forets with above 300Wpc per side.
I guess to realy feel Winds it has to be in 500Wpc range.
Biamping with 45Wpc tube amp may lead the system out of tonal balance.
I currently biamp with VTL MB100 on the top and Sunfire Symphonic Reference in the bottom. Whenever I use VTL in triode mode(55Wpc) I can't reach a desired tonal balance while in tetrode mode(110Wpc) it sounds terrific.
I would recommend Sunfire 600-II amplifier that would make these speakers sing for very moderate used price(in $1500 range). It blasts 600W onto 8Ohms and doubles to 4 if I remember correctly using only 50W of idle power!
I heard this monster with JM Lab Electra 926 and it was very impressive.