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Totem Hawks - my impressions

I just acquired a used pair of Hawks this week and am extremely impressed with them. They have significantly more presence in the low end than my Joseph Audio RM25XL speakers and the mid-range is just magical. They have an immense soundstage, too. They don't seem to be very sensitive to set up and sound fine just a foot away from the rear wall. They are easy to move around given their small size and weight. They do need a lot of power to make them sing, probably at least 100 wpc, I would think. In my 40 years in audio, these are the best speakers I have ever had in my listening room at their price point. Oh, one other thing. With their "claw" feet, they are quite top-heavy and thus unstable on thick carpeted floors. I am getting outrigger spikes that will greatly increase their stability and mass couple them to the floor, which will no doubt improve their performance. Very highly recommended speakers!
whitestix
213runnin
914 posts
 
The Hawks are priced above both, and I can say that at least compared to the Totem Sky, the Hawks have better imaging, more presence and detail, at least in my system.


pressureworld
9 posts
 
I picked up a nearly new pair of Totem Hawks for about $1500 and it's money well spent. The midrange and soundstage really come alive with my system. 
chrisr's avatar
chrisr
543 posts
 
Aren't they great?  I am in the process of setting up a secondary system with my hawks, positioned to form a 6ft equilateral trangle. I have not found an integrated yet, but it will be tube-based.
dave_b's avatar
dave_b
3,159 posts
 
Owned all of the classic Totem lineup over the years...and many other Uber brands.  They are special indeed.  I found myself desiring an even more dynamic footprint with even less compression at high volume levels while trying to retain the openness, soundstaging and physicality of the Totem’s.  On a dare, I took a pair of JBL 4429’s on loan for a trial, fully expecting to return them after a quick listen.  Days turned into weeks, months and now over a year later...they just have mesmerized!  Coltrane comes out on stage at the Village Vanguard and I can sense the room, smell the smoke and almost taste the whiskey 🥃 being served.  He is there in full 3D with the most full sized, warm buttery smooth midrange I have ever experienced.  I can crank it up to live levels with zero compression or aggression...soundstage is Maggie size yet physical and dynamic.  Usually I can find a major flaw after a year and then begin looking again, but this time I’m hooked.
213runnin
914 posts
 
Gosh.  I just checked out these  JBL 4429.  What an ugly speaker.  seriously.  And then you look at the price, $5000?  For someone looking at Hawks, that just about doubles the budget, no thank you.  I'm sure they sound great, but for most the price and the WAF makes them a nonstarter.

At at the $5000 price level, I'm sure there is a lot of competition, and hopefully better looking competition.  Sorry to be such a downer, but that's my honest reaction...mind you I also do have a smaller listening space.

As for me, I'm considering getting a 2nd pair of Hawks.  My pair would be fine in the theater system, but they sound so good I've got them in the 2 channel set up instead.  But now the theater, with a Rainmaker center and Totem Lynks for the rears, doesn't have a pair of totems to match color and timbre.  Maybe I should go big with a used pair of Winds...



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