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Request advice-need "brighter" speakers than Totem Hawks

Hi All-
Love the community here; first time poster.
My gear:
i have a pair of Totem Hawks, driven by Sim Audio W-5 amp and P-5 pre. I listen primarily to Redbook CDs via a Marantz SA8005. Cables are all Audience AU24SE. I listen both through a modded Eastern Electric DAC (op amp upgraded, tube removed) and direct from CDP to preamp (teensy sound difference between DAC/no DAC, if any). My medium sized room is pretty dead sonically (carpet, textile window coverings).

My Issue:
The high frequencies are uncrisp, rolled off severely, muted, and just lacking generally, especially on contemporary works (jazz, rock). I don’t hear cymbals, hi-hats, or rich, crisp snare drums (yeah, I’m a drummer). Listening to my favorite disks is a deeply disappointing experience, Though classical sounds ok to fine. I am thinking that I need brighter speakers than the Hawks (though there are numerous folks who extoll Sim Audio plus Totem speakers, something is not right. I do have a bit of hi-freq. hearing loss from playing percussion for over 40 years (amateur), but I’ve heard a number of less expensive systems that sound better to me. My first thought is to go for a used pair of B&Ws (CM5s?) or Vandersteens (assuming good WAF on the latter) to swap out for the Hawks. I’m on a budget, but am not above selling some of the current gear to pay for the right equipment.

I would love love to hear some suggestions or alternate diagnoses/ideas. I am not limiting myself to speakers; I’ve tried a bunch of different cables to no good effect. Analysis Plus silver cables, for example, were a disaster with this gear, for example, FYI. Thanks in advance for any sage thoughts you choose to offer. -Bruce


bheiman
ghosthouse's avatar
ghosthouse
3,718 posts
 
B - What speakers did you have before the Hawks?

pokey77
604 posts
 
This sounds pretty familiar to me. For reference, I heard my entire system at my dealer and with the tone controls on the integrated out of the system, or 0, it sounded very good, very good indeed, with very nice extended top end (and solid bass as well). In fact, I wish it sounded as good here at home as it did at the dealer. 

I think the main difference is that the dealers room is not over damped and I actually heard my system in two of his rooms; one was purpose built with wall damping and commercial carpet while the other was a smooth flooring with a rug or two and drop ceiling like in an office. My room has thicker carpeting, a big sofa, and some wall hangings. It also has a vaulted ceiling that goes from 11' on the left wall down to 9' on the right wall. Without the Treble control near the end of its' positive range, the sound is just unacceptable; all the top end is very rolled off; the room just seems to suck out the treble. The bass response is pretty good and no tone control necessary. Anyway, thankfully, the Mc has tone controls and it has rescued me for nearly a decade. The sound is more than acceptable, but I'm not sure if it is the carpet/furniture/wall hangings or the uneven ceiling that are sucking out the Treble. But I do plan to check into it further when I remodel that space in the next year or two.

Hope this helps.
bheiman OP
25 posts
 
Update: with the power conditioner and surge suppresser removed...no difference. Maybe a tiny bit cleaner and tighter overall sound, maybe not. Definitely no breakthrough in the highs. I will put back in the power conditioner, but not the suppressor--it's a cheap Monster one, in any case (I'll use a short thick gauge power strip into one of the conditioner sockets to handle all the power plugs that won't fit directly into the conditioner. We have pretty clean power where I live, so I did not expect a result on this test. 

pokey77: Those are interesting reflections on the room, thanks. When I auditioned Hawks at the dealer, they too sounded incredible. I thought "I'm buying that sound." More detail on Room characteristics: I have a flat 9' ceiling, painted wood, and the back wall is not treated, nor is the left wall. The right wall has window treatments (textile) which are absorbent, and the floor is low-pile carpet. No treatments on front wall either. I know what you mean about cranking the treble on anintegrated--it can have a big effect. It just seems so "un-audiophile" to have to crank treble nearly all the way up. One thing I can easily do to liven the room is to pull back the window treatments. I'll report on that soon. It's an easy trial. 

ghosthouse: I had several speaker sets. They all sounded brighter, but lacked the Hawk sophistication in mids and bass. Here is a list: Celestion SL-6 (sweet, balanced), Linn Index (yech), Spectrum 208a (probably should have kept those--boring form factor, solid sound). 

Next up (maybe in a day or so): swapping in the Creek 100a (with tone controls). 

Please continue to offer reflections and suggestions. Thank you. 

lowrider57's avatar
lowrider57
3,018 posts
 
Thanks for checking your power conditioning setup. My thought was that it may be current-limiting, have bad wiring, or might be affecting the impedance or voltage level from your mains.

I'll add that 150 hours break-in on speakers is low. I'll also add that the Audience AU24SE IC's offer a laid-back and organic presentation with no hint of brightness, (fantastic cables, BTW). In the review of the Sim W-5 amp that I read, the author felt the highs were slightly rolled-off (in a good way), so I don't expect your system to ever sound bright. With that said, give the drivers more break-in time.

Let's see what happens when you change to a different amp. You could also try substituting the IC's. Try using RCA cables and see how it affects the sound.
bheiman OP
25 posts
 
Quick "shot in the dark" question on a vintage speaker: does anyone have any thoughts on Dali Royal Towers for meeting my needs? I've always been drawn to their geometry. They rarely come up for sale in the US. Thanks. 

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