Totem Acoustic Forest Signatures

Hi Guys, i have scoured the internet for any info on the forest signatures and this thread here is the best thing going it seems. Can't find any professional reviews..which is ok, im no professional. i just like to rock out when listening rather then analyzing sound. Just there to enjoy it. Having said that, keep this thread going guys!! I want to hear more! I have always wanted a pair of totem forests.. Ive never heard them, just LOVE the look and the idea of totems addictive sound. There is a totem dealer somewhat close but they dont have forests for demo. My amp is a NAD C388. Do you guys think that will be ok with the forests? It's 150w per channel, since they seem to be power hungry. I dont have the budget to get crazy nice gear, but i do want these crazy nice speakers. They will be in a 2.1 setup that i actually watch tv and movies with as well. These speakers would be fine for that too right? I listen to all types of music. Currently have Sonus Faber Venere 3.0s that im trying to get rid of in order to get these. They are awesome, but seem too laid back, i want something with more excitement! Or top end sparkle that I think im missing. They are great with classical, jazz, and blues which im def a fan of but sometimes i like to listen to electronic or even metal! So even if you don't answer any of this, Dave_B, Nutty, keep talking about these speakers and hyping me up!!!

Definitely will play them fairly well in a modest size room.  They are revealing so you will hear everything, which means more excitement and snap!  Soundstage is holographic with great micro and macro dynamics.  They are very open and play cleanly...if they would sound rough when pushed then you need more power.

Welcome bg3584

I’m afraid I’m not familiar with your amplifier, but I can tell you that Totem speakers like a lot of good clean power and high current. The Totem Signatures are very natural and lifelike.

Today I switched from my Ayre C-X7eMP CD player and spun discs through the Oppo BDP105D and Audioquest Colorado interconnects.

Listened to Joe Satriani, S/T, (1995) Great production CD

N

I believe Vince Bruzzese said it best: "You don’t have to be an Audiophile to like enjoy Totem. Your just put it on and it’ll play beautifully".

In a word, Sofisticated. 

N

bg3584

As the "poor country mouse " owner of NON-Signature Forests, I’ll venture to add my comment to those of dave and Nutty re suitability of your NAD C388 for driving any version of the Forests. At 150 wpc it should be more than adequate power-wise. If you have concerns, read comments at the link I posted earlier in this thread.

I started out with a 60 wpc tube integrated when I first got the Forests. That was 11 years ago. Amps have been upgraded over the years. The Forests stayed. They respond very well to better source and amplification. Even now, I don’t think the system is at a point where the Forests are the limiting factor in the quality of music produced by the system. I expect this "scalability" will apply even more so to Signatures.
The Forests are like a Swiss Army knife in terms of versatility. There’s no musical genre they DON’T sound great with (assuming the recording quality is okay to begin with). They’ll be fine for HT audio. You might even find that sub has to be dialed back.

Wattage is a helpful specification to look at when considering amps for use with Forests and pursuit of high watts is certainly the more commonly chosen route BUT that’s not to say they won’t sound good with less than mega-watt amplifiers. Case in point, the very very good results I’m getting driving the Forests with a 20 wpc Nelson Pass designed First Watt F7. Repeating this only so you aren’t put off pursuing the Forests because you think you don’t have adequate amplification right now.

Again, 150 wpc from your NAD should be more than sufficient (assuming you don’t listen at max dB (110 IIRC) in a large room). Of course, simple wpc is not the only factor that’s going to determine the happiness of the marriage. I’d certainly encourage you to take your amp and visit a Totem dealer. Even if they don’t have Forests, see if you can get a listen to Hawks driven by it. The Hawks are similar (not identical) to the Forests being a 2 way and having that wonderful Totem sound. They are a slightly tougher load (6 ohm vs 8 nominal impedance). If your amp works with Hawks and you like the sound, I’m pretty certain you will love the sound with the Forests. You might also consider contacting David Serota of David Lewis Audio and see if he can arrange an in home audition for you. I’ve not dealt with him but Nutty has and might be willing to comment further about that.