Spacekadet, the Winds are in a different league compared to the Hawks IMO. There soundstaging capability and effortless portrayal of the space leaves you feeling 'you are there'! I beleive they are worth the price, but agree with Sonance, that that is a lot to pay for a speaker sight-un-heard.
I never owned the Mani-2, but the Tabu. Same physical size, but missing the second inner driver. Personally, I preferred the Tabu's smoother presentation to the added bass of the Mani-2. The Forrest replaced the Tabu, but all of these are at a level below the Wind IMO.
I haven't heard the Wind with a large orchestral/symphony recording, but from what I heard listening to quite a few live jazz tracks left me with the impression that these speakers would have little problem reproducing anything!
I am a huge fan of that Totem sound, and for me the Wind's are the 'holy grail' in which someday I hope to reach!
Feel free to email me if you have any more questions. If you are considering them, and spending that kind of $, it would be worth a couple hour drive to at least here them in person.
I never owned the Mani-2, but the Tabu. Same physical size, but missing the second inner driver. Personally, I preferred the Tabu's smoother presentation to the added bass of the Mani-2. The Forrest replaced the Tabu, but all of these are at a level below the Wind IMO.
I haven't heard the Wind with a large orchestral/symphony recording, but from what I heard listening to quite a few live jazz tracks left me with the impression that these speakers would have little problem reproducing anything!
I am a huge fan of that Totem sound, and for me the Wind's are the 'holy grail' in which someday I hope to reach!
Feel free to email me if you have any more questions. If you are considering them, and spending that kind of $, it would be worth a couple hour drive to at least here them in person.