I don’t want to leave my space crying out… Especially at night.
I’ll do some research about Totem speakers.
I have met Vincent Bruzzese in Munich at the Audio Show; he was very nice to me and my friends, but not very friendly about competitors…
I don’t have an opinion about Totem speakers; I have heard one pair, once. I recall an assertive presentation and a very controlled bass. In this respect, I’ve little doubts that a SN could be a good match. To be honest, I think that a SN would be a good match for most speakers…
My finding regarding the SN1 is that it likes difficult and or inefficient loudspeakers. It’s not too refined and that makes it a bit of a party amp.
When used with SBLs I would certainly add an hicap to improve it.
When I used the SN1 in my living, I had it paired with 84db B&W CM1’s and that was a wonderful combination. The B&Ws though have the B&W sound which includes the bit darker and fuller bass which caused in my room unpalatable effects which I only heared after I was well in my way learning about hifi.
I got the Ovator 600’s in the first place for their robustness. The reason for the need was the swarm of kids going round in my house. They have survived cats jumping on them, duplo trains thrown to them et cetera.
Second reason is that it’s the best speaker I’ve heared for organ music. The gravitas, timbre and detail is just right.
I love the “et cetera.” on the end of that, after Duplo locomotive missiles, it covers literally anything X) The ultimate endorsement of Naim build quality
first of all, it took me some time to discover that you are a whisky… And I must have discovered it either at Manor’s in Lugano or in the duty-free zone at Stansted. I’ll try you!
Secondly, I happened to hear both S-600s and S-400s with a SN/HiCap combo in proper spaces; it was great sound in both cases.
I perfectly agree on the SN’s lack of refinement but, as I have just written to my friend Chris, I love its boldness and its obvious love for audio joy de vivre. It’s powerful and fun and never fails you. It’s the Labrador of amplifiers…
A person I trust (he’s the technician servicing Naim in Italy) and a good friend, also suggested Totem to me.
He says the Forest.
Totems are not cheap though… But I’ll try to have a demo of some. I can’t say that I rave about their looks and I wonder how a square wooden box with two drivers can cost more than a pair of S-400s sporting a much more complex and visually captivating build.
But oh well.
Well, I wonder the same myself some days, but they do. Try to listen to the Forest Signatures if you can, but they will take a lot more then a SN1 if you want - I’ve mine on a 552/300 system, but they started on a Nova.
You will be surprised what the stand mount options offer for that space. I use The Sky on their own stands in my second system driven by a NAP100. Quite excellent at their price point. And I run S400s in my main system.
Hi,
I trust the SN1 to be able to extract decent sound from most speakers, bar perhaps an Apogee Diva…
Forest Signature are very expensive, I surely am looking at the 2nd hand market.
Thanks
I am well aware of how S-600s sound; how much better they are than S-400s. I did extensive listening tests at my friend audio dealer’s.
I find the S-600s too large visually, and can’t even begin to imagine where to get a pair, where to drive to fetch them, how on earth to transport them to my apartment. I’m too old to still face such ordeals.
I’d need Naim to assemble a pair directly in this living room. If I was in the Bezos financial zone, I’d do.
It’s the configuration I heard a few years ago in Padova at a mini audio show. The demo was run by a guy I know who worked for Suonoecomunicazione.
I too found the S-400s excellent with the SN, I still think that they are not the top in treble refinement and extension, but in a large space enough they’re a great floor stander, and a wonderful piece of design as I never tire of repeating…