No, haven’t played with mass loading. Mine are currently not installed in the location they were purchased for (on going reno’s), so haven’t played with them much (give or take dropped in spot & just tweaked distance to wall for bass response). They currently see more use for HT viewing. Just using a Nuprime IDA-8 with them, not a bad combo but I think the Sky towers deserve/will reward a better amp (amp was bought to partner with my previous Dynaudio Emit M20’s). I assume the SN2 is a good match?
I’ve just purchased a lovely pair of Totem Forest, unfortunately the ball bearing feet were not included.
Does anyone know the diameter of the ball bearings?
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I’ve had good success reaching out to Totem directly. Email should be on the website. If no one else answers for you.
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Thanks, I have emailed them but haven’t heard back as of yet.
I was hoping some with Forests at home might measure one.
Cheers
I have Forest Signatures, but they have a different bass. I also have Hawks, which look the same, but we’re away for a few days so I can’t measure them for you sorry.
Thanks mike.
I have measured the hole in the base 16mm so it is either. 14mm or 12mm ball bearing.
They are cheap enough so I’ll go get a set of six in both sizes and figure it out.
Cheers
W
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After much trawling online I managed to find the correct size ball bearing required for the claw of the tore. 18mm
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I recently had the pleasure of 2 weeks of Totem Hawks at home for a demo. They were a good fit for my 272/250DR/Fraim/555PS set-up and I was tempted to purchase. But, in all honesty, I was looking for a bigger jump up (texture, ‘body’ and detail) from my long-standing EPS M12.2 stand mounters and I can afford to climb a bit higher up the price list. The Forests were going to be next, but my attention was then grabbed by the Tribe Towers as a more ‘up-to-date’ offering. A recent What Hifi review (yes, I know…) was a bit qualified and there are few other reviews available. To me their size invokes a sense of toy-like demeanour and/or lifestyle product; on the other hand, I actually quite like them…!
Has anyone heard the Tribes in comparison to the Hawks?
David
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I have Hawks on my now second system with a Nova. They are a real favorite as they have this wonderful natural sound and an almost unnatural 3D soundstage.
I have the Forest Signatures on my main system (SN2/HiCAP/NDX2/XPS DR), which is close to your system I think. They are a nice step up from the Hawks all round with the extra grunt of the SN2.
Turning to the Tribes, I was listening to some the other day through a Star and I think they are a lovely speaker, both technically and visually. They are very detailed and have a great mid range, but the Hawks have more slam and a tighter lower end, which is not surprising with a larger box. So choosing between the two may be a bit dependent on your music tastes - mine is rock. I think either are a great choice, they just have slightly different presentations.
If you have the space and the budget, the Forest Signatures (not the Forests) are in a different league though and would be lovely with a 250. The like air to move so need a reasonable sized room.
The Totems take ages to play in, so if auditioning bear that in mind. They will open up hugely after about 6 months.
Good luck, nice choosing problem to have.
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Whenever I go to shows the little totems always sound bigger than they look. I loved the sound of the element series but rarely seen in uk.
Many thanks for the response Mike,
Having 2 systems with the same brands at different levels must provide endlessly fascinating experiences.
While Totem are reasonably priced down here vs UK I think, the Forest Sigs are still $10k AUD but I will add them to the hunt. My dealer also now sells Fyne, which have also gained a bit of a foothold down here and the new 502SPs are just under the Sigs in price… This could roll on for a while…!
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Yes the ex guys from tannoy certainly seem to be doing well with fyne . have yet to hear any myself though
I have heard a few of the Fyne Audio speakers at my dealer, very impressive for the money, I’ve heard the F502’s and they were good but the 502SP’s are a lot more speaker, £2000 over the price of the 502’s, have read a few reviews all seem very positive.
Agree the guys from Tannoy seem to be off to a good start.
I haven’t heard the Hawks, but I own the Tribe Towers. I auditioned them against the ATC SCM 19 and the Harbeth M30.1. I much preferred the Tribes! They are not toys.
What Hifi was a little hard in their review IMHO. The thing is, Totem sells for 1.5 times in the UK what they sell for where I live (Canada). In UK reviews, it thus gets reviewed against more expensive alternatives.
This is a more accurate review. It perfectly sums up what I think about them.
https://www.tonepublications.com/review/totem-tribe-towers/
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Thanks Daniel, that’s a much better review. I should add that the ‘toy’ comment entered my head after I watched the owner of Totem twirling a Tribe Tower round his head, you don’t often see that…!
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I was just reading up on wiring options on the Totem web site. I use single wiring, both wired to the bottom set of plug, as recommended by my dealer. But it seems that there are four options for single wiring, with diagonal recommended! Also, they suggest bi-wiring as a good option.
What wiring configuration are people using?
I was previously using a pair of Arro’s with an XS and they imaged very nicely, though I found them a touch bright. I remember using them with the Totem Beaks, they seemed to help smooth out the sound. Has anyone else tried them?
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I had a Naim dealer make up a set of Naca5 in F-configuration to accommodate the bi-wire terminals on my previous Arro’s, which negated the need for the bi-wire jumper. Something like this (not my pic, courtesy of another forum member)
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I haven’t, but have always been intrigued by them.
Did that make a difference. I have a SN2, so bi-amping is another option, though not common in the Naim world.