Totem Rainmaker vs Dynaudio Excite X12

[Mrcrazer]

Dear experts ,

Please give some comment / advice on those . Which one is better matching with Arcam amp ? or any other suggestion is highly appreciated . ( They are almost the same price at my place. )

Thanks in advance.

 

[Al ears]

Hi,

I very much doubt many people have heard both of these. The Totem is particularly difficult to audition.

You will now have lots of people saying they want more details. Like room size and layout, what type of music do you listen to (irrelevent) etc.

Basically you have to match a speaker to your room and not to the amplifier. Yours will drive both of these speakers sufficiently well.

 

[plastic penguin]

Dear experts ,

Please give some comment / advice on those . Which one is better matching with Arcam amp ? or any other suggestion is highly appreciated . ( They are almost the same price at my place. )

Thanks in advance.

Which Arcam amp do you have? It will make a difference (Sorry Al, you missed that one 😉) .

Alternative matches (and ones I'd probably go with are Focal 706V or MA RX1 or 2.

 

[stevebrock]

Im with Al, the interface with tthe room is more important than the amp IMO

The only definitive way is to get a home demo of the speakers, in YOUR room with YOUR amp

It has been said so many time's on this forum

This is exactly why building a rapport up with a local dealer is so important even if the speakers cost a bit more at a dealer

 

[plastic penguin]

Im with Al, the interface with tthe room is more important than the amp IMO

The only definitive way is to get a home demo of the speakers, in YOUR room with YOUR amp

It has been said so many time's on this forum

This is exactly why building a rapport up with a local dealer is so important even if the speakers cost a bit more at a dealer

If the OP has a Arcam Alpha 5 or 7 it will struggle to drive the Totems and Dyns to any decent levels. Both speakers aren't the most effecient.

 

[stevebrock]

OP, what amp do you have?

 

[Mrcrazer]

I am sorry, my current amp is Arcam alpha 9...I may upgrade to FMJ series in near future. I like jazz. I cannot have audition.

thank you very much.

 

[davedotco]

I beg to differ with some of the views above.

it is my experience that if an amplifier is well matched to an amplifier, it will control the speaker better than one that is not a good match.

A speaker and amplifier combination that is well matched and under control is much less influenced by the effects of the room, particularly at the bass end of the spectrum.

At lot of modern amplifiers can be quite poor at controlling a speaker, the effect is often bass boom and a general unrulyness. The room invariably gets the blame but in many cases it is the amplifier that is at fault.

 

[Hi-FiOutlaw]

I've smiled when i've saw the tittle of this thread, because when i've bought the Dyns X12 one of the speakers that i've wanted to demo were Totem Rainmaker and the KEF R300 and never did!

so, still have the Dyns x12 and have no wishes to change them in a near future.

I had the Brio R and X12 for a year and love the combo but as Dave have mentioned some times the lack of power of some amps can make some speakers sound boomy at low end, and that was exactly what i experimented with the Brio R.

Having upgrated the amp for the Pathos the extra 20wpc actually make all the difference, the controle over the bass at low volume is amazing.

Excite X12 are the easiest speakers to drive in Dynaudio range, they have a very linear response never getting under 4ohms, information provided in Dynaudio web site, but still adding some challange to most 40/50 even 60wpc amps.

 

[plastic penguin]

I am sorry, my current amp is Arcam alpha 9...I may upgrade to FMJ series in near future. I like jazz. I cannot have audition.

thank you very much.

Okay... the Alpha 9 has more balls than the 5 or 7, so in this instance, in pure synergy terms, Totems. However, can't guarantee you'll like the combo, as the Totems are fabulous but are distinctive.

From older Dyns I've heard with Arcam the synergy wasn't right at all.

 

[pyrrhon]

I live in quebec province in canada where they make totems. People will often match them with very powerfull amps and high dampinp factors. I often see the totem simaudio match. I tried em with my nad 275 bee and it didnt sound as expected: bright. I prefer the sttaf or mites but its really personal, they are darker sounding. audioreview.com will give you more reviews on totems you can hope for. I had a demo of excite 32 too last year, different beast but I think the totem sound is more clear and spacious. Try a song with some bongos on totems 😉

 

[plastic penguin]

I live in quebec province in canada where they make totems. People will often match them with very powerfull amps and high dampinp factors. I often see the totem simaudio match. I tried em with my nad 275 bee and it didnt sound as expected: bright. I prefer the sttaf or mites but its really personal, they are darker sounding. audioreview.com will give you more reviews on totems you can hope for. I had a demo of excite 32 too last year, different beast but I think the totem sound is more clear and spacious. Try a song with some bongos on totems 😉

When I heard Totem Arros at a dealers (had my Leema with me) he had a pair rigged to a entry-level Moon amp (Simaudio), and I experienced some brightness, which was surprising given the reviews on Moons. By contrast, the Leema seemed more controlled and less bright. For me, the Moon/Totem combo isn't a great match.