Depth, width of soundstage. Palpable sound, satisfying bass. Small size requires less floor space.

A bit tricky to set up on carpet because of small footprint.

At the 2006 Los Angeles High End Show I headed right to the Totem room to listen to the Totem Ones. I've read so many positive accolades about them that I had to listen for myself. However, when I arrived at Totem, the Arros were being demonstrated by their designer, Vince Bruzzese, so I stayed and immediately became enchanted and dumbstruck by the palpability and spaciousness of these little speakers. I greatly preferred the Arros to all but the most expensive speakers at the 2006 show. I did listen to the Totem ones, but left the room knowing that I would be buying the Arros.

I bought a pair of Arros and have them installed 8' apart, sleightly toed in and approximately 20" out from the wall behind them. Distance from the side walls is approximately 4 1/2 ' and the seating area is about 8 1/2 ' from the speaker line. Totem recommends placing the speakers somewhat closer together directed straight out into the room, but after listening to them that way for a month I placed them as noted and got a more satisfying soundstage. The sound is lean, when 'lean' is what is on the recorded material, and rich when the source is rich. I hear the 'edges' of the sound without exaggerated sibilants and I suffer no listener weariness. Bass is deep, realistic, and without overhang. These speakers should probably be used in small to moderately sized rooms. In my room they will provide lease-breaking levels without breaking up.

Because I already own an Audiosource 10", 100 watt, down-firing subwoofer , I added it to the system two weeks after listening to the Arros by themselves. I wanted to see if it made a difference. Crossed over at 70 cycles the difference is sleight. If I didn't already own a sub-woofer I wouldn't run out to buy one. These
speakers don't need it. My current amplifier is a NAD 350, sixty watt Integrated unit. My CD is a $300 Marantz CD5001 single disc player. I use inexpensive 14 gauge stranded speaker wire and inexpensive Radio Shack interconnect cable. I 've previously used more expensive designer cables and never heard an improvement or difference.

I'd like to articulate exactly what it is that makes these speakers so endearing to me, but it's elusive.. I have owned, AR-3as, Original Advents, Magnepans, NHTs and others, and while they all pleased me in one way or another, none radiated magic like the Arros.

Who should listen to them? Anybody who hasn't heard them. Even if you own more expensive speakers and systems. They have to be heard to be believed!

Customer Service

N/A: Demo gear

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As listed above.

most of you already know: wide soundage, excellent imaging, accurate tonality (excellent for reproducing voices & instruments). Not many speakers in the price range can outperform these little guys. Asthetics, compact design. wide following hence keeps it price well

lacks the deepest bass notes, doesn't play ultra loud but reasonable loud. needs really good equipment to truly get the fullest potential from speaker. not easy to drive because of 4 ohms.

Upgraded to the Totem Sttaf's a few days ago to which I can make a comparison of the Arro's to.

Well, first of all I miss the Arros already...why? Because these speakers just sound so accurate. With the right equipment, voices & instruments sound almost lifelike. These speakers have been with me for years through several amp & CD player upgrades and the Arros have always kept up.

The sound:
Speakers excel at jazz, acoustics, classical, vocals because the small 4" drivers that has the agility to accurately reproduce the music. Passable for rock & pop as it does lack the "energy", loudness of speakers with bigger cabinets. Though bass is not deep, it is relatively good and most of all rhymic sounding to keep your toes tapping.

If I were to compared the Arros to a steak, it would be a good sized tenderloin. Most people eating this ultra high quality steak if cooked properly would be totally satisifed and not crave any more meat. For those who want even more meat maybe get the Tbones or porterhouse of speakers like the hawks or forrests (bigger, deeper & louder, but it maybe be at the expense & not necessarily more accurate sounding).

I finally upgraded to the Sttafs because I did want a fuller sounding speaker and so far dare not say the Sttaf's are better sounding just different...but I don't want to judge the Sttaf's until I've spent some quality time evaluating the speakers.

Finally, on value, definetely 5 stars. Speakere were purchased for $950 new 3 years ago and I recently sold them for $725.

Soundstaging, width, depth, height. Detailed, articulate and relatively accurate without being overly analytical. Generous bass down to 45hz with a small footprint.

Not an ideal speaker for somebody who likes all types of music and demands equally good performance with each.

The short review is that the Arros are not for everybody, but are rather stunning under the right conditions. I purchased these to be used in a small listening room 11x13, that also serves as a home office and partnered them with entry level, audiophile quality electronics and cables. These speakers are replacing psb 400i monitors, with near term plans of upgrading the other components within the system. I bought the speakers as dealer demos, though the rather lengthy break-in period suggests they weren't recently being used or were never fully broken-in. Right out of the box the speakers sounded rather laid back, thin and lacking in dynamics, though they did immediately produce a stunning soundstage in width, depth and height. After 1 week of continuous current, 24/7, and various placement positions (the small room prevented any drastic changes in positioning) I found the ideal location in my room to be an equal difference of 28 inches from the rear and side walls. Normally, this isn't an ideal location for speakers and can excite room standing waves, however in the case of the Arros, they needed the bass reinforcement to produce a fuller tonal balance while maintaing their greatest strength...soundstaging depth. I listened to various types of music, some recorded superbly while others were very average. The Arros can enhance spatial and ambience cues that are present in the recording to levels that make you forget you are listeing to recorded music. This was taken to mind boggling levels with classical music of all kinds. The Arro's natural laid back balance adds depth that seems to penetrate the rear wall and can easily surpass the side walls of my small room. Rock music of average recording didn't fare as well with the Arros. The laid back nature coupled with the 4 1/2 driver simply couldn't produce the kind of visceral impact that requires more air to be moving like you would find with larger drivers. I didn't find this to be a deal breaker, but for those who demand that feeling of air penetrating your body during many rock recordings, you may very well find this a fatal shortcoming with the Arro. Another aspect of concern for many people would be the Arro's lack of inner structure with various notes. They have razor sharp leading and trailing transients with a high degree of space and air that seems to linger and float, but the inner structure of the notes can be less well rendered giving a somewhat bleached presentation. I found this bothersome only with the piano and even then, only within a narrow range. Still, piano lovers might not be able to overlook this character and this does seem to be present to a much lesser degree with other instruments. I think it fair to assume that better than entry level electronics and greater flexibility than my room would allow could eleviate this concern, though I still do not believe that Rock, Pop and average recordings will play toward this speaker's strengths and will pronounce in greater degree their shortcomings. Finally, the Arros enjoy moderate to low volumes and run into trouble above 93db. With many recordings, I had no problems producing well above this level, but on Steve Winwood's latest release, About Time, track 4 (Why Can't We Live Together) caused the driver to bottom out at about 95db. This recording is quite dynamic and heavy in percussions...the Arro gave up and more sane volume had to be entered. All in all, those with tastes that lean much further toward classical, acoustic and fine recordings than they do toward rock and pop, and that listen at sane levels would probably find the outstanding strengths of the Arro to be the almost perfect speaker. Small, detailed and resolving, generous bass down to 45hz with accuracy and a soundstage that will blow past the walls. I should also mention that at no time while listening to classical music did I find myself even aware of the speakers and never once felt that any instrument was rendered in any way less than exceptional. This goes from the deepest organ to the shimmering cymbals. They all sounded believable and real with superb texture and depth. I think some of the previous concerns regarding brightness might be slightly exagerated, though I did find the Arros to be unforgiving of siblants present in the recording. If it was there, it was communicated clearly with the Arros. This was true with just about any flaws in the recording. These speakers are clearly revealing in nature. I'm keeping mine...and I'm listening to much more classical music than I ever thought I would.

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Dynaudio 52SE

Musical, musical, musical. Disapear pretty well.

None

Here goes the cliche: Wow!. I love these speakers. Extremely musical, non fatiguing. An absolute pleasure. A good match with both tubes and solid state. If you have a dealer nearby, give them a try.

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Klipsch, JmLabs, B&W, ProAc

Price Realistic Soundstage Crisp/Clean sound

None Ive noticed

Simply Perfect! I love these tiny towers. Im hardly an expert but I did a lot of testing before purchase and after 2 1/2 years of listening they still wow me. I also use the matching centre and surrounds and a Velodyne CHT-12 to help out with the low end...especially on Home Theatre mode. Im sure there are better sounding speakers out there and I know there are more expensive ones but when I kick back and listen to David Gilmour in 5.1 its hard to believe it could get any better at any price. (Paid 800US = 1200CDN)

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Infinity Tannoy JBL

- Small and compact - Outstanding sound image and bass - Made in Canada (Montreal) for me that means local support - Affordable price for medium to high end speakers (in canadian dollars)

- None so far

I was shopping for a pair of speakers mainly for listening music and some TV/DVD. I'm not a Home Theater fan so I limited my search to a very good pair of speaker to listen in stereo mode. During my buying process, I listened to a wide combination of receiver/CD player/speaker. I end up with a NAD C370 and an Integra 3.1 CD player. The Totem Arros were awsome. I was able to compare them to a pair of Paradigm speakers (with Denon receiver/CD player)and for the price difference, the Arros were by far superior in term of soundstage and well balanced. During the first week, everytime a phone rang (within a TV show or a sitcom) my wife was sure that it was our phone that was ringning. The sound is so clear that I have some problem listening to some CDs because of the poor recording quality of some of them. These speakers (in conjunctions with good receiver and CD/DVD players) will amplify the good things and the bad things about your recordings or what you will listen at. In summary, theses speakers are real jewels and will give you a sound experience that is hard to find at this price.

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Klipsch Reference RF-3 Mirage FRX-Seven PSB Image 4T Paradigm Reference Studio 40

Outstanding value. Very accurate and believable music emerges from nowhere.

Will not play deep bass at ear-splitting volumes, but will beat many larger speakers in clarity from bottom to top end

Outstanding for the price. Resolution that rivals speakers costing much more. The manufacturer states bass response that plunges to 40dbs "with proper placement." What does this mean? Simply stated, bass response requires some distance from speaker baffle to the far wall that the speaker is firing against. This applies to any speaker. With this little gem of a speaker 40 dbs of accurate and musical bass can be achieved by placing them 15-18 feet from the far wall. This is necessary in order to propagate a bass wave of this depth. The distance from the back wall should be as close as pratical. Usually 1-2 feet works wonderfully. No harm is done if Totem Arros are placed in a smaller room except that the bass response will be rolled off. The use of a sub woofer will deepen the bass, but it will lack true bass notes that this wonderful speaker is capable of with proper placement.

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Tannoy D500 Tannoy 12 and 15 inch dual-concentric Many other speakers too numerous to name

Incredible soudstage,imaging and detailing They are very neutral, with good balance.

Not the most efficient speakers 87db,requires 4 ohms and max output 80watts. Some may want more bass..Long break in period

Previously owned Klipsch KSB 3.1 They were bright and too much bass... Here's the summary..my wife thought they look cute..so yes go ahead buy them.won't mess up the livingroom decor.. While testing them and turning up the volume..my cat decided to touch the woofer with his claw and poked a hole..Previously, he left them room when the Klipsch were too loud.. My cat now sleeps beside or near the speakers when the music is on.. So if you are going to buy them..make sure you buy them on your credit card because most credit card company will offer warranties for 90 days on such occurences..Buy the grills if you have children or pets..The designer suggest not to use them unless you have to..Well, better to be safe than sorry..Right now, I'm waiting for the new woofers to arrive with the new grills..Speakers still sound OK as long as the volume is turned to loud.. By the way they sound great, incredible imaging, detailing is exceptional, incredible soundstage. I personally feel that there is enough bass,unless you start watching movies, therefore , I did purchase the Totem's Dream Cathcer Subwoofer because I do watch movies.. If you're shopping for a great deal call Lorne at National AV 1-888-332-3308. Just tell them the guy with cat sent you. The whole store knows my story, even the designer Vincent knows it. I spoke to a previous owner of the Arro's who complained that the speakers weren't bright enough..not enough bass..so he sold them and bought another brand. He regretted after..the new speakers were brighter and had more bass..However, he realized that the Totems were better in afterwards.. These are very neutral speakers..after pro-longed listening you and your animal will not suffer from ear fatigue. The speakers will continually surprise you as you listen to them longer.

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Klipsch KSB3.1,Nuance Premiere, Energy Pro 22

nice highs and mid range - very well articulated

muddy or non-existent low end, but what can you expect with 4" drivers

Purchased the Arro''''s to compliment a Cary Audio tube integrated amp (25 watts per channel). In a nutshell - The mid range and the high''''s are very clear, and exact, the clarity of the Arro''''s are stellar. Although the praise for the bass is noted in this review section, This listener found the Arro''''s lacking to the point that I have purchased a REL Strata III Powered bass unit to make up for the deficiencies in the low end. Acoustic guitar and vocals are so clear that people in other rooms have asked if I was playing an acoustic guitar, when in fact, I was playing through the Cary/Totem Arro combo. Truly "attractive speakers", with a distinct thin profile, I believe these maybe the thinnest floor standing speakers available, I did pay extra for the cherry finish - they look great in my apartment. When shopping around for speakers, I was about to purchase the B&W 805 but was struck by the Arro''''s soundstage and how the source disappeared, when played. I could not tell which speaker the sound was emanating from, when the Arro''''s where played against a wall of B&W''''s and other Totem Accoustics. Pondering the Arro''''s (relatively good price when compared to the 805''''s w/ stands), I called Totem accoustics and even spoke with the designer, Vince Bruzzese , his praise and insight for the Arro''''s, even after questioning whether or not to consider the Mani''''s (although I don''''t believe my Cary SLI-50 integrated amp would deliver on each channel to power the Mani''''s effectively) I chose the Arro''''s. 6 weeks later and with an effective burn-in period of ~150 hrs, I concluded that the bass, simply - was not there. When playing some of my CD''''s like Granddaddy’s "Under The Western Freeway", or Streolab "Emperor Tomato Ketchup" I knew that bass was not being articulated or missing in some songs. Although the highs and mid range''''s are fantastic, i.e. Jason Lytle''''s of Granddaddy’s vocals or the Shins ''''Oh, Inverted World" (side note: highly recommend this CD, for a high BeachBoy''''ish sound) sound very, very crystal clear, and no discoloration. Listening to KUSF or KALX in my apartment (18x12x10) bedroom with the Magnum Dynalab tuner, is pure audio bliss, great indie college radio delivered very clearly on a foggy morning in Russian Hill. In summary I have decided to keep the Arro'

Clarity, soundstage.

Amazing speakers.