Before Rainmaker, I used to have some really good speakers such as: Sonus Faber Concerto Home, Vienna Acoustics Haydn Grand, Triangle Celius 202 (even the vintage AR3 and Celestion Ditton 33...). To some extend, those speaker did serve me well. Sonus Faber Concerto Home are so musical, but it too sweet; Vienna Acoustic Haydn Grand sound good with classical music but be come harsh with classic jazz, Triangle Celius so good with many type of music but I really dont have much room for them.

Having a chance to audit several Totem top range such as: Mani 2 Sig, Mani 1 Sig, The One anh Forrest... I was impressed by their transparent, clarity, dynamic anh specially musicallity. But the price did not make me supprise. You pay 3.000 - 5.000 usd for these babies to get that good, its's nature. But the Rainmaker knocked me out right away by its performance over the price (950 usd for new pairs)

Neither have the "big sound" as Mani 2 Sig, nor the purity of Mani 1 Sig/The One. But the Rainmaker does reach 70% quality them with the cost of one fifth. Lucky me, I got Rainmaker with an incredible price: 350 usd form my friend (an audio dealer). These tiny baby satisfy my various taste of music: classic jazz, classic & chamber music, classic rock and folk song. In the last five year, I've been playing around with many speakers to find the speaker that featuring: small (I dont have big room), easy loaded (I prefer tube or solid state classA), musical (I need long time fully enjoy with music) and all-around (due to my various music taste)... The speaker quest stopped only I find Rainmaker.

Rainmaker sound very musical, rich, lean to warm side and dynamic. The vocal sound lively, warm, thick with the voice come deep from the singer's chest. Classical music reproduced so life-like: layer to layer, brass, woodwind and string sound so real without being harsh even with high volume at fortissimo section. Classical jazz become easy to enjoy even with trompet, trombone.

I do fall in love with these babies, bravo Totem!

Other equipment in my sytem: Rogue Audio Cronus EL34 tube amplifier, Alchemist Class A amplifier, Music Hall Maverich SACD, Micro Seiki turntable, Transparent Music Wave speaker wire, Jorma Design inter connection.

I bought these as a replacement for my pair of Linn Keilidhs, because I couldn't stand the thought of my children being crushed under one of the 40lbs Keilidhs. I put them on a pair of granite slabs, on spikes, just like I did with the Keilidhs. I'm using them with an Arcam Alpha 7SE CD player and an Arcam Apha 8R integrated amplifier.

The general feel of the speakers is very relaxed, they don't tire your ears as much as the Keilidhs do. Like the Keilidhs, these speakers are very good at voices. That's one of the reasons why I chose these speakers. Where the Keilidhs separated the voices from the music, the Rainmakers integrate them, presenting a completely integrated sound. This is a mixed blessing: the Keilidhs were able to give me goosebumps in more cases than the Rainmakers, because I'm very sensitive to voices. But for generic listening and enjoying, the Rainmakers allow for longer listening pleasure. The Keilidhs' strong epmhasis on highs was very good for voice reproduction, and admittedly they have very good detail in the highs, but it did make my ears tired failry quickly.

Overall: good bass reproduction for bookshelf speakers, broad and balanced sound with plenty of detail.

Pros: very balanced sound, does not tire the ears.

Cons: bass very sensitive to distance from wall (due to bass port at the back), I'd advise at least 75cm- 1m distance. Not as engaging as the Linn Keilidhs, I'd go for full-size speakers for those who prefer intense listening sessions. One particular jazz song hit a harmonic frequency that wasn't dampened by the borosilicate.

I have these speakers with a Marantz PM7003 and CD5003. The sound is wonderful. I live in Bangkok and it was a rare treat to find these on sale here new. I listen to Classical, jazz, and rock music, and also use them for two channel dvd use. The image is fantastic, the brass is shiny, vocals silky, and sudden percussion really jolts me into listening. Overall, this has got to be the best system I've ever had, and at $2,000 for the lot.

After one year of use, I'm really happy with Rainmaker. Great sense of timing, good bass, great image and very musical. Simply, I adore the sound. Very often, you'll be set for many hours in a row with jazz, classical, rock, pop, heavy rock . Good match with Naim. Simaudio and Cambridge Audio like A640V2 with Transparent speakers cables. More than satisfy!!!!

I was looking for a good monitor speaker for my computer to go with my Asus Essence Xonar card and amplifier, and this speaker sure fits the bill !!! It sounds great with all types of music and its a very neutral sounding speaker that has great imaging. I rated this a 5 on value because I got it used for $600.00 shipped and it was in mint condition !!!

natural sound, value

none noted

Having checked out a number of options and reading many reviews as well as talking with a number of experienced sales people and friends, I decided to purchase Totem Rainmakers as part of a surround sound system the rest of which are Dreamcatchers (center sub, rear). The rainmakers are used as the front speakers and for stereo listening.

After 2 months, I am very happy with my decision. The totems all sound excellent and are not too bright - very natural sound in my opinion. Their value proposition is very strong. I would easily put them up against systems that cost 2x as much. They also sound good with all types of music at all volume levels.

I was a bit concerned as I was advised that Totem does not Timbre match their lines, and therefore mixing dreamcatcher and rainmaker might not sound good togeher. I detect no problem with using a mixed set.

If you are considering these speakers, I dont think that you can go wrong.

Compact, well crafted, rigid. Sounds natural for instruments, including piano, though not necessarily neutral. Capable of filling medium size room. Bi-wired.

None apparent so far considering price range.

Great speakers for its size. So far liking it better than my Reference 3A MM decapo-i, which cost more than 2x as much, and it is much better than the Totem Mite, which I've also enjoyed for 3 years. Lovely sound, warm and instruments are alive. Love it with satellite radio. The "nasal" tone (see Stereophile review 2004) is true, but don't mind it. Does a decent job with movies, good to 50Hz easily, maybe 40Hz depending on room acoustics. These are no $20,000 floor standing performance, but they are enjoyable for hours of listening at a time.

Similar Products Used:

Totem Mite. Reference 3A MM decapo-i. NHT SB-3.

very open, detailed, great imaging, very musical, easy to drive, non-fatiguing, warm, smooth, glare free high end

only suitable for smaller rooms very slightly lacking in lower bass fussy about room placement the absolute worst binding posts I've ever used

These are really superb speakers. I had a pair of Spendor s3/5's, but found that they pulled a disappearing act at low listening levels. The Totems have many of the same virtues but are far easier to drive: detailed, great sound stage, excellent imaging, superb midrange, quite forgiving and very musical. I must say I was initially motivated to try them out due to the rave reviews in Stereophile and TAS; but once I auditioned them in my own environment I was convinced. They do take a bit of time to break in and they are very picky about room placement. The other thing I noticed was that they're particularly sensitive to the types of interconnects used, so experiment. If you like to listen at moderate levels, enjoy a warm, musical midrange and are tired of overly detailed, mechanical sounding, bright bookshelf speakers then I highly recommend these speakers. And they go very nicely with solid state. I'm using a Threshold T2 preamp, T200 power amp, a Sony CDPXA7ES cd player with an Audiomeca DAC.

Similar Products Used:

cello elves spendor s3/5's and other spendor's including the sp9/1's ProAc (various models) Theil

Good with all kinds of music. Bass power and extension. Images well. Musical and exciting.

Slight loss of expression in upper midrange on certain vocals. Solo violin a bit dry.

Totems Rainmaker is a moderatly priced standmounted monitor, the cherry finish looks nice. The speaker feels a bit lighter than you expect when you pick one up. The cabinet seems solid, but the lighter mass is evident on the old knuckle test. Build quality is good, not exceptional. Both the Epos ES 11 and Monitor audio Studio 2 that I have owned have better build quality. But it's the sound that counts. The Rainmaker is a very good speaker with a nice blend of qualities. It works well in my room with an amp that delivers 40 watts into 4 ohms. I was looking for a Monitor with more bass extension, and the Rainmaker seemed to fit the bill. I found it to perform well with all kinds of music. They are exciting with rock, giving guitar bite, with good bass impact. These go down to 40hz for real, sometimes specs are overstated, that is not the case here. At times I thought there was a subwoofer in my smallish room. Try the opening of "Telegraph road" by Dire Straits, "Time", or "Is there anybody out there" by Pink Floyd. Very impressive. The Rainmakers go down cleanly on these tracks. Certain songs with electronic synth bass seem exagerated though, like "voices carry" by Til Tuesday. With Jimi Hendrix live at Berkely 1970 2nd show, his guitar sounds amazing, and the bass is powerful. I found the Rainmaker to beat the model one with the Hendrix disc, the guitar was too shrill on model one.....which is a good speaker, it pretty much demands good recordings though. Overall I'd say the Rainmaker is a more musical speaker, being more forgiving than model one, yet still detailed. Some speakers can do Jazz and classical but not rock, the Rainmaker is not one of those speakers. It is the best speaker I've heard anywhere near its price range with rock music. Jazz is handled very well also, sax sounds natural and dynamic, trumpet is given realistic impact. Acoustic bass has weight, there is a slight loss of "tightness" though. They are Very enjoyable with jazz music, giving a realism that belies their size and price. Classical music sounds spacious with wide imaging, depth and scale. Cellos are handled with ease. Piano is very good also. I don't hear the "parched" quality mentioned in the Absolute sound review with piano. However I do hear a bit of "dryness" on solo violin and chamber music, but I don't really notice this effect on massed violins. Fleetwood Mac "Dreams" sounds excellent, the vocals and Stevie Nicks lead and double tracked backing vocals sounds expressive and open. On certain female vocalists, there is a slight loss of communication in the upper midrange, but I don't find it to be too disagreeable, given what else the speaker does. No speaker, even expensive ones, are perfect. The Rainmaker does alot of things well, and not that many things wrong. It has the power of a floorstander with the imaging of a monitor. It walks the line between excitement and musicality, which is not easy to find, especially at this price. If you are looking for a good monitor speaker for about a grand, Go hear them and decide for yourself, since this is only what I think about them, but maybe you'll like 'em too.

Similar Products Used:

Epos ES 11. Monitor audio studio 2

Soundstage, resolution, accuracy, neutrality, 'There there' presence.

Power demands, inefficient

The Totem Rainmaker is a tremendous new addition to the product line of Canada's premier manufacturer of hi-end audiophile speakers. It should be on the list of those looking for either the best value in speakers for a two channel audio system or front speakers for a home theatre speaker system. They fall between the Dreamcatcher and the Signature Model Ones in the price range of Totem models, but as someone who has had two pairs of Dreamdcatchers in various systems and has long admired the incredible accuracy, resolution and neutrality of the Model Ones, I can assure you that they fall closer to the Model Ones as a speaker that is capable of revealing the character and musicality of the source and power components with which they are matched. Although they are approximately half the price of the Model Ones, they come fairly close to matching the appearance and performance of that long heralded speaker. The resolution is tremendous and superior to many speakers in the $1,000.00 to $2,000.00 range. They are actually slightly larger than the Model Ones, and share that speaker's ability to provide a three dimensional soundstage, making the box disappear on well recorded source material. As with all Totem speakers they do a marvelous job on vocal passages, offering a revealing but neutral presentation that often sounds like the singer is in the room with you as they perform. The bass is also quite impressive with life like reproduction, particularly when playing good acoustic bass jazz recordings. . The top end is very open with a good sense of air and space. As with other Totem speakers, they perform better when driven by amps with plenty of power and the ability to provide high levels of current. Also consistent with other Totem speakers, the build quality is first rate with very attractive finishes ranging from mahogany and black for the base price to maple and cherry for a premium price. All Rainmakers come with two sets of binding posts to allow for biwiring. Once again Totem deserves kudos for creating an affordable high quality speaker for two channel audiophiles and home theatre enthusiasts alike, at a very affordable price point, especially when one considers the value for money quotient derived from considering the essential requirements of build quality, sound quality, appearance and price. Well done Totem!

Similar Products Used:

totem dreamcatcher, model ones