Reviewing a new loudspeaker from Totem feels like destiny—as if a formative moment 30 years ago has come full circle. That’s because the first genuine audiophile speaker I ever owned was Totem’s now-iconic Model 1, a product whose arrival altered many audiophiles’ expectations of how much great—and wide-range—sound a small speaker can deliver. It’s still being made today, at least in spirit. 1
Thirty years later and I’m reviewing for Stereophile the Totem Skylight ($1000/pair), a two-way ported stand-mount similar to the Model 1, but closer in kinship and appearance to the marginally larger Sky model, whose sound impressed me so at the 2017 Montreal Audiofest, especially in the bass2.
Description
According to the manufacturer, the new Skylight shares with every other Totem loudspeaker a similar genesis: It was developed mostly by ear, from beginning to end. That doesn’t mean that Totem founder and owner Vince Bruzzese has no use for cutting-edge measurement instruments and techniques. Rather, he’s among the speaker builders who believes that no measurement technique can beat the human ear and brain in capturing the micro information that makes real music sound like real music. That’s a logic I subscribe to.
The cabinet is a lock-mitered (its panels are interlocked at the joints) monocoque assembly using Variable Density Fiberboard—variable inasmuch as the material is denser on the outside than on the inside— creating a structure said to be more effective than regular MDF at reducing resonances. The cabinet panels are veneered inside and out to prevent warping, and the rear panel is fitted with a 1.38-diameter reflex port.
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