As I've mentioned here, my tinnitus is getting steadily worse and I've decided to change my serious listening to near field and headphones, where I find it is less of a problem.
For me that means my home office, where I sit about 5' from the speakers. My HP rig is also there.
I've tried over 100 pairs of "bookshelf" speakers in this room, about 30 with a retail price over $1500. My favorites for the last 3 years or so have been a custom 5.5" Scanspeak/RAAL ribbon monitor that Rick Craig made, followed closely by my modded Revel M20s and Volent VL2s. The little Selahs are a very smooth, musical performer.
I'd been looking at Rick's Anniversario model with some interest. The 6.5" SB Satori woofer is a remarkable driver, with very flat response up to 10k or so with well controlled breakup modes, a very advanced motor, and a new paper cone formulation using papyrus. On the bottom end the Fs is a remarkable 28 hz. It is being used in some very $$$$ speakers, such as the $29000 Wilson Sasha. At least one well known designer (Joachim Gerhard of Audio Physics, etc.) has stated it is the best paper cone driver on the market.
http://www.sbacoustics.com/index.php/download_file/-/view/313/The extended top end AND low end extension of this driver makes it potentially a great woofer for a 2 way , and Rick has been enthusiastic about the new ribbon tweeter he uses with it.
While I enjoy the monitors I have, I checked in with Rick to see if the Anniversario might be better yet, and I bought a pair.
http://www.selahaudio.com/lineup/#/anniversario/The gloss black finish on these is really quite lovely, and I've come to respect the sonic virtues and value that these cabinets provide when properly damped.
Right out of the box, with maybe 20 hours on them, it is clear this is a wonderful speaker. Very flat and smooth, with excellent top to bottom detail, dynamics, and great driver integration. Highs, like all good ribbons, are light and airy on top, but there is good body to the highs too, which is a balance that few ribbons manage. The midrange is magic; the harmonic balance of vocals and piano are spot on with images that are totally of a piece, something I'm very critical of. Piano keyboard runs are wonderful. Clean, tight bass to around 40 hz. or a bit lower.
I spent my first night listening to a wide range of music on them in my office and main systems, and I must say it is very hard to find flaws in the sound and a lot to enjoy. Very nice to listen to; they really let the music through in an easy and engaging manner without distracting colorations or weak areas.
Weaknesses? It's a stretch to call them out, but compared to the very best 3 ways I've owned or heard, they are not quite as resolving of ambience and soundstage separation, but they are still very good in those areas. My $5k Volent VL2 2 ways offered more of this spatial information and have deeper bass, but are not as well balanced and neutral overall. The Selahs do make up for this some with the virtue that is often prized in 2 ways, the smooth top to bottom integration that is harder to come by in a 3 way. Of course, the bottom end is somewhat limited, though they have adequate bass in my hard to fill living room. Add a good sub and you'd have a very fine system for larger rooms. The smooth bottom end roll off should make for easy sub integration. In my 10x12 office they have very solid bottom end power and clarity as is.
In summary, I think this is overall the best 2 way speaker I've owned, and at $1700 for the ported version it compares well to the best $5000 2 ways I've heard. There are certainly better standmounts out there, but be prepared to pay a LOT more $ to get that last 10%.
After listening a few more days I continue to be impressed with this speaker. I must note that they are very fast and resolving, so changes in cabling and other components are very audible. As with all high-rez gear matchups are key to getting the most out of them and tuning to your own tastes. I've tried several cables and find that Clear Day cables sound particularly refined, detailed and natural with the speakers.
I've opined that Selah offers the best value in true high end speakers, and this model is Rick's highest value for dollar yet. It is good enough that many, including myself, should question why one would spend more $ than this for any 2 way stand mounted speaker.
