[wilsynet]

I'm quite interested in the Selah Tempesta speakers.  A few questions.

1. I went through the web site, and saw pricing for the Tempesta in standard versus custom veneers.  What are the options for the standard veneers, and are there representative pictures?

2. I'm coming from a pair of Zu Soul Superfly speakers.  I love the dynamics and the coherence of the 1.5 way, highly efficient Zu speakers.  If someone has listened to both Zu and 3-way Selahs, or perhaps single driver versus Selah, wondering if they could comment on what I might be losing and what I might be gaining by comparison.

3. My listening room is compromised like many others.  At most I can pull the speakers out 2 feet from the wall, and I listen from at most 7-8 feet away.  How sensitive to placement are the Selah Tempestas, and how wide is the sweet spot?

4. Does Selah sell stands to go along with the Tempestas?  If not, how tall should the stands be (I know this depends on how tall my chair is, how tall I am, etc, but perhaps something approximate and rough would be good) and is there a recommended manufacturer of stands that should work well with the Tempesta?

[kip_]

The standard veneers are maple, cherry, and gloss black, as the website states.

As for 3, I'd say that judging by my other two Selah Monitors in identical cabinets as long as they are 1 foot away or more they sound fine. They both have extemely wide sweet spots and excellent horizontal dispersion (MF-7, SA-2)

Selah speakers are extremely coherent and natural sounding. In both of mine the crossover is seamless.

[kip_]

Also I use 24" Sanus stands with my SA2's and they work great. The tweeter is just below my seated ear height and sounds perfect. I should note that the standard cabinets are very well built and solid. I believe my SA2's use identical cherry curved cabinets to the standard cabinets that come with Tempestas (from Parts Express).

[jonbee]

I use 20" stands, which are probably ideal for most seating positions. That puts ear level beteween the tweeter and mid, which is what Rick recommends. Stands must be sturdy, I prefer 3 or 4 post all welded designs.
I'm also space limited. I usually have them 8" from the rear wall, which sounds good, but is not ideal. After much experimenting, 24-29" seems best, although at 18-20" there is little lost. 
Sitting 7-8 feet away is just fine. The drivers blend well at all distances. In my room, 8 feet seems best.
I've not heard the Superfly. The only Zu I've heard is the Def Pro. I like it a lot. I think the Tempesta is so well integrated it takes the single driver argument off the table to a large degree, and substitutes very low coloration and distortion. Dynamics are very good, but I can't say for sure they are as good as the Zus. IMO the only area where the Tempesta doesn't match the Defs is in the bass below 40 hz. I use a James EMB-100 sub to handle that. As Rick states, a quality active bass unit really offers advantages over passive FR designs (of course the Def Pro has a great active bass section as well).
 What is is about the Superflys that you want to improve on?

[wilsynet]

The Zu speakers sound great, but I'm looking for better spatial reproduction and a wider sweet spot without giving up much in other ways.

More resolved is good too, but hopefully that doesn't make things sound overly clinical.

[kip_]

The Zu speakers sound great, but I'm looking for better spatial reproduction and a wider sweet spot without giving up much in other ways.

More resolved is good too, but hopefully that doesn't make things sound overly clinical.

Every selah speaker I've heard has been neutral. Period. They are revealing but don't shove flaws in your face. They aren't too forward but still detailed.

[Rick Craig]

The standard finishes are gloss black, maple, and red cherry. On the Tempesta page there are examples of the gloss black and maple cabinets. On the Verita page you can see the red cherry finish. I've not heard the Zu speakers but visited their site and looked at the design as well as the specifications. Based on what I read I think you'll find the Tempesta to be a significant step up in performance. Your speaker and listening locations are fine.

We can build custom stands but our prices tend to be high. There are stands that work well from Sanus and others that are very reasonably priced. 18"-22" is the typical height. Due to the smooth vertical dispersion the vertical sweetspot will be much wider than the Zu. I can help point you in the right direction once you're ready to purchase the stands.

I'm quite interested in the Selah Tempesta speakers.  A few questions.

1. I went through the web site, and saw pricing for the Tempesta in standard versus custom veneers.  What are the options for the standard veneers, and are there representative pictures?

2. I'm coming from a pair of Zu Soul Superfly speakers.  I love the dynamics and the coherence of the 1.5 way, highly efficient Zu speakers.  If someone has listened to both Zu and 3-way Selahs, or perhaps single driver versus Selah, wondering if they could comment on what I might be losing and what I might be gaining by comparison.

3. My listening room is compromised like many others.  At most I can pull the speakers out 2 feet from the wall, and I listen from at most 7-8 feet away.  How sensitive to placement are the Selah Tempestas, and how wide is the sweet spot?

4. Does Selah sell stands to go along with the Tempestas?  If not, how tall should the stands be (I know this depends on how tall my chair is, how tall I am, etc, but perhaps something approximate and rough would be good) and is there a recommended manufacturer of stands that should work well with the Tempesta?

[Rektifier]

Is there any NRC measurements of the Tempesta? I'm saving my spare cash for these.

The Verita looks amazing.
http://www.soundstagenetwork.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=431%3Anrc-measurements-selah-audio-verita-loudspeakers&catid=77&Itemid=18

[kip_]

I don't think so. Those were measured by Soundstage just for that review. Rick doesn't have an anechoic chamber but nearfield measurements are just as good (ask Dennis Murphy or other famous crossover designers)

[Rektifier]

I don't doubt the FR measurements. However the THD+Noise and Phase are nice to see.

[Rick Craig]

Is there any NRC measurements of the Tempesta? I'm saving my spare cash for these.

The Verita looks amazing.
http://www.soundstagenetwork.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=431%3Anrc-measurements-selah-audio-verita-loudspeakers&catid=77&Itemid=18

The NRC measurements are via Soundstage so unless they review the speaker I won't have anything from the NRC. I wish more online magazines would use them because it's a really good indicator of how a speaker will perform.