[AvFan]

In early June I ordered the Ottavo with cherry veneer and edging from Rick.  They arrived in late July and I've been enjoying them immensely ever since.  This is my second Selah purchase as Rick did a custom MTM design for me a few years back, but I wanted to go with a full range design this time.  As many have noted Rick provided exceptional customer service through the entire process.  He was kind enough to give me contact information for four other Ottavo owners so I could quiz them on their speakers.  All responded enthusiastically about the Ottavo and I now know why.  I thought my MTMs were good (and they are!) but the Ottavo is in another league.  The Ottavo, like my MTMs, have RAAL tweeters and I enjoy their accuracy without harshness at the top end.  I'd been using stereo subs with my MTMs and I never really got them right.  The Ottavo's bass is articulate and deep when needed without any hint of boominess.  But where the Ottavo easily bests my MTM is in the mid-range which is probably attributable to the Accuton mid.  Vocals are simply captivating.   I now understand when someone says it was like the singer was in the room with them!

Lastly, we've all heard the horror stories of shippers damaging fragile electronics.  That simply can't happen with Rick's packing.  Both shipments (the speakers themselves and a separate box with the bases, spikes, etc) were bombproof.  The speakers were in custom wooden crates with clear directions how to unpack them to avoid any damage.  Just excellent and really appreciated.

Here are some photos to show the quality of the work done by Rick's cabinetmaker.  The cabinets are finished with a satin conversion varnish that is tough but feels nice to the touch.  I make furniture occasionally and I can tell you the craftsmanship of the cabinets is top notch.

I expect to enjoy these speakers for many, many years.  Thanks, Rick!

Bill
aka AvFan

[monte]

Bill, they look great. Rick recommended them to me. They sound like a winner. Paul

[mresseguie]

Excellent! Congratulations.....and after a few months, report back with your impressions. I know from personal experience that new speakers (assuming they're high quality) always sound amazing in the beginning, but sometimes lose some shine after a spell (not suggesting this is the case here, okay?). I'd really like to know your thoughts 6 months from now. I may be in the market for new speakers in Summer 2015.

Best,

Michael

[AvFan]

Thanks for the kind words!   You may be suggesting my impressions are based upon a "newness factor".  I suppose that could be true but I waited six weeks and many hours of listening before posting my impressions of the Ottavo.  Also, I've had Selah MTM speakers with RAAL tweeters for a few years so I'm pretty comfortable identifying the steps up in performance between the MTM and Ottavo.  Regardless, I'm happy to report back in a few months.

I will say I've recently read a lot about speaker placement and there is much more to learn.  Geez, just getting out a tape measure and carefully locating the speakers to my listening position made a huge difference.  My stereo is in my living room with couches, a piano, coffee table, sloped ceiling, open to other rooms, etc.  All those factors influence the sound from the Ottavo.  So far I've focused on taming first reflection points to reduce smear and making sure the speakers are placed in as symmetrical (to a bay window and adjacent walls) position as possible.  I enjoy the process and will continue to adjust placement to get the most from the Ottavo under the circumstances.  Who knows, I may rearrange the entire living room to see if that helps the sound.  Its all fun!

[maxboy00]

Congrats on your new speakers, they look great and no doubt sound fantantic. I second your experience with working with Rick, first class all the way.

What amp are you using  to drive the Ottavo? Is the Accuton mid a 5 in driver?   

Enjoy!

[barnestn]

Congratulations, wonderful looking speakers.  I can also attest to Rick's customer service, design expertise, and quality work.  No doubt you will enjoy immensely.
  --Bob

[PMAT]

Excellent! Congratulations.....and after a few months, report back with your impressions. I know from personal experience that new speakers (assuming they're high quality) always sound amazing in the beginning, but sometimes lose some shine after a spell (not suggesting this is the case here, okay?). I'd really like to know your thoughts 6 months from now. I may be in the market for new speakers in Summer 2015.

Best,

Michael

I know that this comment was not intentionally negative but shit like this gets into people's head and can damage the love affair with the product. I think it's best to just be supportive when someone shells out big money and buys a great product like this. By the way I find that speakers just get better after 6 months.

[AvFan]

Yes, the midrange is a 5" Accuton.  It is a very impressive driver and Rick blends it so well with the RAAL!  I'm using a Pioneer Series 20 A-27 integrated amp to power the Ottavo.  It is about 180 watts per channel at 4 ohms and the first 3 are Class A.  Pioneer built the TOTL Series 20 in 1978 and 1979 and when I bought the amp I had the main and phono (always runs Class A) power supplies rebuilt.  Class A heat and components age dictated this work.  The combo of the A-27 and Ottavo are working well together!

[Carl V]

Congrats.
Lovely speakers.
The cherry veneer on
this & your previous MTM
speakers are they similar?
Or are the Pictures in your Gallery
of the cherry veneer after some sun
exposure?

have you drawn any opinions of MTM VS MT
arrangement?

I have some Selah MTM speakers over a Powered
Aurasound bass Bin.

And yes, Rich has always been a pleasant man to deal with.

[AvFan]

The Ottavos have a really nice, and wide, single piece of cherry veneer that wraps from side to top to side and they should darken naturally with light exposure.  Early on I verified with Rick that the conversion varnish finish didn't have any UV inhibitors that would prevent the cherry from turning that lovely brown/red color over time.  I built my MTMs with walnut veneer with a rubbed out satin polyurethane finish so they started out dark.

One of the reasons I chose the MTM a few years ago is I thought they'd be in a relatively small room with 8' ceilings and the potential for hardwood floors.  I wanted to minimize floor and ceiling interactions and MTMs do that very well.  However, when I moved my system to my carpeted living room with vaulted ceilings it was sort of annoying to loose the highs when I stood up and moved around the room.  So I gravitated to a more traditional full range design with tweeter-mid-woofer.  I really like the Tempesta but I wanted a floor stander and then the Ottavo came along.  It was good timing!

[maxboy00]

The Ottavo, being a full range speaker, would be hard to beat considering the quality of the drivers used and the integration of the X - overs done by Rick.

I can also say, you are right on the cherry finish turning deeper color tones over time, I have the Tempesta Towers done in Cat's  Paw cherry and over the last few years, that I have had them , they have turned into a much richer more elegant color. It's a nice contrast to the black colored components.

The bass on the Tempesta's is quite nice, full, weighted I would expect the Ottavo to one/two up that easily. And as you said, there is that real feeling of the singer being front and center thanks to the excellent Accuton midrange driver.

[jonbee]

The Ottavo, being a full range speaker, would be hard to beat considering the quality of the drivers used and the integration of the X - overs done by Rick.

I think this has to be the best value on the market today for a full range high end speaker, much as the Tempesta is for premium stand mounted speakers.
At a lower price point my little Selah RAAL/Scanspeak 2 ways (kind of like a smaller Verita) continue to knock off all comers for small room speakers, the latest being PSB M2 Platinums That's now 8 highly regarded $2-5k standmount speakers they have outperformed in my office in the last 2 years. Names - PSB Platinum M2, Volent Paragon VL-2, Totem Model 1 signature, Merlin tsm-mme, GMA Rio, Event Opal, Escalante Juniper, Thiel PCS. I've used another 20 models or so at this price point in this room previously, and the Selahs outperform all of them as well.
My hat is off to Rick for offering world class performance along with great customer support at prices well below any competition I'm aware of.

[ricardojoa]

I think this has to be the best value on the market today for a full range high end speaker...

Maybe.
Dennis Murphy offer its phil 3 for a lot less and uses Raal tweet, bg mid and Scanspeak revelator woofer in a transmission line tunning. Not bad for what he is asking.

[jonbee]

Maybe.
Dennis Murphy offer its phil 3 for a lot less and uses Raal tweet, bg mid and Scanspeak revelator woofer in a transmission line tunning. Not bad for what he is asking.

I agree that is a high value speaker, but I've owned speakers using the BG mid and it is not quite up to the Accuton, IMO, and dual 8" woofer array as Rick uses them offer real advantages over a single larger woofer, so from a design standpoint I'd lean heavily toward Selah. The cabinetry Rick offers is also much nicer, and that is worth a lot to me when spending this kind of $.

[mresseguie]

PMAT,

"I know that this comment was not intentionally negative but shit like this gets into people's head and can damage the love affair with the product. I think it's best to just be supportive when someone shells out big money and buys a great product like this. By the way I find that speakers just get better after 6 months."

Sigh. You are correct. I did not put much thought into what I typed when I posted my comment. I meant well, but I just typed whatever popped into my mind and hit the post button without any sort of revision. I PMed the OP to apologize and, hopefully, better explain what was in my mind. If I could remove my comment, I would. Perhaps I can use this as a learning experience and be more careful of what I post in the future. Thank you for calling me out on it.

Best regards,

Michael

[Rick Craig]

Thanks for your feedback on the sound Bill. Here's a picture of the Ottavo that a customer in Ohio built from a kit.

[diofan56]

Nice!  Very nice!

[AvFan]

So I've ordered a Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum 100wpc integrated tube amp to replace my vintage SS integrated.  I auditioned the amp and it sounded fantastic with my Ottavo.  One thing I forgot to check was whether it was on the 4 or 8 ohm speaker taps.  I looked at the Ottavo impedence graph and it dips below 4 ohms but is well above that for much of the frequency range.  Should I use 4 or 8 ohm taps?

[monte]

Hey guys, could you tell me what woofers  are being used  in the  ottavo. Thanks, Paul

[Rick Craig]

Hey guys, could you tell me what woofers  are being used  in the  ottavo. Thanks, Paul

They are made by an OEM that supplies drivers to some very well-known companies.