[Dracule1]

How much is the Verita?  Thanks.

[c_note]

Rick, is the Verita a ported or sealed design?  If sealed, how's the bass response?  How would you compare the Verita to the Cima?  Given that most people will supplement both designs with a subwoofer, what factors should drive a listener to one design over the other?

One thing is for sure: the Verita is beautiful!  Great job!

[drmike]

hey rick,
wondering if i could modify my ssr cabinet to accomdate this design?
i was thinking of using 1/2" corian as a false front.
what are the external dimensions of the raal tweeter. could the ssr x/o be modified or would a new x/o be needed?
thanks,
michael stevener
ps: the ssr's are great!

[kip_]

hey rick,
wondering if i could modify my ssr cabinet to accomdate this design?
i was thinking of using 1/2" corian as a false front.
what are the external dimensions of the raal tweeter. could the ssr x/o be modified or would a new x/o be needed?
thanks,
michael stevener
ps: the ssr's are great!

The SSR has both a different woofer and tweeter. You'd have to buy a complete new kit from rick so I think it would be more cost effective for you to simply sell your SSRs and buy a new pair of Veritas

[ichillpill]

I'd buy your ssr's from you

[Rick Craig]

How much is the Verita?  Thanks.

The custom veneer pair pictured is $2,550/pr. (includes shipping in the mainland USA). The standard finishes (maple,gloss black, cherry) are $2,050/pr.

We can also do a larger ported version for $2,150/pr. (standard finish) or $2,650/pr. (custom). The front baffle can also be veneered and trimmed with hardwood - quotes available upon request.

[Rick Craig]

Rick, is the Verita a ported or sealed design?  If sealed, how's the bass response?  How would you compare the Verita to the Cima?  Given that most people will supplement both designs with a subwoofer, what factors should drive a listener to one design over the other?

One thing is for sure: the Verita is beautiful!  Great job!

The pictured pair is sealed. Bass extension is pretty good sealed and for some audiophiles they could get by without a subwoofer. Different presentation than the Cima because MT's image differently than MTM's like the Cima. I tend to favor the metal / ceramic cones so I would probably go with the Verita. The Cima will have a little more output capability so if the system also is used for HT then that may be a plus. Some listeners also have a preference for paper versus metal cones; however, I think the Verita is going to surprise a few people that lean to the other part of the spectrum. 

[Rick Craig]

hey rick,
wondering if i could modify my ssr cabinet to accomdate this design?
i was thinking of using 1/2" corian as a false front.
what are the external dimensions of the raal tweeter. could the ssr x/o be modified or would a new x/o be needed?
thanks,
michael stevener
ps: the ssr's are great!

The ribbon frame is 110mm x 110mm. The Verita can be adapted to your cabinet but it's a totally different crossover.

[jtwrace]

The ribbon frame is 110mm x 110mm.

110 millimeters = 4.33 inches

[richidoo]

I'm up at RobS's place. A little afternoon snow shower in the heart of wintery Appalachia is a beautiful thing.  We're listening to a lot of AC homegrown goodies. AVA DAC, Music Reference RM200, Bolder modded Squeezebox, Vista phono pre, GIK Acoustics and Realtraps, and Rob's Selah RC5s. Sounds good!  Great synergy, and a good feeling listening to all AC equipment at one time. I brought along the Veritas so Rob could get a listen to the RAAL 20-70XR tweeter which can be retrofitted to his RC5.  So I've heard them in two different rooms and different electronics.

Rick is a good friend of mine since we live only 10 miles apart, but I will try to give a fair and honest opinion of them.  They probably will improve with more break in time, I think they have only about 50 hours if that.

So far I'm very impressed with them. They sound much bigger than they look. The aluminum illuminator (say that 10x) is an awesome driver, as is the RAAL, of course. I had never heard this metal illuminator. I like to hear texture of acoustic instruments, and this 7" is a tone monster. Right now I'm listening to Shostakovich Piano Concerto 1 with the trumpet solo. I played trumpet for many years and so has Rick so I enjoy listening to trumpet on his speakers. Last fall I sat 6th row center to hear NC Symphony play this piece. I love Shostakovich. There is a long low B-flat played on trumpet behind the piano that on other speakers I have heard, even my previous Usher Be20's sounded the overtone an octave higher. I know the piece and I know the trumpet, but the Ushers always fooled me. The Veritas get it right, it sounds like low C without any confusion. On a jazz CD that Rick brought to my place when he dropped off the Veritas there was a melody line played legato in unison on vibes and piano. These instruments sound very similar and blend together on most speakers. The Veritas is able to separate them in tone and space while keeping the detailed tonal texture of each. To me it is amazing that a single diaphragm can produce the song of two different instruments at the same time so realistically. I think even the paper Illuminator would have less success with that. Stiff drivers have great benefits for tone junkies.

The treble's response from the RAAL is simply the best there is. Metallic instruments are awesome. Sibilants are clear but not sharp as domes can do. This wider ribbon has more weight than the 10mm RAALs, imo. So it blends very well with the fast cone.  No complaints about this tweeter.

The bass response is also good. Very clear, no ported slop. Tonal texture is easy to hear. I'd say it is solid down to 50Hz, F3 maybe like 45Hz or so? It does have punch but not thud.  Prat is excellent with a good pratty amp. It can play symphonic music to reasonably loud volume. I never felt like I wanted more from it on orchestral concertos. I have not yet tried big bomber symphonies like Prokofiev or Mahler, I'm not expecting any miracles. You need big drivers for that stuff. But I'll try it later. On synthetic acoustics like that Diana Krall album with strings, or Fourplay fake jazz the Veritas fills up the room easily. It does not feel top heavy as many small 2 ways often do. The RAAL does not act like the star here, it is well balanced overall.

I sensed a small amount of dynamic compression at upper volume levels, normal for a speaker this small. It's slight, less than you hear on most recordings. This could be nothing more than needs more break in time. I am picky about dynamics because I listen to a lot of uncompressed chamber music so I am very sensitive to it. Most people probably wouldn't even notice. There might also be a touch of cabinet resonance in the lower male vocal region 100-200Hz - hard to say because I heard it in Rob's room, but I don't remember hearing it at my house, but I had a shorter listen there. Again minor picky point. The curved sides should minimize resonances. I'm calling it straight, I don't want to be called a fanboy, AC can be a tough neighborhood these days.

The look is great. They are the smallest size speakers of Rick's that I have seen, but they are pretty heavy. The wood veneer is gorgeous. I can't remember what it is called, something I never heard of before. It is light brown, nicely figured, translucent wood with a tinge of olive green. With the curved sides it has good WAF. These look very expensive. Rick adds a removable magnetic baffle cover, making them very stealthy. Of course, the ribbon is best enjoyed in the nude.

I have heard them with 60W solid state integrated amp by Sol Samet, very transparent detailed amp. Also with Audio Research VT100m3. Both sounded equally good. A little more bass detail and punch with the SS, a little more midrange presence and treble finesse with the tubes. Both sound excellent. We'll try Rob's RM-200 and Odyssey Stratos amps with octal tube preamp tonight.

The driver integration is excellent, as usual for Rick. I usually like low order filters or no crossover at all, but with a 2way ribbon speaker that is impossible with this kind of low distortion and power handling. While listening, I kept thinking to myself "boy these are nice little speakers," and, "I could live with these," etc. Being a sealed design, adding one of Ricks subs later would be easy. We might try that later with Rob's active powered bass drivers. But it takes time away from spinning vinyl so no promises. 

These are my favorite of the small Selah 2way speakers I have heard in the last year. But Mejor is still king.
Rich

[chrismercurio]

Richidoo,

Glad to hear it...and thank you for the write-up. I appreciate it.

Rick,

Any chance you can give us your opinion on the aluminum v. paper ? with these new and seemingly wonderful scan speak woofers?

Thank you,

Chris

[quattro98]

What are the dimensions of this speaker? Is it the same size cabinet as the S6? I'd also like to know how much bigger the ported model is, as the Grandeur looks much larger than the pictures of the Veritas.

[Rob S.]

14" tall, 8.5" wide at the front tapering to 4.5" at the rear. Depth is 13".   I "think" their bigger than the S6's

Build quality was excellent, heavy & beautiful cabinet.  world class drivers and excellent driver integration.  Richidoo and I spent 1.5 days doing numerous experiments with speaker placement for my floorstanders ( Riferimento ), sub volume levels, room acoustic treatments, DAC comparisons( AVA ultra DAC vs. Buffalo EssSabre DAC kit),  Sol's integrated amp prototype vs. Tube hybride RM200 and a AR VT100mkiii,  and of course the Verita audition. This is enough for discussion in at least 5 different threads, our audio plate was full for his Tues-Thurs. trip to my audio cave.   We had a blast.  I enjoyed the Verita immensely....  I'm keeping it longer than I had originally thought to get in some more listening. 

I'm exhausted- off to bed, will do some more listening soon.

Rob

[cstory]

The Grandeur is taller, 22" vs 14", but the other dimensions are close, with the Grandeur being 1/2" wider and a couple of inches deeper.

[kip_]

14" tall, 8.5" wide at the front tapering to 4.5" at the rear. Depth is 13".   I "think" their bigger than the S6's

Build quality was excellent, heavy & beautiful cabinet.  world class drivers and excellent driver integration.  Richidoo and I spent 1.5 days doing numerous experiments with speaker placement for my floorstanders ( Riferimento ), sub volume levels, room acoustic treatments, DAC comparisons( AVA ultra DAC vs. Buffalo EssSabre DAC kit),  Sol's integrated amp prototype vs. Tube hybride RM200 and a AR VT100mkiii,  and of course the Verita audition. This is enough for discussion in at least 5 different threads, our audio plate was full for his Tues-Thurs. trip to my audio cave.   We had a blast.  I enjoyed the Verita immensely....  I'm keeping it longer than I had originally thought to get in some more listening. 

I'm exhausted- off to bed, will do some more listening soon.

Rob

I'd love to hear your thoughts on the Dacs, I am considering a AVA Vision Dac

[Rick Craig]

Richidoo,

Glad to hear it...and thank you for the write-up. I appreciate it.

Rick,

Any chance you can give us your opinion on the aluminum v. paper ? with these new and seemingly wonderful scan speak woofers?

Thank you,

Chris

Depends on the application. With the 70-20XR ribbon I prefer the Revelator 7" over the Illuminator paper cone when using a passive crossover. The Revelator has better upper end response so that's why I used it in the Grandeur. With the Mejor I had the DEQX and larger ribbon so I could cross the 7" lower and with a steeper slope. At that time the aluminum cone version of the Illuminator wasn't available yet; however, now that is an option.

I know some people have a strong bias against metal cones but I think much of that is from hearing poorly designed implementations. Same is true for first-order filter advocates - no aluminum cone is suitable for a shallow slope like that. Paper cones do tend to me more forgiving but that's not an absolute because different fibers can be added to change the tonality of the cone. The motor of the Illuminator gives me a sense of more resolution and with the metal cone I think it's the best 7" driver available.

[Rick Craig]

What are the dimensions of this speaker? Is it the same size cabinet as the S6? I'd also like to know how much bigger the ported model is, as the Grandeur looks much larger than the pictures of the Veritas.

The pictured sealed version is 14" tall, 8.5" wide, 13" deep (larger than the S6). The ported model increases the height to 17" and width 10" for the curved cabinet. If you want a custom rectangular cabinet we can alter the dimensions to your preference.

[chrismercurio]

Thank you Rick. What is the f3 or f6 for the sealed box?

[quattro98]

Thanks for the measurements, information, & thoughts on the driver choices. I've been looking at the forum for a long time absorbing information for a possible future speaker upgrade.

[Rick Craig]

Thank you Rick. What is the f3 or f6 for the sealed box?

67hz and 55hz.