VERITY OTELLO

no harshness, no shrill or truncated notes, just “The facts Ma’am,” of the performance. Tone and timbre at these elevated treble heights adhere naturally to their instrumental progenitors with a texture that again places them in-room. The overall treble presentation is delicate, refined, sweetly beautiful, and highly resolved.

As “Rachel’s Song” (Bladerunner, East West UK) plays, it is both grounded and ethereal and the Otellos capture the dichotomy beautifully. There is no doubt that the Otellos have recreated the intheatre experience of Bladerunner across the frequency spectrum in their relay of not only sound information but sight and feeling as well. Interesting.

As Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue (Columbia) plays, there is an immediacy and clarity that is quite good. As “Freddie Freeloader, Blue in Green, All Blues,” follows musical pieces across the album, the horns, the piano, the various cymbals are all alive and dimensional, in their given spatial segment across the stage, at depth and well resolved for this studio recording.

The Design

The Verity Otello maintains the classic lines and volumes of a box speaker that gives the nod to traditional speaker design. In their Makore wood finish, they are eye-catching and quite beautiful. They are also of medium height and weight. The Otellos sit on two robust “speaker plinths” with adjustable feet for levelling the speakers. All in all, they are a beautifully designed speaker.

Conclusion

The Verity Otello is without doubt a very accomplished speaker, able to facilitate one’s “suspension of disbelief” when listening to a variety of music via its transparency and resolution, its ability to unearth detail, and its way with dynamics, space, and texture.

Its failings are slight and, dare I say, universal, as they are shared by the vast majority of closed-box speakers and many open-baffle speakers as well, which do not excel at the reproduction of choral and live music and creating the most open, detailed, and ambient-rich space for their rendering.

That said, the Verity Otellos are nonetheless deserving of our HIGH NINES award for their remarkable way with vocals, which time and again brings performers into one’s listening space, a treble that extends nicely and sweetly, with no ill effects and a bass response that consistently provides a firm foundation for the music.

Pros: Exceptional midrange, very good highs, and good bass response.

Cons: None.

THE SYSTEM(S)

• Grimm Audio MU1 Streamer

• Mola Mola Tambaqui DAC

• Bricasti Design M1SE

• Tri-Art Preamp & Monoblock Amps (100W)

• Tri-Art OPEN 5 Speakers

• Vivid Audio Kaya 45

• Audience FrontRow Interconnects, USB, Ethernet Cables/Wires

• RSX MAX Power Cords

• AntiCable Power Cords

• Audience AdeptResponse aRS-T4 Power Conditioner

THE SPECIFICATIONS

• Bandwidth: 30 Hz to 50 kHz +/- 3dB

• Woofer: 2 x 7-inch edge coated reed/paper pulp cone

• Midrange: 5-inch mineral-filled polypropylene cone with 2-inch symmetrical-drive voice-coil

• Tweeter1 : 1-inch ring-dome Power handling: 100 watts music power

• Efficiency: 93 dB @ 1w @ 1 m

• Impedance: 8 Ω nominal, 3.8 Ω minimum

• Break-in time: 75 hours (63%), 400 hours (99%)

• H x W x D: 43.6 x 10.9 x 18.6 “ (110.7 x 27.6 x 47.2 cm )

• Weight: 150 lbs (75 kg) /pair 190 lbs (86 kg) packed / pair

THE COMPANY

Verity Audio, Inc.

Otello: $19,345-$21,285

1005, Saint-Jean-Baptiste Ave Suite 150 Quebec (Quebec)

G2E 5L1 CANADA email: info@verityaudio.com

THE DISTRIBUTOR

High Fidelity Services

2 Keith Way, Suite 4, Hingham MA 02043

781.987.3434 www.hifiservices.com info@hifiservices.com

AKRM-C