Hi GraceJean,
While I can certainly help with “how” to choose … It’s not possible to make specific suggestions or recommendations for either a mattress, manufacturers/retailers, or combinations of materials or components because the first “rule” of mattress shopping is to always remember that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress and there are too many unknowns, variables, and personal preferences involved that are unique to each person to use a formula or for anyone to be able to predict or make a specific suggestion or recommendation about which mattress or combination of materials and components or which type of mattress would be the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort”, firmness, or PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences) or how a mattress will “feel” to you or compare to another mattress based on specs (either yours or a mattress), sleeping positions, health conditions, or “theory at a distance” that can possibly be more reliable than your own careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in step 4 of the tutorial) or your own personal sleeping experience (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).
I’m not sure what you’ve read since you found the site but just in case you haven’t read it yet … the first place to start your research is the mattress shopping tutorial here which includes all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that can help you make the best possible choice … and perhaps more importantly know how and why to avoid the worst ones.
Two of the most important links in the tutorial that I would especially make sure you’ve read are post #2 here which has more about the different ways to choose a suitable mattress (either locally or online) that is the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort” and PPP that can help you assess and minimize the risks of making a choice that doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for and post #13 here which has more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability (how well you will sleep), durability (how long you will sleep well), and the overall value of a mattress compared to your other finalists based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.
Again nobody can speak to how any specific mattress will “feel” for someone else or whether it will be a good “match” in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP because this is too subjective and relative to different body types, sleeping positions, and individual preferences, sensitivities, and circumstances and you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress but outside of PPP (which is the most important part of “value”), the next most important part of the value of a mattress purchase is durability which is all about how long you will sleep well on a mattress. This is the part of your research that you can’t see or “feel” and assessing the durability and useful life of a mattress depends on knowing the specifics of its construction and the type and quality of the materials inside it regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label or how a mattress feels in a showroom (or in a hotel) or when it is relatively new so again I would always make sure that you find out information listed here so you can compare the materials and components to the quality/durability guidelines here to make sure there are no lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress that would be a cause for concern relative to the durability and useful life of a mattress before making any purchase.
Subject to confirming that any retailer or manufacturer on the list is completely transparent about the materials and components in their mattresses and to making sure that any mattress you are considering meets your specific criteria and the quality/value guidelines I linked earlier in this reply … the better options or possibilities I’m aware of in and around the Nevada City area are listed in the Sacramento list here and in the Chico list here.
Vivon is one of many brands that are part of the Zinus group which is a Chinese manufacturer that tends to use some lower quality/density materials in their mattresses that can soften or break down prematurely relative to higher quality materials and that can lead to the loss of the comfort and/or support that was the reason you purchased the mattress.
The Dreamfoam ultimate Dreams would certainly be a good quality/value choice but of course the only way to know for certain whether any mattress will be a good “match” for you in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP and how well you will sleep on it for certain will be based on your own careful testing or your own personal experience. There are many people that have mentioned that it is a reasonable approximation to the Tempurpedic Luxe but perhaps a little bit firmer but because they also use different types of memory foam the “feel” may be a little different as well and different people with different body types and sleeping styles may have a different experience on the same mattress and may have different opinions about how closely one mattress “approximates” another one.
When you can’t test a mattress in person then the most reliable source of guidance is always a more detailed phone conversation with a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer that has your best interests at heart and who can help “talk you through” the specifics of their mattresses and the properties and “feel” of the materials they are using (fast or slow response, resilience, firmness etc) and the options they have available that may be the best “match” for you based on the information you provide them, any local testing you have done or mattresses you have slept on and liked or other mattresses you are considering that they are familiar with, and the “averages” of other customers that are similar to you. They will know more about “matching” their specific mattress designs and firmness levels to different body types, sleeping positions, and preferences (or to other mattresses that they are familiar with) than anyone else.
The major brands such as Sealy/Stearns & Foster, Simmons, and Serta all tend to use lower quality and less durable materials in their mattresses than most of their smaller competitors that will tend to soften or break down prematurely relative to the price you pay which is why I would generally suggest avoiding all of them completely (along with the major retailers that focus on them as well) regardless of how they may feel in a showroom along with any mattress where you aren’t able to find out the type and quality/durability of the materials inside it (see the guidelines here along with post #3 here and post #12 here and post #404 here).
The Sealy Optimum Gold uses higher quality/density memory foam than many of the other Optimum mattresses (2" of 3.7 lb memory foam and 3" of 4 lb memory foam) … they are still “on the edge” of the minimum quality/density guidelines that I would consider and their base layers of polyfoam is only 1.5 lb density which is a lower quality/density material than I would normally consider for a mattress in this budget range or even a mattress that was half the price … especially if you haven’t confirmed that it’s a good “match” for you in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP.
I would also be cautious about buying a mattress from a local manufacturer that doesn’t normally ship mattresses outside their local area and I would make sure that you are comfortable with any additional shipping costs involved. If you are also uncertain about whether a mattress that you haven’t tested is a good “match” for you in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP I would also make sure you are comfortable with the options you have available after a purchase to fine tune the comfort or support of the mattress or to exchange or return the mattress (and any costs involved) which also become a much more important part of each person’s personal value equation if a mattress choice doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for.
You certainly have many other options available both locally and online outside of these three but the only one of these three that I would consider is the Dreamfoam Ultimate Dreams 13" Gel Memory Foam Mattress.
Phoenix