Thanks for all the helpful info on the site and the forums. We are also in the market and like the Rhapsody Breeze (based on a short couple minutes of tryout at the local big box store). I am torn between going for the Tempupedic vs Selectfoam - which has a very attractive price point. If the Regalis HD feels similar to the Rhapsody Breeze, then I think it would work for us.
I had a few specific questions:
In terms of look and feel. Do you know if select foam matches the tempurpedic look. My wife liked the look of the Rhapsody Breeze - with the swirl pattern stitching on top. But the pictures on the select foam website are kinda bland. In this day n age of great SLR cameras, I think they should put up some better pictures of the mattresses on their site. Can anyone who got the Regalis HD comment on how it looks and feels?
We have a platform bed with slats (The slats are solid wood, 2 inches in widtch and 3-4 inches apart). I am assuming we need a foundation or a bunkie board to place the mattress. Has anyone here used a heavy memory foam mattress on a slat bed? Any advice on where to get a bunkie board? Selectfoam does not seem to sell bases, is the tempurepedic low profile base worth it?
I was unable to find a Tempurpedic grand bed in any store. Any comments on how the rhapsody matches up with the grand bed? (and sf regalis with the sf grandis?)
There are really 3 ways that one mattress can match another one.
The first of these is in it’s feel and performance. While the quality of materials may not be the same (lower quality materials can feel the same as higher quality materials when they are new but won’t remain close to their original specs for as long once they soften and break down more quickly) they may “feel” very similar in side by side testing … at least for a while.
The second of these is with the quality of materials. This means that two mattresses may use the same quality of materials as another mattress and may have roughly the same durability but they may not feel the same because different foams of the same quality can have a very different feel and different designs and layer thicknesses can also mean that two mattresses with the same quality materials can be very different as well.
The third way they can match would be in design where one mattresses uses the same thickness of materials and layers and the same quality materials as well but they still may not feel the same because of differences in how similar quality materials can feel and differences in the softness or firmness of similar quality materials. In this case for example you could have one mattress that used 2" of 4 lb memory foam over 2" of 5 lb memory foam over 6" of 2.2 lb foam which could feel very different from another mattress that used the same quality/density of materials but where the feel and performance was very different.
So different mattresses may approximate another one (they will not likely be identical) in one or more ways … feel, material quality, and design.
In the case of Select Foam … they are close approximations of the Tempurpedic line in all three ways. You can compare them to the Tempurpedics in terms of quality of materials (using the density of their materials) and in design (comparing the design of and layer thicknesses of each mattress which are similar but not exactly the same because there are small differences in design so that the “feel” will be closer using different foams) and their comparable “feel” is tested by the owners and staff of Select Foam and also by their customers in their bricks and mortar store in Miami where the Tempurpedic line and their own line is set up side by side.
In other words they take a lot of care in approximating the Tempurpedic lineup as closely as possible and of course their “value” is much higher.
I know from my own conversations with Matt the owner that they are constantly looking for higher performance covers which is a particular interest of theirs. Because of this … some of their pictures may not be up to date and if the appearance of the mattress is important to you (even though it’s not important at all in terms of quality and performance and is covered by bedding) … then I would probably call them to confirm if the pictures on their site are the same as the cover they are currently using and if they aren’t ask them to send you a current picture.
A memory foam mattress just needs a firm, even, and non flexing surface that can support the weight of the people and the mattress and your platform bed should work well as long as it also has a midbeam with support legs that go to the floor to prevent any sagging in the middle. The only real reason to add a foundation or a bunkie board would be if you needed the extra height. In this case I would suggest a slatted surface foundation or bunkie board (such as this one) rather than a solid surface (whether it was a bunkie board or a slatted foundation) because it can add to the ventilation of the mattress and reduce the risk of mold and mildew and dust mites but as you can see in post #10 here there are others who believe that a solid surface foundation or bunkie board is also fine. The foundation thread also has many foundation options.
They actually do sell foundations and have an option to add a foundation to all of their mattresses.
I checked out the Tempurpedic Rhapsody Breeze today at a local chain store and am now very interested in the SelectFoam Regalis HD. Thank you for the information above!
