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are tower speakers necessary in 2022?

MaxwellsEq

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From a scientific point of view, larger cabinets permit lower distortion for a given SPL. They also are more efficient, which designers can trade in to get greater LF extension. These are NOT aesthetic or psychoacoustic matters, just physics.
 

Darkscience

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To reply directly to the title, yes there is a need for floor standers in 2022, absolutely. I can't imagine a world where we all decide we rather have speakers on stands in our living rooms, really makes no sense to think that. I also rarely, (if ever?), see bookshelf speakers that come with manufacturer designed and integrated stands, you are usually shopping 3rd party, and by then you are usually paying a lot of money for a decent beefy speaker stand off-setting the cost gains made by going bookshelf. Honestly, unless you are intending to put a Bookshelf speaker on a furniture console or actual shelf in the room, there is zero pros to going with bookshelf, my guess is people who prefer this route do it for very specific reasons, therefore negating the theory that floor standers are not necessary because you have all the other non specific reason holes to fill.

Consider the sub integration side of it, (first of all I think it is easier to integrate with floor standers that can go lower with less distortion/SPL), seems like this is reverse thinking. As speaker sub integration technologies advance, and become more readily available, you somehow believe the theory that integrating a sub by ear with a bookshelf is easier therefore making floor standers obsolete? And if you are using these same technologies to integrate your sub with a bookshelf, doesn't that make both equally easy therefore creating a null and cancelation of your argument?
 

Godataloss

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I like huge efficient speakers because I'm a fool for wide-band, balanced dynamics and I don't like to listen too loudly most of the time. That's a tall task for a sub/standmount setup in my experience.
 

pablolie

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If you sit close to your speakers, tower speakers have a disadvantage as they are nowhere near the ideal point source. Imaging easily suffers because of that. That was the main reason why my tower speakers didn't work in my new, smaller room - even though I have cathedral ceilings. I sit about 7ft from them - not the ideal distance for towers, but ymmv etc.

And I never listen to music too loudly, imo it loses all subtlety as human hearing definitely becomes pretty bad when exposed to high spl of any kind.

As I said, in a large room, by all means - towers have and will continue to have their space, I have no doubt about it. But whenever I see picture of large tower speakers crammed into small rooms or into corners and walls or wherever other pieces of furniture allow, I think "oh my...".
 

Keened

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Towers first and foremost appeal to our idea of what a 'good' speaker should be. In many ways they are the V8 of the audio world, people love to have them just to have them; which is to say they are a cultural signifier.

Yes, there is no replacement for displacement; but that displacement is better served by breaking it up (a la perfectly balanced V12 and/or multi-sub crossed) or by using technology to appropriately size less displacement (DSP/DRC).

The argument that you need stands to make up for what towers already have isn't wrong per se, but it does mean you have a lot less freedom is setting the tweeter height and even the overall placement because you can slide a stand's base under other furniture, can't do that will a solid box. Also a lot of manufacturers are finally making their speakers wall mountable which opens up even more possibilities for us floor space starved peons.
 

kipman725

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size in a speaker only realy gets directivity control to a lower frequency and more LF extension. After all if you are happy with extension to 1.5Kz I have speakers smaller than the average bookshelf that will do more than 125dB/1m all day.
 

crazycloud

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The argument that you need stands to make up for what towers already have isn't wrong per se, but it does mean you have a lot less freedom is setting the tweeter height and even the overall placement because you can slide a stand's base under other furniture, can't do that will a solid box.
Of course you can make a small stand under a tower to adjust for best listening axis. Most stands sold either by manufacturers or aftermarket are not adjustable and may not be correct for any given listening room situation.
 

AudioAaron

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People talking about lower extension with towers and I'm doing the opposite with my smaller speakers. I went with a smallish sealed enclosure as a natural high pass. I don't need to push my small woofers low, that's what the sub is for.
 

crazycloud

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People talking about lower extension with towers and I'm doing the opposite with my smaller speakers. I went with a smallish sealed enclosure as a natural high pass. I don't need to push my small woofers low, that's what the sub is for.
By far the greatest energy density in music is in the midbass and up into the lower midrange, not the subs so it's handled by the L/R. I want that handled by larger drivers barely working which means larger speakers.
 
D

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Whatever the inherent drawbacks bookshelves speakers may have, I personally will always prefer the look. To me, for some reasons, it's how a speaker is supposed to be. Although I do like some large speskers with a more vintage look, like the JBL L100 Classic. As for stands, no waste there, just use the space to store your music collection, or heavy books.
 

Adi777

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One concern for me while listening is ...1 are the sub/s raising in volume at the same db as my mains as I adjust the volume?
How is the bass issue in your Meridians?
 

Snoopy

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There are a ton more 3-way towers than 3-way bookshelves, and 3-way speakers generally have better directivity control.

I got 3 way bookshelves and a subwoofer.
Absolutely. Stand mounted two ways 'look' less intrusive, but in real terms they take up more space because there's likely a subwoofer or two and the space around stand mounted speakers is a bit of 'no-go zone' due to them being easy to topple.

Small stand mount speakers are fun, but no substitute for a real speaker with significant cabinet volume and a bunch of optimized drivers.

3 way stand mound speakers + small subwoofer (s).

If I get bored of my current speakers it's very easy to store them somewhere or sell them online.

They are easy to transport as well.

Towerspeakers are always a problem that they are expensive to ship somewhere. They take up more space.
 

Robin L

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I just got my Infinity Primus 250's back. I think they first appeared in the early 2000s for $200 a pop. Looks like they are 2 & 1/2 way speakers, 3 feet tall. As you can see in the picture, they are raised 14" off the floor. The one on the left, a heavy, painted box full of oversized books, on the right on top of a Sonus "Son of Sub", set to something like 11 (I like bass, particularly when it's real and you can really feel it).

Nothing about this hobby is "necessary". But this system is pretty awesome for a system in a 9' by 10' room.

Overkill? Who cares? My system cost me all of $160 for the basic system, all bought used. That's for speakers, sub, AVR and digital disc player. Throw in the computer, Topping E/L 30 combo and interconnects and it looks more like $510. add the 1/2 tb flash storage for music files and the total is about $600 for an immodest bedroom system.

Necessary? Of course not. Really good? I think so.


DSCF5902.JPG
st got my Infinity Primus 250 tower speakers back. 2 & 1/2,
 

steve59

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The 6x8'' woofers per speaker can overload my listening room. Meridian likes to market their dsp speakers as room proof and in reality speakers that can move that much air probably need some room to breathe.
 

steve59

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How is the bass issue in your Meridians?
The dsp 8000 is a 2 way sitting on a 6 driver sub that crosses over around 200 hz if I remember the literature correctly with EBA M uses time delay to have low fq's reach the listeners ears at the same as the highs. I have listened with eba on and off and I really can't say that I can tell when the correction is on or off.
 

Adi777

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The dsp 8000 is a 2 way sitting on a 6 driver sub that crosses over around 200 hz if I remember the literature correctly with EBA M uses time delay to have low fq's reach the listeners ears at the same as the highs. I have listened with eba on and off and I really can't say that I can tell when the correction is on or off.
But you are not lacking lower, better bass?
 

steve59

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lower bass no not lacking that, better bass? My listening room is around 3500 cu/ft and sometimes I think the dsp 7200's would be a better fit. The only measurements I can find are for the legacy dsp 8k in 2001.
 

novice

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Extra bass is always good.

Yessir!

My old standby was just enough subwoofer so you noticed it if you turned it off. IOW, the musical presentation was coming from the main speakers and the subwoofer just blended in. I believe the effect is called precedence. In doing that with satellites the result was dramatic to the point they became nearly unlistenable without the sub on. For towers though they were good either way but impact even more noticeable with the sub on.

/100% subjective observation...
 
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