bookshelves vs floorstander speakers for music

[brainhulk]

I just ordered some bookshelves. my non-audiophile ears tell me they sound better for some odd reason than their floorstander counterparts.

what's everybody's opinion here?

 

[mshan]

I read a comment that musicians hate full range speakers because the extended bass interacts with room and totally destroys the timing of the music.

 

[sivart]

I know that most musicians like a great 2.0 speaker setup. Floor standing would give you individual speakers (within the tower) for each range (Low, mid, and high).

Thus you may be able to find some bookshelf speakers that do this well, but your better choice would be a floor standing.

 

[sivart]

I read a comment that musicians hate full range speakers because the extended bass interacts with room and totally destroys the timing of the music.

With this comment, did you vote bookshelf?

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Is the question about a bookshelf speaker and it's direct floorstanding counterpart?

Same driver configuration in both?

Generally floorstanding counterparts to bookshelf speakers will have lower bass extension, either from larger cabinet volume or from multiple drivers.

With greater bass extension, it's easier to get away with a system without a sub and still get a reasonable amount of bass.

Is this question framed for a 2.0 system without a sub for either the bookshelf or floorstanders?



Bookshelf speakers and floorstanding speaker can both be great options. Actual characteristics of a particular speaker aren't going to be obvious from just knowing what kind it is. (You can get some bookshelf speaker with better bass performance than some floorstanders).

Depending on what kind of music you listen to, having less bass might be a big deal or not a big deal.

Many people that are serious about their music systems try to get two fullrange speakers and not have a subwoofer. This usually means floorstanding speakers since it's rare to find a bookshelf speaker that can go down deep with authority.

For a more common budget, this might be a question of whether to get a lower end floorstander or a higher end bookshelf speaker.

For the decision of whether to get a bookshelf or floorstander for the same speaker lineup, it's usually a decision of bookshelf + subwoofer vs. just floorstanders.

Could you clarify the context of your question?

 

[Dream Operator]

There's so much more to it than whether they are bookshelf or floor standing speakers. Proper placement and room treatment helps the way speakers interact with the room as well.

That said, these are heavenly:

http://www.magnepan.com/model_MMG

They were recommended to me by Recording/Mastering Engineer Barry Diament. Check out his article on speaker placement/room treatment:

http://www.barrydiamentaudio.com/monitoring.htm

 

[brainhulk]

well for music, i do have a subwoofer(8 inch 1000w velodyne), but most of the time I turn it off. I guess deep thunderous base isn't that important to me. I will turn it on depending on the music though because I listen to a wide variety. However for vocals, wind, string, and percussion...it seems to me that bookshelves are (i'm at a loss for words) just sound better. I am sorry but I am not down with the audiophile lingo lol

getting floorstanders to sound right also seems to be very finicky with placement. with bookshelves not so much, but the trick being placing the subwoofer and it adjusting the crossover and phase to the bookshelves and room. I dont have it quite right, i have my brother help me.

 

[WhoBeDaPlaya]

Depends on the driver and cabinet config. For me, I just went with a pair of Polk Monitor 30s for an old Marantz 2270.

 

[ivan2]

if u think your book shelves are better, they are.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

well for music, i do have a subwoofer(8 inch 1000w velodyne), but most of the time I turn it off. I guess deep thunderous base isn't that important to me. I will turn it on depending on the music though because I listen to a wide variety. However for vocals, wind, string, and percussion...it seems to me that bookshelves are (i'm at a loss for words) just sound better. I am sorry but I am not down with the audiophile lingo lol

getting floorstanders to sound right also seems to be very finicky with placement. with bookshelves not so much, but the trick being placing the subwoofer and it adjusting the crossover and phase to the bookshelves and room. I dont have it quite right, i have my brother help me.

Do you have your subwoofer calibrated to match the output of your speakers? Ideally for music, a subwoofer will just sound like a natural extension of your speakers rather than something "thunderous".

 

[mshan]

"However for vocals, wind, string, and percussion...it seems to me that bookshelves are (i'm at a loss for words) just sound better. I am sorry but I am not down with the audiophile lingo lol"

Sounds like, for the types of music you like to listen to, you might like a simple 2-way bookshelf speaker (if it is voiced correctly, even bass extension of 60 hz can sound "right" and not like there is obviously a lot of bass missing).