Bookshelf vs. Floorstanding

[Neijii]

So I have a question for you guys. I'd much rather get your input than an answer from an article because I feel articles are biased ;P

What's the difference aside from size from a bookshelf and floorstanding?

If a floorstanding is 1k and a bookshelf is 1k, does that mean the bookshelf is better quality since you get less speaker?

 

[dapack69]

What you just asked is a loaded question and I refuse to answer truthfully.

According to what you just did ask; I could own a speaker company and charge $600 for the towers and then charger $800 for the bookshelves having people think the book's would be much better.

 

[Neijii]

Well I'm basically trying to figure out if size is the ONLY difference.

I've realized that the larger the speaker, in most cases, the fuller it will sound. So why a bookshelf if you have room for a floorstanding?

Maybe another way to put it...same company has a bookshelf for 1k and a floorstanding for 1k. What would the difference be? Quality? Or maybe it sounds the same but your paying more for it to be more compact?

 

[dapack69]

To put is simple most people are married ane the wife are against a full speaker setup. So they offer the bookshelf in placement and make for of a profit while the actual owner is getting screwed and yet making the wife happy.

 

[Neijii]

Wow that sucks. Good thing the girl likes how speakers look haha.

I'm debating what to do because I have 2 totem mites and an HSU sub...debating if I should sell that set and put money towards some good floorstanding speakers for the front.

 

[dapack69]

I've never heard the speakers that your talking about in person. If your happy with the way they sound, I would look for center to match.

The best center maybe another speaker of the same kind and just lay it sideways.

 

[JerryLove]

As pointed out: this is an unanswerable question.

The box on a floor-stander costs more than the box on a bookshelf so if the price is identical, and assuming one isn't simply a better deal, costs must be cut somewhere else.

That's not to say that the larger case doesn't affect sound. It can. It tends to increase resonance (bad) because larger surfaces are harder to make rigid. It also increases the available volume behind the speaker.

To take advantage of that larger volume often means changing the LF driver... which may be cheaper or more expensive. It's likely to move the LF response down, but will have an unknown effect elsewhere... and will force cost cuts / allow cost increases elsewhere.

In short: it's not answerable.

In longer but only generally true: the bookshelf should make better sound within a more narrow frequency range than the comparable floor-stander.

 

[AJinFLA]

What's the difference aside from size from a bookshelf and floorstanding?

Stands.

If a floorstanding is 1k and a bookshelf is 1k, does that mean the bookshelf is better quality since you get less speaker?

No.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

To me it's kind of like saying Receiver vs Pre-pro.

Oh wait, then a floor standing tower would be like a receiver in this analogy?

Yikes.

 

[Neijii]

Thanks for the answers..that did help. I guess I was just confused because with a certain budget, not sure if I want to look at bookshelf or floorstanding.

Thought it would help me narrow down the search.

 

[JerryLove]

Thanks for the answers..that did help. I guess I was just confused because with a certain budget, not sure if I want to look at bookshelf or floorstanding.

Speaking in generalities that are so vague as to be actually wrong.

If you are going to pair with some subs, especially in a HT envyron, bookshelves usually bring all to the table you could want.

If you are running sans-sub, or have a lot of direction LF (organ music in stereo) then towers, or paired stereo bookshelves-subs, mean you get a better low-end response.

 

[KEW]

Here is my understanding and thoughts on the issues:

Resonance:
A 3/4" thick panel that is 1' long has much less audible resonance than a 3' long panel. Thus, to prevent resonance issues a floorstander needs to be constructed to a higher standard to attain the same level of cabinet rigidity as a bookshelf.
A quality brand will certainly do this, but the price goes up quickly.

Efficiency:
Floorstanders usually use multiple mid/bass drivers which increases the efficiency of the speakers.

Imaging:
Because the drivers are usually in a tighter array, bookshelfs are likely to image a bit better than towers. But I'm not sure this is a hard and fast rule.

For example, look at Aperion's 6 series bookshelf and floorstanding speakers:

Aperion Intimus 6B @ $250 ea.
Frequency Response (+/- 3dB) 48-20,000 Hz -- (+/- 6dB) 42-22,000 Hz
Impedance 8 Ohms
Sensitivity 82 dB
Recommended Power 50 - 200 Watts
Tweeter 1" Audiophile-grade Silk-Dome Tweeter
Woofer 6.5" Woven-Fiberglass Composite Woofer
Driver Configuration 2-Way
Enclosure Type 1" HDF, Ported
Dimensions 15" H x 8.3" W x 12.8" D
Weight 26 lbs

Aperion Intimus 6T @ $695 ea.
Frequency Response (+/- 3dB) 36-20,000 Hz -- (+/- 6dB) 28-22,000 Hz
Impedance 6 Ohms
Sensitivity 91 dB
Recommended Power 50 - 300 watts
Tweeter 1" Audiophile-grade Silk-Dome Tweeter
Woofer 2 6.5" Woven-Fiberglass Composite Woofers
Driver Configuration 2-Way
Enclosure Type 1" HDF, Ported
Dimensions 41.5" H x 7.75" W x 15.5" D (Base 10.5"x18.25")
Weight 70 lbs

Aperion has a reputation for a high build quality and we see that the tower costs 2.8 times as much as the bookshelf.
The drivers are the same, but the tower has two woofers while the bookshelf has only one. The difference in efficiency is pretty amazing, I don't think a 9 dB difference is typical.
Also, despite being more efficient, the towers can handle more power.

We also see that the tower offers usable bass to 28Hz, while the bookshelfs are at 42Hz.

I believe these trends are typical when comparing towers to bookshelfs.

So, to draw some conclusions, I will toss out the following:

If you really like to crank it hard in a large room, you can over-tax bookshelf speakers; however, a good bookshelf will go pretty darn loud. Ask a showroom to show you how loud bookshelfs will go (let them run the risk) and take note of the size of the room they fill.

Bookshelfs pretty much require a sub if you want decent bass. Towers will give you decent bass when you are listening to music, but maybe not enough for hip-hop or if you are a bass head.

For movies, you'll want a sub to experience the "umph"!

Unfortunately, subs are pretty expensive (often about the same price as the difference in cost between a pair of towers vs. a pair of bookshelves). I think this holds for the Aperion 6's which are nice speakers. $900 is a reasonable budget for a sub to go with either the 6B or 6T.

I believe that typically, the sub with bookshelfs will ultimately give you better sound quality than towers for the same price. However, depending on your room, dedication, and luck; it may take some effort to take full advantage of the sub's benefit. I have a friend (with towers) who turns off his sub to listen to music and back on for movies because he feels the sub hurts the music. I've talked with him about placement, but he simply doesn't want to mess with it.

So, I hope this gives you some ideas on the direction you might want to go.

 

[walter duque]

I believe that typically, the sub with bookshelfs will ultimately give you better sound quality than towers for the same price.

KEW I totally have to agree with you. I have been playing around with my extra pair of bookshelfs and dual subs total cost (retail) 5K and comparing them to my towers again same retail 5K. I like the sound better with the bookshelfs and dual subs.
These are the bookshelfs I am using.

 

[Neijii]

Here is my understanding and thoughts on the issues:

Resonance:
A 3/4" thick panel that is 1' long has much less audible resonance than a 3' long panel. Thus, to prevent resonance issues a floorstander needs to be constructed to a higher standard to attain the same level of cabinet rigidity as a bookshelf.
A quality brand will certainly do this, but the price goes up quickly.

Efficiency:
Floorstanders usually use multiple mid/bass drivers which increases the efficiency of the speakers.

Imaging:
Because the drivers are usually in a tighter array, bookshelfs are likely to image a bit better than towers. But I'm not sure this is a hard and fast rule.

For example, look at Aperion's 6 series bookshelf and floorstanding speakers:

Aperion Intimus 6B @ $250 ea.
Frequency Response (+/- 3dB) 48-20,000 Hz -- (+/- 6dB) 42-22,000 Hz
Impedance 8 Ohms
Sensitivity 82 dB
Recommended Power 50 - 200 Watts
Tweeter 1" Audiophile-grade Silk-Dome Tweeter
Woofer 6.5" Woven-Fiberglass Composite Woofer
Driver Configuration 2-Way
Enclosure Type 1" HDF, Ported
Dimensions 15" H x 8.3" W x 12.8" D
Weight 26 lbs

Aperion Intimus 6T @ $695 ea.
Frequency Response (+/- 3dB) 36-20,000 Hz -- (+/- 6dB) 28-22,000 Hz
Impedance 6 Ohms
Sensitivity 91 dB
Recommended Power 50 - 300 watts
Tweeter 1" Audiophile-grade Silk-Dome Tweeter
Woofer 2 6.5" Woven-Fiberglass Composite Woofers
Driver Configuration 2-Way
Enclosure Type 1" HDF, Ported
Dimensions 41.5" H x 7.75" W x 15.5" D (Base 10.5"x18.25")
Weight 70 lbs

Aperion has a reputation for a high build quality and we see that the tower costs 2.8 times as much as the bookshelf.
The drivers are the same, but the tower has two woofers while the bookshelf has only one. The difference in efficiency is pretty amazing, I don't think a 9 dB difference is typical.
Also, despite being more efficient, the towers can handle more power.

We also see that the tower offers usable bass to 28Hz, while the bookshelfs are at 42Hz.

I believe these trends are typical when comparing towers to bookshelfs.

So, to draw some conclusions, I will toss out the following:

If you really like to crank it hard in a large room, you can over-tax bookshelf speakers; however, a good bookshelf will go pretty darn loud. Ask a showroom to show you how loud bookshelfs will go (let them run the risk) and take note of the size of the room they fill.

Bookshelfs pretty much require a sub if you want decent bass. Towers will give you decent bass when you are listening to music, but maybe not enough for hip-hop or if you are a bass head.

For movies, you'll want a sub to experience the "umph"!

Unfortunately, subs are pretty expensive (often about the same price as the difference in cost between a pair of towers vs. a pair of bookshelves). I think this holds for the Aperion 6's which are nice speakers. $900 is a reasonable budget for a sub to go with either the 6B or 6T.

I believe that typically, the sub with bookshelfs will ultimately give you better sound quality than towers for the same price. However, depending on your room, dedication, and luck; it may take some effort to take full advantage of the sub's benefit. I have a friend (with towers) who turns off his sub to listen to music and back on for movies because he feels the sub hurts the music. I've talked with him about placement, but he simply doesn't want to mess with it.

So, I hope this gives you some ideas on the direction you might want to go.

That helped A LOT. I guess I asked a loaded question that wasn't worded correctly for the answer I was looking for.

I do like how floorstanding looks better. I guess I'll just have to audition my face off and see.

 

[Pyrrho]

So I have a question for you guys. I'd much rather get your input than an answer from an article because I feel articles are biased ;P

What's the difference aside from size from a bookshelf and floorstanding?

If a floorstanding is 1k and a bookshelf is 1k, does that mean the bookshelf is better quality since you get less speaker?

Here is an approximate example of the difference:

http://www.polkaudio.com/homeaudio/rtia/index.php?s=rtia5#rtia5

http://www.polkaudio.com/homeaudio/lsi/index.php?s=lsi7

The floorstanding speaker of these will play louder, is more efficient, and has deeper bass. But I would probably rather have the bookshelf speakers, as the manufacturer has spent more money on better drivers, so that the sound that they do produce is likely better. And if you are going to have a subwoofer anyway, then you are not going to be giving up any deep bass, assuming you set up the subwoofer properly and it is not a piece of junk.

Basically, it costs more for a larger box, both in materials and in shipping costs. So assuming that we are talking about an equally fair deal, there is going to be extra money for higher quality drivers in the bookshelf speakers of the same price.

I personally use fairly expensive bookshelf speakers for all channels in my surround system, and am quite happy with it. I have subwoofers for the bass that they cannot reproduce, so I miss none of the frequencies due to their inability to reproduce deep bass. I think that one gets the best bang for one's buck this way, but it does depend on what one wants out of the system, and whether or not one has a subwoofer.

 

[just listening]

I like Aperion very much, and you could do far worse. But, if you like the sound of your Totem Mites, why not get the floorstanding version of them, the Sttaf. Buy a single Mite for the center unless you're wedded to the idea of the Mite T center.