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Unless you're talking about an outdoor concert or filling a really enormous room, better is what you want not necessarily bigger or smaller. This may be the only situation in which size really doesn't matter.
The conventional wisdom that "bigger is better" doesn't always hold true in audio. High-end speaker systems, for example, have evolved in both directions—some designs have grown enormous while others have almost disappeared entirely. Which trend do you favor?
The size of speaker system is ultimately dependant on space available, the decor and on how much one is willing to spend. If space, budget, and decor are not the constraints, the current trend is to go for the bigger speakers. Bigger speakers, everything being equal, generally have better overall sound. The bass is fuller. There is this intrinsic wholeness in the reproduced sound or music. On the other hand, smaller speakers have limited bass output and may therefore sound puny by comparison. A high-end speaker system that lacks bass is a anomaly and is an inherent contradiction to be classed as such. High-end mean at the top of the hi-fi spectrum. How can it be at the top when the speakers are compromised particularly in the mid and lower bass as it is in the case of smaller speaker systems ? To me bass is an important element in music. It is my personal view that without bass, music is without wholeness and warmth.
You can get some great sound from upper bass/lower midrange through the treble range in smaller speakers. However, to get great sound from 20 cps on up you simply have to have some size to produce the sound with authority in medium to larger rooms. I may never get there because of financial constraints, a constant problem with this hobby, but without that limitation my next speakers and
I would love to move to smaller speakers. My pair of full-range towers dominate whatever room they are in. But, whenever I audition a really nice bookshelf or stand mounted unit, I think the sound is very nice, but it could be better. Then I listen to whatever full-size floor stander is in the same product line and think it sounds much better. There is only one way to go from here. When I have the room, I'll upgrade to an even bigger floorstanding loudspeaker.
As my listening rooms have shrunk during the last two moves, due to WAF issues, I am finding smaller monitors that produce beautiful images, depth, detail and dynamics in these smaller rooms. The trade off (there's always at least one), however, is I do not have that deep, deep bass for certain instruments like bass pedals and bass synthesizers. Oh well...
Used to have Avantgarde Unos (big) and then Audiostatic DCI Wings (6ft high), but I now have 3ft high Kharma speakers, and they're wonderful. I even had a brief fad for LS3/5As with subwoofers, and they were excellent too.... Like I keep telling my wife - size DOESN'T matter.
I don't favor any trend. Actually, I haven't purchased speakers since the '70s, but would like to soon. It's not a matter of size. For me it's a matter of finding a speaker that sounds good, and fits in my room. They'll have to sound good closer to the walls, the rear wall in particular, and fit in with the furniture. So, they'll probably not be that big, right? And they have to be affordable! Okay, so I'll have to say smaller in general, but not smaller than what I already own.
I prefer a slimmer cabinet due to room size restrictions. I currently had to downsize (unfortunately) from my Snell type E IV to a Spendor S6e. Spendor sounds better with voices and is a bit more detailed. Snell sound was bigger, deeper in the bass and more dynamic.
In the last three years I have replace both long standing members of my system. Rogers LS3/5a's(purchased in 1980) this year with Harbeth Model 30's a larger bookshelf speaker(twice the size) and Thiel CS 2(purchased the year they were introduced 1980?) with verity Fidelo encore) a smaller floor standing speaker.
When I was younger, I wouldn't even look at a speaker unless the woofer was over 15". These days I ask how the speaker sounds, not how big the individual drivers are. My current Thiel CS6es are big (185 lbs each), but if I could get that sound from minimonitors, I would do it in a heartbeat.
maybe it's because i don't get to hit live concerts as much as i'd like to ,i'm finding more fun with speakers at home .i love it when i can plop down into the sweet spot and relax .fact is you cant do that with u2 or puffdaddy . in my room i need big speakers to get a full soundstage sure they don't have th intimacy of smaller speakers but whn you set them up right and turn off the lights the have a 3-dness that i don't get with smaller book shelf type speakers