I don't see why they would... directly. It's often the same mids and tweeters in both models! I find that muddy bass simply wreaks it, so it's better to have low bass than bad bass.
So... they shouldn't but they do? ...Yeah, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.
(But I bettered both imaging and midrange --- as well as bass --- by going to a bigger, but more expensive, speaker. That's doesn't contradict your "extreme budget" statement and in fact is in agreement with it)
Anonymous
Posted on
I wouldnt exactly call it a set in stone rule that a bookshelf will always be better than a floorstander, but between a bookshelf and floorstander of the same price, the bookshelf ought to be superior in the mids and highs, simply because of the increased material costs for the cabinet of the floorstander.
Neither is inherently "better". It is not how much you have but what you do with what you have. The only truism is; the more you have, the more it will cost to keep the quality the same.
There is no reason one speaker, regardless of size, should have "more midrange" if the speakers are reasonably flat in their frequency response. Balanced sound is balanced sound no matter the size.
Many small speakers tout their design as a "mini-monitor". Most aren't. One of the features that separate very good monitor type speakers from run of the mill designs is the ability to operate as a "point source". This design places the acoustic center of the speaker between the two drivers creating a "virtual single point" where the sound originates. This does a very good job of replicating the nature of a vibrating string on a piano, violin, guitar, etc., where the sound is emanating from a single, extremely small point on the string. Most instruments, including the human voice, are considered to be point sources. The Quad ESL loudspeaker is a classic design that operates as a point source.
Large speakers that have a vertical array of drivers can be designed to operate as a "line source". Large flat diaphram speakers such as the Magnepan products are considered line sources over at least a portion of their frequency range. Most ribbon type high frequency drivers are line source designs.
Both point source and line source speaker designs have distinct advantages. However, just making a speaker a point or line source doesn't guarantee you will hear good sound from the speaker.