Can a bookshelf speaker sound like a floor stander? How do we answer this question? I think, before we do, we need to address even a bigger question. What is good sound? Or better, what are the fundamentals of good sound? Let´s dress up some sort of a blueprint. This is my version and as such it is and will always be up for a debate. It is based on what I have learned over the past 40 years, searching for that one right tone. The bottom line here is that there is no one true tone. Therefore the search is endless. My journey has ended a few times, only to discover that I did not know what good sound was (or at the time I only knew a fraction of good sound). Better equipment and accessories came to light and the scale or line defining good sound then moved.
Blueprint
Soundstage. The sound plays outside the speakers, in front of the speakers and way back of the speaker. This we call the depth of the soundstage. The sound in front of the speakers can extend some towards the listener, almost all the way or depending on the size, it is possible to sit in the soundstage. The soundstage is 3 dimensional. The stereo part is left to right. Voice in the middle, guitar just off to the right or left or both. Drums behind, snare drum little to right or left depending on the drummer. Tom Tom in the middle above the bass drum. Yes, the soundstage has resolution so we can hear in this 3D playback air between the instruments. The 3D soundstage has layers that rise up from the floor, as high the soundstage can go. The height depends on the room (mostly). To me it is more unnatural (if we can use that word "natural" when we talk about sound reproduction) if the soundstage is very high, But this also depends on the recording we are playing. These layers also go from front to back. There can be a very distinct difference between a "bell" ringing just to the side of the speaker and another "bell" hit further back but higher.
Resolution within the soundstage. We can hear a string hit. We hear how it is hit, with a finger or bow. We hear the strings' vibration. The extent of this in detail can be pretty astounding. The better the equipment has become in the last 25 years or so, the more detail we can hear. In many cases detail has come at the cost of musicality. Analytical sound can be impressive but no fun to play for hours upon hours, at home. Musicality should mean that the music playing is "like" the band of players are there, with you in the room.
I think (we could go on forever about all of this but let's try to keep it more simple than not, I hope most of you know what I am trying to say) this is good enough on sound.
A Year ago I had the Figaro M from Audio Solution in my system. I was very happy. They were supported by a pair of REL Ti9 subwoofers. The system played low in bass, was punchy. very good depth, pretty good soundstage. I have had luck with following my guts and my guts told me it could be I should try a smaller speaker in my room. So I got an XSA Vanguard clone of LS3/5s, the famous BBC monitor. It is made out of bamboo and I think bamboo is the gods gift to man to use in all things hi-fi. The big floor standers got pushed out of the room and cheap stands put in for the clones to sit on. My Audio by Van Alstine monoblocks who push 850 watts in 8ohm had a love affair with the Figaro M (who are 4ohm and turned the amps into 1.7 kilowatt monsters). The immediate impact of the bookshelves in the room was interesting. They did not "sound as good" as the big speaker, but they "fit" better. There was a musical tone in the room that was very pleasing that was not delivered by the bigger speaker. The sound was not as detailed. Not as detailed but just like a good sweater, the fit was better. The sound was more comfortable. After some tweeking the sound had improved to a point where I thought, this is it.
ha ha ha ..... yeah right.
"A New Idea"
Somewhere in the pleasuredome of this new musical spiritually I had an idea. (gut feeling?). The Figaro M is a 10.000$ speaker. The LS3/5a is a 1000$ speaker. The system is pretty good so what happens if I try a very good, but small speaker? Now began a lookout that included a number of interesting ideas. To cut a long story short, the idea did bounce around to a conversation between Mike Tweek Geek and myself. To cut that story also short I found myself in the possession of Aurai Z165 loudspeakers. If you know nothing about this French design read up on them. 2 way, 3 part crossover, unique tweeter, well made mid/bass driver that has been modified by the designer of the speaker. The price is under the price of my Figaro M. So at least we can compare them that way. Or we can not. Simply because the Aurai outperform the Figaro M in every department. Does that mean they overperform for the asking price?. Oh yes they do. Fantastically. What does that mean?
Aurai Z165
One of the promises made for the Aurai is that they put on a spectacular disappearing act, and do they ever. There is no sign of them in my room when I play music. They offer amazing soundstaging and resolution.
Details - I thought I had a pretty good idea what good details sound like but the Aurai took that understanding to a new place, never visited before by me. I am not a big tech guy, I have trusted my ears through the years more than understanding what or why things work the way they do. I think the tweeters are a big part of why the Aurai sound as good as they do. There is a relationship between the high end (tweeters) and bottom end (subwoofers) that has a greater effect on the sound than we normally talk about. Of course it is all about synergy. All parts need to work together or in harmony for the whole to do its proper job.
The speaker came with extremely handsome wooden stands that match the speaker brilliantly. First the stands stood on the floor. It did not seem to bother the sound but still there was a significant upgrade in focus when I installed the IsoAcoustic feet to the combo. I Highly recommended investing in the Gaia feet.
So where does the sound sit now? If I was happy with my Figaro M, I am more happy with the Aurai Z165. Everything is better. Bigger soundstage with more details and resolution, and better defined sound. The soundstage is deeper and the music played fills the room now like I have never heard before, ever. But most importantly, the musicality is unmatched anywhere I have ever heard. Hands down. They disappear better, room size they fit better and have the same "feel" as the LS3/5a, while still sonically much better.
But...
They play down to 50hz or so so by that nature they do better with subwoofers. But then all speakers do. No matter what kind you have. Why you can ask. Well this is something in all my years reading on hi-fi, I have never seen kept aloft. Subwoofers do so much more than add bass to the sound. They add air and help expand the soundstage in a way that is hard to express. This is better to hear for one self than take any word for. If one wants to go for the Z165 keep 2 subwoofers in the mix. Or 4.
Taking A Detour
Somewhere on that detour, discovering what a wonderful idea 2 subs are, I did read (very deep on the internet, might even have been so deep it could have been the dark web) that 4 subwoofers simply do more of what 2 do. When the sound was well settled I was given the opportunity to try a second pair of subs in the system.
What I got was a set of 12" ported 500 watt subs that sell for 399$. I did 2 things right from the start. I stumbled upon a very good spot for them to be in. On the side wall, 5 feet in front of the speakers, shooting towards the listening seat. The other was that my intention was to have them just play the lowest register of the bass. My RELs match the speakers and play from 60-65hz down. The subs play 40-45hz down. I did learn fast that one needs to be out of phase for all this to work. The impact was immediate. The soundstage became even bigger, more details in the soundstage .... just better sound. But. This biggest benefit and maybe the biggest surprise was how much punch and weight was in the bass at normal or even low playback. No reason to turn up the bass to get the rumble. Was all hunky dory ? No but far from it. I had some mild, soft bass hailo around some of the bass notes. I did learn that the sound would benefit if I raised one subwoofer up from the floor. The idea is to disturb the symmetry between the subs. I know this trick from tables under equipment. Always use 3 legs and make one out of different wood than 2. This way you interrupt the resonance relationship between the legs and the table itself. To complete this act of magic, drill a 1mm hole in the top of the table, that will interrupt the resonance in the platform. If you do not believe me, try it. It will not disappoint. So I got a 3 inch thick maple wood block I put feet under and placed it under the sub to my right as I listened. And all the bass disappeared. Nada. No bass at all. This was unexpected. The fix was simple. Flick the phase on the sub I had just raised to normal and all bass came back. This act of raising the sub is a clever practice. I am pretty sure I can still improve the bass by raising one REL as well. You see there is a fantastic sub system out there that is a set of an amp and 4 subwoofers. The 4 all play different parts of the bass response and by doing that they blend better and avoid well known bass trouble issues.
So back to the question, can a bookshelf play better than a full range floor stander? A big fat yes to that. And let me argue with it. My friend has a 1 million dollar system. Absolutely fantastic and might be the best I have heard. Does it sound better than mine ? Yes it does. But still I would not trade with him, for a few different reasons. The biggest reason is complexity. His speakers are 5 way with 2500 watt built-in amps, 2 sets of different tweeters and to run this there is a room correction control unit. I find more pleasure in listening to my humble system than this. But man it is fun.
I hope this was a fun read. This is my 3rd draft and I hope I got everything in I wanted. It is possible to tweek the Aurai like any other speaker. Putting weight on top and you tighten up the sound is one way to tweek. Maybe more on that later. Thank you for reading!