Which is better floorstanding speakers or bookshelf speakers with the support of a subwoofer, that is the answer we are going to find out. Both setups have their own pros and cons. We are not just looking at their sonic performances and sound quality. Your own requirements and situation will also determine whether to either go with floorstanding speakers or bookshelf speakers with a sub.
We will be making a comparison between these two setups and from there you can judge which is the better choice for yourself. We will also share with you our thoughts on the victor. By the end of this blog post, you should be more informed to make a final decision as well.
Table of Contents
Comparing Both Setups
As mentioned earlier, your requirements and situations will play a role in determining whether to either choose a pair of floorstanding speakers or a pair of bookshelf speakers with a subwoofer.
Cost and Budget
It is usually cheaper to get a good pair of bookshelf speakers than a good pair of floorstanding speakers. The low-end performance of bookshelf speakers will most of the time lose out to floorstanders. If this is not a concern then you might want to get bookshelf speakers due to the value and performance you are getting plus you don’t need a high budget. If bass performance is a concern then you can add a subwoofer into the mix. Of course, adding a sub will increase the overall cost and the bookshelf speakers plus subwoofer setup might even be more expensive than having a pair of floorstanding speakers but there is an advantage to this.
Deep Bass Response
Integrating a high-quality and powerful subwoofer with your bookshelf speakers will enable your stereo system to deliver full-range sound. When comparing this setup with a pair of full-range floorstanding speakers, it is a lot more affordable to go with bookshelf speakers with a sub as such floorstanders tend to be very expensive and out of reach. Not to mention, you will also need a powerful amplifier to drive full-range floorstanding speakers and that is another cost in itself.
Setting Up
It is easier to set up a pair of floorstanding speakers than a pair of stand-mounters with a subwoofer. After finding the optimal placement of your speakers, you will still need to find a good spot for your subwoofer. There is a chance your room acoustics are not suitable to house a subwoofer and its bass performance might affect the overall sound quality negatively such as overwhelming the upper registers produced by your bookshelf speakers, not accurate sounding, sluggish and more. This is why it is wise to invest in a good subwoofer than a bad one.
Available Room Space
Bookshelf speakers and a subwoofer combination have more placement options. You can place the bookshelf speakers on your current table/furniture and position the sub in the corner of your room or under your desktop. As for floorstanding speakers, you will need to make space for them. They will need ample distance away from the walls as well as distance apart from each other which also means they will be standing prominently inside your room. If your room is cluttered and has limited space, having two bulky speakers taking up floor space will make it worse.
Room Size
For listeners who have a large listening room, a pair of bookshelf speakers would not be suitable even with an integration of a subwoofer. You will certainly need a pair of large floorstanding speakers to fill a room of this size with music. Floorstanding speakers, on the other hand, are not suitable to be used inside a small listening room or at a nearfield listening distance.
Sound Quality
Let’s say both setups have speakers of the same caliber and when it comes to sound quality, a pair of floorstanding speakers would sound better. The highs, mids, and lows would be delivered cohesively together, making them sound more seamless than bookshelf speakers with a subwoofer. The soundstage projected by the floorstanders is larger and more spacious as well.
Even when it comes to home theater setup, floorstanding speakers are better choices as they naturally have stronger and more impactful midbass punch. Using floorstanding speakers in an HT system, you can choose not to integrate a subwoofer even though it is still recommended. Bookshelf speakers do have their own advantages as you can mount them on walls to save floor space.
Which is Better – Floorstanding Speakers or Bookshelf Speakers with Subwoofer
If budget and available space is not an issue, we will find full-range floorstanding speakers to be the better option. Unless we are talking about setting up a sound system inside a small listening room then bookshelf speakers with a subwoofer would be ideal. You might want to take a look at our blog post about getting a subwoofer for a small room. Most of the upper echelon HiFi loudspeakers are floorstanding speakers and just simply based on this fact, we can tell who the winner is.
We are not saying bookshelf speakers plus subwoofer setup is bad. With the right calibration and tuning, a 2.1 setup can sound amazing and powerful. Some might even prefer the agility and speed of a pair of bookshelf speakers over floorstanders.
To Conclude
Before you start auditioning the speakers, you should consider your requirements and needs first. This will give you a clearer picture of whether to go for floorstanding speakers or bookshelves with sub. Unless sound quality is above all else, then you should listen to each setup first before looking at your situation and other requirements. The performance of the subwoofer matters a lot and so you shouldn’t just go for the cheapest sub you can find. We hope our humble blog post has helped you and also given you a better idea of these two setups.
