Loudspeaker is a combination of a cabinet, driver unit(s) (which we colloquially refer as speaker), crossover circuit and some accessories (like a support system, grille etc)

Miniaturisation in electronics has sparked a new trend in the minds of the consumers, they feel that since the computers are getting smaller, the loudspeakers too will get smaller. Well, there is a quest to make smaller loudspeaker sound good, but the loudspeaker size is more of less governed by the laws of physics of sound than the efficiency of certain electronics components.

In short miniaturisation of the loudspeaker is not possible beyond a limit, it yields to a logical conclusion that larger loudspeakers sound better. This is not entirely true, as there are numerous horrendously bad sounding refrigerator sized loudspeakers and more umber of sweet sounding small loudspeakers.

Real comparison is when two similar loudspeakers of different size are compared – this is quite possible in home audio as there are numerous bookshelf speakers and floorstanding speakers having same driver configuration. Here the larger box will (most likely) sound deeper and more powerful than its smaller sibling – overall more convincing.

This leads to another argument, does a bookshelf sound better than a satellite? Here the probability of a bookshelf sounding better is much larger. This is true because most of the satellites are so inappropriately sized that they happen to cease to playback sound at a critical lower-mid band of the sound that lends richness and weight to sound. So avoid the satellites unless there is no way out and a compromise is a must – do not think that they are a new technological wonder. They are severed loudspeakers at a wrong cut!

Having said that, a bookshelf loudspeaker with a powerful subwoofer (if integrated well) is a good compromise. Try and choose minimum of 4-inch of woofer size for the bookshelf – anything less than that will qualify the speaker for being a satellite speaker.

Converse is not true either – neither all the large loudspeakers good sounding, nor are all the smaller loudspeakers bad sounding. However, these are good rules of thumb. Haven’t you ever wondered why all the brands, inevitably, have large (most of the times largest) loudspeaker in their sgtable as the flagship one?