smaller speakers for critical listening?

I'm of two minds about answering the question.
Can a stand mounted monitor be satisfying to listen to?
Hell yes!
Can it be satisfying in the long run as the only speaker to own?
Not so sure, for me.


I usually own multiple speakers, though I've cut down a bit.  Right now I own two floor standing speakers:   Thiel 2.7 and Joseph Audio Perspectives.   And three stand mounted:   Spendor S3/5s,  Waveform Mach MC, Thiel 02.


In some ways the stand mounted monitors are my reference sound for musical enjoyment.  The tone and coherence of the Thiel and the Spendors just make me swoon.    And I find I can really enjoy a wide range of music, from classical to prog rock to funk to electronic, you name it.  Even the teeny little Spendor S3/5s provide just enough bass to not make me miss the big speakers too much when listening.   If I truly want to "just enjoy the music" it seems I throw up the stand mounted speakers.




But then, being an audiophile :-) I can start to crave a bit more.   Image size, especially on the Spendors are much smaller,  on many tracks.Often that doesn't bother me because the tone is so engaging - swelling string sections make me swoon at how beautiful they sound.   But, knowing there is "more" to be had gets my itch going.   Also, sometimes I just like to crank the sound, especially to listen from outside the room when I'm on my computer down the hall, or in the kitchen.   A small speaker just runs out of steam and doesn't have a convincing punch in the bass.  



The floor standing speakers can just "slam" in that regard in a very satisfying way.


The little Spendors can do an amazing magic show in terms of spacious imaging.   But the Thiel and Joseph floor standing speakers go even further, making almost full sized flesh and blood musicians appear in a massive soundstage.   It's hard to give up those kind of sonic goodies.And when tracks play in which instruments plumb the lower frequencies, the bigger speakers can be so satisfying.   I was listening to a soundtrack on the Joseph Perspectives and there were these deep low brass section parts, and synth bursts down low that just felt so dynamicand impactful in a way the stand mounted speakers would never do.



So really I kind of go back and forth.  When I'm listening to my stand mounted speakers I often start thinking "isn't this all I need?   Wouldn't life be simpler if I just used stand mounted speakers?"  (I move speakers around).   And it lasts for quite a while.   But then I get the bigger sound itch that only the floor standers can scratch.   Hence, it's hard for me to part with all my speakers and stick with only one.

I can't afford $7k speakers, otherwise I would lean towards Boenicke W5. They blow me away when I first heard them. I have heard them them again after that and they are special. 

Someone suggested Dutch & Dutch 8 and they are also good but I prefer Boenicke. If you want to try active speakers you can also listen to Kii Three. More expensive but includes amp and dac, like D&D.

Thank you all for such thoughtful, engaged responses. It means a lot to me that so many took the time to consider the question with such care. I'd especially like to thank @verdantaudio, @phusis, and @prof for their meditations. 

I hear a few of you circling @prof's remark: "Can a stand mounted monitor be satisfying to listen to? Hell yes! Can it be satisfying in the long run as the only speaker to own? Not so sure, for me."

That's where I get stuck. For a number of reasons including my budget, I can't set up multiple systems. So at least for now it comes down to purchasing "the only speaker I'll own." Of course, the problem is existential at the moment: auditioning any speaker is difficult for me, let alone doing a home trial. My real concern, as I think I've stated, is that I don't want to upgrade to "better" speakers, I don't just want good sound. I want to fall in love when I listen to music, an experience I've had in the past but not with my current speakers. I fully understand that stand mounted speakers can be wonderful. I'm just worried that I'll get that "itch" for "more." Many of you have talked about bass, so perhaps I should be thinking more intently about that, especially with stand mounts. My original question--which posters here took seriously--is about "the long run," the question of critical listening, the deep pleasure of music. I know that no one can answer that *for me*, but I appreciate hearing what other people think. 

I do understand that it comes down to trying out a lot of speakers and working with the room. Once the world rights itself, I look forward to that. I can hear some of the speakers mentioned here by traveling 5-6 hours (to NYC and Boston). It does feel to me, perhaps naively, that I'm trying to decide between two different approaches, two ways of narrowing the search: stand mounts (and a sub?) or floor-standing. But perhaps this is too simplistic. 

I'll toss another active speaker this time a  floor standing full range  in the pot. 18hz-24khz +-3db , 

https://www.safeandsoundhq.com/products/dynaudio-focus-60-xd-floorstanding-loudspeaker-open-box-pair...

I notice above headphonedream preferred the Boenicke W5 to Dutch and Dutch . We all have our preference and me telling you which I prefer doesn't really mean much but since some are sharing their preferences I will say I sold Joseph audio Perspectives 2 and kept the D&D, they are amazing speakers.