Do we really need anything more than 8" woofer and 1" tweeter for medium size room?

Don,

Most two-way, 8" woofer models that I’ve seen cross at 2200hz or higher, well above the middle of the mid-range. OTOH, lots of three way speakers cross to the woofer between 300 and 400 hz which is lower than middle of the mids, but closer. Maybe you’re just looking at a different set of examples than I did, but if you want your crossover out of the mids, I’d think you’d have a better shot choosing a random two way 8" over a random three-way model.

OTOH, lots of people think a x-over in that lowest part of the treble/presence region is worse than one in the midrange. I’d say that it’s Personal taste on that one.

I think that the idea that you want to keep the crossover out of a certain region has more to do with the quality of integration. It's fair to call it a dangerous, but not impossible task. Looking at the crossover frequency alone is not a definite indicator of quality or seamless integration. I'm not sure how much of this also has to do with horn speakers, where a conventional speaker cabinet was used for the low-mids and a horn in the treble. This type of avoidance may have made more sense.

Still, not all speakers do this as well.  One truth is adding a midrange can really add dynamic range in the mid-treble region.  A midrange can be used with an 8" woofer just as well as a 12". :)

I guess this is more of a designers thread than listeners thread.

All I know is - I’m sitting here listening to some of the biggest, best sound I’ve ever heard coming from the diminutive Wavetouch Audio GT’s with a 5+ in. bass driver... and... the bass is superb - big, bold, fast, tight, textured - that you can feel.

The wife says it sounds as good, or better than all my other high-end speakers - her comments precisely were - "how do those little speakers create such a huge sound?" "They sound as good as any of your others."

And that’s in a room about 22’ x 15’ - though it’s lively.

This is my "Giant Killer" system: Cost about $3500 - the GT’s, the Class D Audio amp, Creek OBH-21 passive pre, Sony SA5400es SACD. Just unbelievably, phenomenal sound - as good as my multi-thousand dollar setups.

No - it’s not "earthquake, house-shaking bass"... just the sound of a live upright bass, which is all I want - as a listener... not a designer.

Im with you @ba

@bassdude

I'm sure it sounds great, but not nearly what it could sound like with a full range pair of speakers and/or a powered subwoofer.  I guess it kinda depends on the types of music that you listen to.