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Wow! The topic has seen more threads than a vintage Singer sewing machine.

You picked a good subject @donavabdear

The subject of active vs passive also involves manufacturing efficiencies and economics. It reminds me of the old days when, as a dealer, we were asked why separates cost more than a receiver. Putting aside the fact that there were usually better parts inside, there are also factors involved in producing 3 pieces instead of one.

- 3 chassis instead of 1

- 3 faceplates

- 3 on/off switches

- 3 shipping cartons

- 3 sets of packing materials

- 3 sets of service literature

- 3 sets of promotional materials

- 3 cartons shipped instead of 1

And, it goes on and on.

So, ALL things being equal (driver quality, amplifier, cabinet integrity, etc.), an active system would cost much less than separates. Or, theoritically, produce a better result at the same price point.

However, taking the cost, form factor, weight and other constrains out of the equation, the question becomes if a stellar amplifier coupled with superb raw drivers can overcome the added inefficiencies and distortions caused by exotic passive crossover components? And, that is the real question in my humble opinion.

@waytoomuchstuff

So, ALL things being equal (driver quality, amplifier, cabinet integrity, etc.), an active system would cost much less than separates. Or, theoritically, produce a better result at the same price point.

+1, I would add a better result than a passive setup at even a higher price point for all the reasons you stated. This is confirmed by designer Andrew Jones in one of my previous posts in this thread. If you only have two speakers, maybe not such a big deal to splash the extra cash. When you have a HT of 5 or more speakers that splash of cash can become a tsunami that you could have used on better source components, room treatments, preamp, etc.

@kota1 ​​@donavabdear , I guess you missed my point. Rash generalization are always a point of concern. They always fail.

As far as I am concerned there is no active speaker that can attain the absolute sound. Quite simply I have not seen an 8 foot tall, ESL active loudspeaker. I have not seen an active full range active line source for home use. I have not seen a fully horn loaded active speaker. I have not seen anything but dynamic drivers stuck in a box with an amp and rudimentary digital signal processing. There are many higher performing speaker drivers out there and far more advanced DSP preamps. I am all for digital signal processing. I have been using it for 25 years. There is absolutely no need to shove it into a loudspeaker with what you can assume is a cheap amp. Maybe these things have a use in a studio environment, that is not my area of expertise. My own preference is for very large dipole line sources, specifically ESLs which would disqualify any active speaker I know of. If people want an all in one solution to save space and simplify their situation and they are not that critical I can understand the use of these speakers. 

@mijostyn , I don’t think I missed your point earlier, you made a rash generalization about all active speakers that I started my reply with in the previous post (in italics) and like you said, it failed.

This reply about no active speaker attaining absolute sound is interesting. What about the active line array speakers they use at live performances???

OK, I agree you can’t the absolute sound from ANY speaker using a recording,

I think you may want to check out the Avante Garde Active, Horn Loaded speaker system. They look CRAZY good and must sound even better. If you like the speakers the new amps they designed for them are just as interesting: