The "X number of listeners thing it sounds swell" argument doesn't impress me because it also applies to Bose speakers...
"Professional" listeners? Like recording studio engineers or musicians?
I'm not sure I'd rate most studio engineers as a good recommendation for speakers. They often are listening for different things than the end user of the recording is.
I might respect a musician's opinion more, but I have no way of knowing whether they have actually compared "more correct" speakers to "steep slope" speakers, or whether they just find that Brand X "steep slope" speaker is better than a bunch of other incorrect speakers.
My opinion is that a speaker with steep slope crossovers doesn't stand much of a chance of being able to reassemble the original waveform at my listening position.
Whether that's important, and whether "time and phase coherent" speakers can reassemble the wave form correctly or not is where there's a lot of argument.
At that point I have to fall back on my own listening experience, and say that I feel that phase-coherent designs work better for me. They provide a better window into the recording.
"Professional" listeners? Like recording studio engineers or musicians?
I'm not sure I'd rate most studio engineers as a good recommendation for speakers. They often are listening for different things than the end user of the recording is.
I might respect a musician's opinion more, but I have no way of knowing whether they have actually compared "more correct" speakers to "steep slope" speakers, or whether they just find that Brand X "steep slope" speaker is better than a bunch of other incorrect speakers.
My opinion is that a speaker with steep slope crossovers doesn't stand much of a chance of being able to reassemble the original waveform at my listening position.
Whether that's important, and whether "time and phase coherent" speakers can reassemble the wave form correctly or not is where there's a lot of argument.
At that point I have to fall back on my own listening experience, and say that I feel that phase-coherent designs work better for me. They provide a better window into the recording.