2 way vs 3 way question

@seasdiamond 
 
I don’t see how that distance claim can be made without knowing the distance between the drivers. From what I’ve seen in manufacture recomendations, you need to be 3x the distance between the woofers, so if a traditional 3-way has the tweeter 3ft above the lower woofer, you need to be 9ft away at least so that it sounds coherent.   

As for the original question, the imaging from drivers that are closer in size will be better, unless waveguides and phase-plugs are in use. Meaning, this is why most 3-way towers use a 2” to 5” midrange, I’ve seen some companies use a 7” midrange with no waveguides, which means they valued more powerful/deeper bass over better imaging.

Instead of asking for the best from a theoretical point, simply ask what’s the best speaker you can afford. 
 
If only looking at new: 
 
KEF R3, KEF R300, Philharmonic BMR (unless you sit far away), NHT C3/C4, Revel M105/M106, and Selah Audio Onesto. Those are the ones I can think of off the top of my head as being some of the best out there at their respective prices.