How come Horn + woofer designs are not more popular?


A couple guys on my audio discord really love the JBL synthesis 4367 and feel that all traditional 3 way tower speakers suck because they have poor bass response and are generally shy sounding. What I wonder is how come the majority of speaker makes do floor standers that are 3 way as oppose to the Horn +woofer design of JBL?

Is there any downsides to the horn + woofer design? Can a horn convey microdetail as well as a Be tweeter like say from magic A or S line? They claim 3 way floor standers are just trendy. But is there anything more to it then that?
smodtactical

Showing 1 response by mirolab

I'm a long time owner of 15" Tannoys and when A/B'd against my other speakers with dome tweeters or Electrostatic panels, I will admit that they are the least delicate and agile in the high frequencies.  HOWEVER.... when I leave them set up and don't compare, I find that I simply love listening to music more.  I feel the music more, and I'm more connected to it.  Horn's tend to suffer in direct A/B comparisons.  I think people don't know how to listen for dynamics, and they don't understand how much that makes you fall in love with music.  When comparing 2 speakers, sparkley highs and deeper lows will usually be favored, but in the end, might be less rewarding.