I think it is helpful to think of speaker design as largely being an evolutionary process based upon consumer demand. There is a reason why large Altec Lansings and Klipsch K-horns gave way to acoustic suspension like the AR3a and KLH to Advent and then to the predominant design of the day-narrow baffled deep floor standers that are ported and either 3 way or 2.5.
There is a reason too why the outlier designs like planars, wide baffles, open baffles, time arrays, plasmatrons, you name it remain outliers.
It is largely a matter of being able to deliver the most-looked-for audio attributes for an average consumer's room with an average consumers choice of amplification at a reasonable cost. It is a matter of survival of the fittest. The companies that thrive innovate and evolve and their research and development over time begins to converge on a common solution to these consumer wants.
In the Preamp/Amp forum someone asked about amplification for the Spendor D7.2 and I tried to help but unwittingly derailed the thread a big when I compared and contrasted the D7.2 with the DeVore O/93's. I own both. I was thinking of this very concept while describing what makes the Spendors so attractive. They do the imaging, soundstage, and midrange things exceedingly well. Most but not all present-day audiophiles want these attributes. Standmounts do these things exceedingly well too at the expense of bass and authority. But again, my main point is that the DeVore O/93's play to a whole different suit of priorities that for better or worse, are sought after by a minority of high-end listeners. I happen to prefer the DeVores but for variety I love the Spendors too.
There is a reason too why the outlier designs like planars, wide baffles, open baffles, time arrays, plasmatrons, you name it remain outliers.
It is largely a matter of being able to deliver the most-looked-for audio attributes for an average consumer's room with an average consumers choice of amplification at a reasonable cost. It is a matter of survival of the fittest. The companies that thrive innovate and evolve and their research and development over time begins to converge on a common solution to these consumer wants.
In the Preamp/Amp forum someone asked about amplification for the Spendor D7.2 and I tried to help but unwittingly derailed the thread a big when I compared and contrasted the D7.2 with the DeVore O/93's. I own both. I was thinking of this very concept while describing what makes the Spendors so attractive. They do the imaging, soundstage, and midrange things exceedingly well. Most but not all present-day audiophiles want these attributes. Standmounts do these things exceedingly well too at the expense of bass and authority. But again, my main point is that the DeVore O/93's play to a whole different suit of priorities that for better or worse, are sought after by a minority of high-end listeners. I happen to prefer the DeVores but for variety I love the Spendors too.