so many speakers

I think the "find a decent sounding room" solution is great. The room right off the bar at the Paris Opera House is perfect. Unfortunately, I don't live anywhere near France and somehow I doubt they'd let me hang out there with my hifi. I settle for my book, CD, and art lined listening/great room...it sounds great (hence the name), and instead of room treatment I just wear puffy clothes and mess up my hair. The specific answer is: There are so many speakers because it's a LARGE WORLD OUT THERE with many people making things. I'm firmly in the camp that my rig should reproduce whatever I want to listen to regardless of the content...it's reasonably full range (I use a good sub), clear, accurate, and can go loud enough. Plus it has plenty of little lights and tubes and stuff so it's hip. Very important.

If there is some factor in recorded drums that causes them to hide in specific speakers that produce "acoustic music" well, I'm not getting it. Drums are acoustic instruments. The nature of reproduced music is essentially the same...a bazouki or a Telecaster through a system is the same electronic pulse through the speakers...it just is. Some speakers are bright, some have less bass extension, but if your speakers are discriminating against drummers they are making arbitrary decisions and need a stern talking to.

My Silverline Preludes are great midrange producers and get most of the punch of drums, but benefit big time from a REL sub (Q150e) that puts the mojo into drums (and everything else). A favorite John Scofield recording called "Grace Under Pressure" (killer Bill Frisell 2nd guitar stuff) has drummer Joey Baron smacking a gigantic bass drum here and there that seems to come outta nowhere...just cool.

Snarky! The key thing is always how your gear makes you feel when you're doing some active listening. If you feel there is something needing improvement you'll stop listening to the music...I once had to swap some otherwise well regarded cables IMMEDIATELY because they were harshing my mellow. If you want to listen to music and not your hifi, you should hire musicians. Since that's not always practical (and they might steal your beer), you have to use gear that appeals to YOU...you are utterly alone in this. Reviews, although often entertaining, can't tell you how anything sounds to you, in your home, in front of your head. If things sound good together in a system, you're there! And lucky.

I've never claimed (or purported...which as an act sounds painful) to have unharshable mellow, and this sort of misinformation only results my mellow becoming harshed...again...more to the point, wondering if speaker manufacturers have their own taste is pretty funny. "Sorry Bob, I just don't care what the Magico Schmekerman Signature sounds like...just ship 'em out."