When comparing towers to bookshelves, do you let a subwoofer into the mix?

I would listen to them the way they will be used.

NO,I don't use subs & never feel the need for them..

Thanks Miller. Free diver, since you’re never in the situation described, your answer could only come out one way. But now we know what it is. ;-)

Compare the complete configuration in each case ie including a sub if that will be used. 

The way you use it.

If you were doing a review of the product, you might do a with, and without..

Regards

only fair way to do the comparison is how it will be listened to in your home. If you are going to listen to the standmounts with a sub, it is critical that not only do you have the sub on hand, but you spend the time to integrate it with the standmounts. Take the time and that will give you both a fair sound and budget comparison.

If you don't, odds are you are going to gravitate toward the fuller sound of the floorstanders.  Not that this is a bad thing but you are essentially stacking the deck against one option.  

Thanks @verdant. @Oldhvymec made a good point -- if it was for a review, then naked vs. naked. Otherwise, this is about the whole situation. And that would include (of course) dialing sub in, positioning, etc. Otherwise, it’s really not controlling the variables which can be controlled. That's just a kabuki-experiment.

In reviewing, never. It is not a pure comparison if one uses another device/product, component, cable, etc. if the idea is to gain insight how speaker A compares with speaker B. Any additional element will skew the result. I add that the comparison might be of the two speakers in situ, or might be as maximized, which would involve typically different setups. I enjoy comparing ultimate performances of products, as it might be expected that when a different speaker is dropped into the system that has been optimized for the initial speaker, the new one would be expected not to perform at its potential.

Having said that, it is legit once a baseline is established, to add a subwoofer, etc. Obviously, the comparison is then between complementary products, sub and bookshelf, vs. floor standing speaker. Results will obviously change, and that’s ok.

There is no sin in working with subs and bookshelf speakers, however it should be remembered that typically the full range/floor standing speaker will also benefit from the subwoofer(s), so there’s often no net advantage in employing the sub(s) as though it really gets you a radically different outcome between the bookshelf and floor standing speaker - unless, of course, you ignore potential use of the sub with the tower speaker...

I wrote this related article, which is really about getting good bass in a room.


https://speakermakersjourney.blogspot.com/2020/04/how-to-not-buy-subwoofer.html

To answer your question though, treat the room before listening.  A good 2-way may be all you need.  See this thread:

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/there-s-a-lot-more-bass-in-a-6-5-driver-than-most-of-you-thin...
If the 2-way is not enough, in a well treated room, a sub with an EQ can be amazing.

Thank you so much. I read your blog post a while ago Erik, and it's wonderful.

And I have been trying the subwoofer with the towers but they don't seem to add very much. what I'm hoping to do is get an honest to John comparison between the quality of the mid-range and tweeters  between the two sets of speakers (assuming that what is happening in the base and soundstage are comparable).