If you want to add a boost to your listening experience, floor standing speakers are your best option. They can cost upwards of a couple thousand dollars, but can ones under 1000 perform just as well?
To answer this question and to make sure you aren’t spending more than you should, our experts have reviewed the best floorstanding speakers under 1000.
Reviews of the Best Floor Standing Speakers Under 1000
1. Klipsch RP-6000F Floorstanding Speaker Pair
These Klipsch RP or Reference Premiere tower speakers are one of the best options for your sound system. It boasts of amazing build quality construction as well as great sound quality.
The removable metal grille is covering a titanium vented tweeter that features a hybrid tractrix horn. Hybrid tractrix horn technology from Klipsch is created for lower resonance and improves the frequency response of the speaker.
As best floorstanding speakers, it also have 2 spun copper cerametallic cones that can handle the bass tones with excellent bass reflex. The combination of all these features create large tower speakers that make sure you get the most in terms of quality.
Other tower speaker systems we reviewed from the same brand is Klipsch RP-280FA. Check out our full review of RP-280FA here.
What We Like
- Dual spun copper cerametallic woofers for bass
- Titanium vented tweeter
- Hybrid tractrix horn technology
- Low resonance
- Hi-Fi
- Improved frequency response
- A set of speakers
- Removable metal grille
- Durable construction
- Beautiful ebony finish
What We Don't Like
- Larger design requires more space
- May need a subwoofer for lows
2. Fluance Signature Series Hi-Fi Three-Way Floorstanding Tower Speakers
These Fluance Signature Series have a coveted 3-way design, which means there are drivers dedicated to each section of the audio spectrum. You have tweeters for the highs, a midrange driver, and also woofers for the bass tones.
You can choose from a glossy black ash finish or an elegant walnut. The Fluance Signature Series boasts of only using the finest materials for each component, and thus creating well-built speakers that can bring home cinematic sound.
The cabinets housing the tweeters, midrange and bass drivers are created to diminish distortion at any volume level. Feel free to pump out the sound with these floorstanding tower speakers.
What We Like
- Black ash and walnut finish that look good in any room
- 3-way floor standing speakers
- No distortion at high volumes
- Great for small to big rooms
- Excellent sensitivity rating
- Created from the best materials for each component
What We Don't Like
- May need a mid boost
- A pair will sound better than just one
3. Q Acoustics 3050 i Floorstanding Speaker Pair
Our experts always appreciate tower speakers that come in two different colors. This set of speakers will not only look great but also sound great in any household.
To ensure improved sound from regular speakers or soundbars, the 3050i series speakers have point to point bracing techniques and Helmholtz Pressure Equalizer technology to create a more accurate sound relay with minimal distortion at any volume level.
The Q Acoustics 3050i is a two-way speaker with a dedicated channel for the highs and a mid/bass driver for the mids and lows. The structural integrity of these floorstanding speakers have also greatly increased after Q Acoustics removed the terminal cutouts for low binding ports.
What We Like
- Comes in two different colors
- Low profile binding ports for better construction
- Accurate sound quality
- Helmholtz Pressure Equalizer
- P2P (point to point) bracing
- Two-way speaker
- Balanced soundstage
- 6-8 ohm speaker impedance
- Comes in a pair
What We Don't Like
- No speaker cables included
- Ships in two boxes not one big one
Floor Standing Speakers Under $1000 Buyer’s Guide
Floor standing speakers are more complicated than a soundbar with much more to consider for sound quality. Instead of just taking our experts’ word for what’s best, we have put together a comprehensive list for you to understand what the best floorstanding speaker under 1000 is and what characteristics it possesses.
Build and Design
Floor standing speakers or also known as tower speakers will usually cost more than a soundbar or regular speakers. To protect your investment, you need to find one that is very well-built. Good construction won’t only ensure that the speakers sound great, but it will also ensure they will last a good long while.
Look for floorstanding speaker systems that are made from top quality materials. Are the speakers 2 or 3-way? 2-way speakers means there are only 2 channels where the sound is relayed. There is usually a driver for crystal clear highs and one for mids and lows. This means there is a dedicated center channel for all the high tones while the woofer needs to be in charge of the other end of the spectrum.
A 3-way speaker means there are three dedicated drivers for each section of the audio spectrum. In general, a three-way speaker will create accurate sound effects for your home theater, so opt for a 3-way if you can.
The front grille can be removable on some floor speakers. While this isn’t crucial to the operation, it is nice to have a removable grille because it will allow the audio to be passed from the drivers without any obstructions. The purpose of a grille is to protect the more fragile drivers in your floor speakers, so having the option of removing the grille is a definite bonus our experts advise to look for.
One thing to consider is the size of your new floorstanding speaker systems. Think about your setup and how much room you have to spare. These speakers are known to be large and take up a lot of room. Some models, such as the Q Acoustics option on our list have a smaller footprint than the Klipsch RP 6000F.
Larger isn’t always a better option, especially if you don’t have the room for it. However, a larger speaker will have more room for extra drivers dedicated to different acoustic effects that can improve your overall experience. Larger speakers can generally handle more energy capacity, which will equate to louder and more powerful sound quality like the Monitor Audio Silver 200.
Depending on what type of flooring you have, our team suggests looking for best speakers available with protective footing. This doesn’t affect the sound quality but can definitely protect your floors from scuffs and scrapes. Many people look for ones with rubber feet that will be forgiving against hardwood floors.
To ensure the longevity of your speakers, there are outdoor options that are humidity and weather-resistant. While this may not be the most pressing characteristic to have in a living room setup, it gives more flexibility for placement in an outdoor area.
Other than the options on our list, other top notch brands that make an amazing floorstanding speaker include the SVS Prime Pinnacle, floor speakers from Polk Audio, Elac Debut 2.0 series, Monitor Audio Silver 200, and other Klipsch Reference Premiere line products. They are all made to last.
Lastly, to round out the design, you can pick from different finishes. Many manufacturers will create more than one color or material option to make the speakers blend seamlessly into your home audio setup. Design options include glossy black, matte black, white, and wood finishes.
(For sleek and minimalistic design, we also reviewed the KEF Q750 here. It is a compact and simple floorstanding speaker perfect for any home theater setup)
Sound Quality
If you like amazing sound and bass, the audio quality generated from your floor speakers are imperative. It doesn’t matter if you have small rooms or large rooms, your speaker should have no distortion at high volumes and expansive audio that can fill the space.
The power handling of the speaker has a large effect on the audio simulation — more power in this case means louder sound. However, the drivers still have a big role to play in how your speakers sound.
Our team has explained the difference between 3 and 2-way speakers, but there are even 4-way speakers available on the market at this price point that do wonders to the sound quality. These types of speakers are great for those who like listening to music and want a more precise soundstage. What sets 4-way speakers apart from the 3-way counterpart is they have one more super tweeter.
A super tweeter is designed to distinguish and separate the highs into intricate highs and regular highs. The ones who would like and appreciate this added feature would be audiophiles and cinephiles.
The materials and technology used to create these drivers are also very important. We have listed a bunch of options on our top list that have tractrix horn technology, cerametallic copper spun woofers and more.
For more sound quality options, you can visit our page about the best floorstanding speakers below 500 here.
Drivers
There are 4 main types of drivers in a high-end audio device: tweeters, mid-range bass drivers, woofers and subwoofers [1]. In this section, our experts will dive into detail about the roles of each one.
Tweeters, named after the high-pitched tweets from birds, are responsible for the high audio tones in your content. Tower speaker systems often have horn tweeters, like the hybrid tractrix horn tweeter, a cone tweeter, a dome tweeter or a magnetic tweeter.
The build quality of reach is a little bit different as are their sound relay abilities. For Hi-Fi sound, a dome tweeter is the optimum choice. Their sound dispersion capabilities are ideal and are constructed out of robust materials.
The mid-range drivers are there for the middle-of-the-spectrum sounds. This range is important because this is the frequency response in which humans hear the most. It’s also where human speech falls in, so a floor standing speaker with dedicated mid-range drivers are recommended by our team.
Next up are the woofers, and the woofers and subwoofers in a home theater system are different. Woofers are named after the sound of a dog’s woof, which is much lower than the tweet of a bird. This fact gives you a clue as to what sounds the woofer produces.
The woofer produces all the low-end notes on the frequency range, which is why having a good bass frequency response is imperative to enjoying heavy bass. If you like your content punctuated with thumps and rumbles, then a decent woofer and subwoofer is what you need.
Then you have the subwoofer, which works in tandem with the woofer to emphasize the bass tones. You can have either one in a floorstanding speaker to enjoy the bass, but having both will create that nice balance you would like.
Tweeters
Since the drivers are so important in floorstanding speakers, our experts have decided to go into more detail. The frequency range of tweeters fall between 2000 all the way up to 30,000 Hz. Cone tweeters are the more budget choice, but they are also much more fragile than dome tweeters and are prone to distortion.
Horn tweeters and dome tweeters are the recommended options by our experts as they are the ones with the excellent build quality and capable of the best sound with no distortion. You can also have the choice of magnetic tweeters, but these options don’t do well in sensitivity and power handling for the price point.
Subwoofers
A lot of speakers don’t have a subwoofer and require an external one to be added on. Some Klipsch speakers come with woofers and subwoofers, which make them great for surround sound and heavy low bass tones. It’s important to balance out the bass with high frequencies by ensuring a high-performing tweeter is also present in the construction.
Setup
The setup of a floorstanding speaker is not complicated. It is like setting up other satellite speakers like KEF LS50 Wireless II. For example, some Klipsch speakers come with the necessary cables for a plug and play design. All you need to do is locate the ports on the back of your devices and plug in the corresponding ends of the cables into the ports.
The placement of the speaker will also affect your viewing experience. If your speaker comes with a subwoofer for heavy bass, then the placement would matter more than one that requires an external sub. Our team suggests placing the speakers at the front of the room, next to your TV.
Be sure there is nothing in the way of the drivers all the way to your viewing spot. Remove the grilles if you feel like the audio quality is muffled and angle the speakers at a 30 to 45-degree angle to you. This way, the speakers will focus the sound to your sweet spot. If you have an external subwoofer, our experts recommend placing it close to you.
The higher notes of the sound spectrum should be coming from in front of you, but the sub can be placed next to you, below your feet, or even behind the couch to accentuate the low rumbles in your content.
(If you opt for a wireless connection, read this guide on how to add a Bluetooth connection to your stereo)
Powered vs Passive Speakers
There are two types of speakers — powered and passive. The difference between the two is very straightforward — a passive speaker lacks a built-in amplifier and a powered one has it. If you purchase a passive floor speaker, then you will most likely need an external amplifier to pump up the sound.
On the other hand, a powered speaker already has one built-in, which saves you the headache of looking for a compatible external amp, making sure the power handling is compatible for the best audio and using the right cable.
Most home audio speakers are passive, which means you will need to purchase an external amp but you can find powered ones as well. So which one is better? Active speakers are the more convenient options. You don’t need to do any tweaking and the systems are good to go once you unpackage it.
A passive speaker requires more research to ensure compatibility with all your other home theater devices, and will take a little bit of time to set up. Also, powered speakers are much heavier than the alternative because of the amp built-in.
The weight of the device won’t be a deterrent if you don’t plan on moving your speakers around much. Also, if you don’t have much space, our experts recommend powered speakers. Since they already have all the components built-in, you won’t need extra room to place an amplifier, which could get quite large.
If you have the space to spare, our team suggests powered speakers because they have more variety. They can come in different shapes and sizes and capabilities, which integrate well into different home setups. They are also more customizable and can be tweaked and upgraded over the years without having to switch out the entire system.
2-way or 3-way Speakers?
As mentioned before, speakers come in 2-way, 3-way and 4-way options. Since 3 and 2-way options are more common, our experts will focus on these two types in this section.
Simply put, 2-way speakers produce only highs and lows while 3-way speakers can do both and target the mids. As you have probably guessed, 3-way speakers are more accurate and create a much more precise soundstage. However, you might be surprised by some 2-way speakers. Some Klipsch 2-way speakers sound good and can outperform ones from Polk Audio.
In general, our experts recommend going for a 3-way option like the KEF Q550 over a two-way option. This is because you have a dedicated driver for every part of the sound spectrum and they are the excellent choice for those who like power, bass, and can be found in a decent price point with excellent build quality.
Understand that the materials used to build the speakers are also very important. A 3-way speaker that is poorly built from rigid materials and paper cones may deliver more distorted sound than a 2-way that is very well-constructed.
FAQ
Which is better, floor standing speakers or bookshelf speakers?
The answer to this question depends on your setup and your standards. Bookshelf speakers are smaller, which makes them less ideal for a large space. If you have the room to spare and enjoy bigger sound, then floorstanding speakers are the better choice for you. Since they are larger, it’s also more possible that they can house more drivers for better highs, mids and bass.
Can you use floor-standing speakers for surround sound?
Floor standing speakers are among the great options to creating surround sound in your home theater setup. There are excellent price range options that can deliver encompassing sound quality with minimal to no distortion for best experience while listening to music. They make great surround speakers and some can even come with a woofer and subwoofer built-in for bass.
How can I prolong the life of floor standing speakers?
Installing your floor speakers correctly, purchasing floorstanding speakers with humidity or weather resistance, not pumping up the volume to extreme levels often, combining your system with a compatible amplifier and regular maintenance are all things you can do to prolong the life of your floorstanding speakers.
Our Top Pick For Floor Standing Speakers Under 1000: Q Acoustics 3050i
The Q Acoustics 3050i is our audio team’s top choice for best floor standing speakers under 1000. For the price, you get a very well-built pair of speakers that come in two color finishes to complement any living room. Not only that, the sound production from these speakers is amazing.
The speakers feature enhancements not seen in previous models, which include P2P, or point to point techniques for sound relays. The Helmholtz Equalizer Technology found in the 3050i works well with the P2P to deliver accurate and non-distorted sound. The pair of elegantly designed speakers are undeniably a great addition to your home theater setup.
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