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What are the Different Types of Home Stereo Speakers?

G. Wiesen
G. Wiesen

There are a number of different types of home stereo speakers and each type is typically designed to perform a particular function or work in a certain kind of space. Many speakers are designed as standing speakers with a number of different speaker devices within a single frame, including woofers, tweeters, and mid-range speakers. These speakers are often specifically designed to go into certain areas, such as floorstanding or bookshelf loudspeakers. While many home stereo speakers are designed for use with a home audio system, there are also a number of speakers designed for use with home theater systems as well.

Home stereo speakers are devices that are typically connected to a home audio or theater system to provide high quality audio output. These devices can be made in a number of different ways, and the forms they take are often fairly dependent upon their intended use. One of the most common types of home stereo speakers are freestanding, or floorstanding, speakers and loudspeakers. These loudspeakers are usually tall and rectangular in shape, with multiple speakers built into a single frame. There are also bookshelf speakers, which are similar to floorstanding speakers in shape and design, but are small enough to fit on a shelf or table.

A speaker.
A speaker.

Many of these home stereo speakers include multiple speakers within a single frame, often with more than one of each type of speaker. Woofers, or subwoofers, are speakers designed to emit sounds on the low end of the auditory range; they are sometimes referred to as bass speakers. Tweeters, on the other hand, are speakers designed to emit high-pitched sounds, while mid-range speakers are meant to fill in between these two extremes. Many home stereo speakers are designed with at least one of each of these speaker types, while custom or high-end speakers often have multiples of one or more types to provide richer sound quality.

Freestanding and floor-standing are among the common types of home stereo speakers.
Freestanding and floor-standing are among the common types of home stereo speakers.

Though home stereo speakers are typically designed to be part of a home audio system, there are also a number of speakers designed for use in a home theater system that can work for stereo audio as well. These speakers are often available as surround sound speakers, usually indicated by a number such as “5.1 Surround Sound.” This number indicates the number of speakers in a set, the first number is the number of individual satellite speakers that can be placed around a room, and the number after the decimal indicates a separate bass speaker or woofer. While both types of speakers can be used in a single room, many people prefer to use their home theater system for home stereo speakers as well.

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    • A speaker.
      By: efired
      A speaker.
    • Freestanding and floor-standing are among the common types of home stereo speakers.
      By: Pavlo Vakhrushev
      Freestanding and floor-standing are among the common types of home stereo speakers.