What are the best bookshelf speakers of all time? Well, keep on reading as I have handpicked my personal favorite bookshelf speakers! Let me start by saying that there is legit not a bad set of speakers on this list so no matter what set you pick; you are in for a great time. I love to watch movies, listen to music and play video games with my surround sound so I know first hand how important a great set of bookshelf speakers are.
What Should I Look For?
I would always advise that you read as many reviews as you can. Today we are looking at the best of the best when it comes to bookshelf speakers so you do not have to worry about there being anything bad about the ones, we are checking out today. I would say that I would not just look at the sound quality. Also, look at the design and the size of them, some bookshelf speakers can be larger than people realize so be sure to check for that. Get a set that will compliment your room as well as rock your senses!
The Best Bookshelf Speakers of All Time Reviews
Usually, I will test out a few different sets of speakers and then have a few that I have found, but as we are talking about the very best of the best, the G.O.A.T if you will. I decided to only select speakers that I have personally checked out!
- Dynaudio Emit M10 Bookshelf Speakers
- Q Acoustics 3020i Bookshelf Speaker Pair
- Pioneer SP-BS22-LR Andrew Jones Home Audio Bookshelf Loudspeakers
- Monitor Audio Bronze 2 Bookshelf Speakers
- DALI – Spektor 1
- Klipsch RP-600M Reference Premiere Bookshelf Speakers
1. Dynaudio Emit M10 Bookshelf Speakers
Pros:
- Rather compact in their size
- The sound quality is great
- A nice and thick design that feels high quality
- Great for movies, music, and gaming!
Cons:
- The price tag might be a bit steep for some
- They do require a bit of breaking in
At a little under 800 bucks, these are the most expensive speakers on our quest to find the best bookshelf speakers of all time! These always feature on lists like this so you know they have to be good. I really do like the thick wood they have used and in general, they have a very strong and sturdy feel to them. The pictures really do not do justice just how compact these things are and if you are thinking that their compact size may put them at a disadvantage you are very wrong.
These speakers sound awesome! I have tested these out for quite a while and that is with movies and music. They do have a breaking in period, but once they are firing on all cylinders, you will not be just amazed at how loud they can go, but with the clarity, even at louder volumes. The bass really impressed me and, in all honesty, I am really struggling to come up with any down points about these speakers. Yes, they are a little pricey in comparison to others on this list, but they are far from overpriced.
What Other People Are Saying
Here is a pretty solid YouTube video review about these speakers. They go into detail about all the internals of the speaker and why this makes them sound so good. I would also suggest you take a look at the customer reviews on Amazon where the rating for these (as I write this) is sitting at five stars!
I know the price tag is closer to that 1000 bucks mark than you may like. However, you are certainly getting what you pay for with these Dynaudio Emit M10 Bookshelf Speakers. They are just super-high quality all throughout and they look like a million bucks too! I really do not see anyone being disappointed with these.
2. Q Acoustics 3020i Bookshelf Speaker Pair
Pros:
- Everything sounded great!
- The asking price is an absolute steal
- The bass really does rock
- Three different colors to choose from
Cons:
- The body is deeper than you would think
- As always, breaking in takes time
These Q Acoustics 3020i Bookshelf Speakers are some of the coolest speakers I have ever seen. They come in three different styles black, white and ultra-cool grey! I tested out the black ones and I was surprised at how deep these were, so make sure you do your measurements of where you are going to be putting these properly. They come in at under 300 bucks which is just insane for speakers of this quality.
As far as the sound goes, Run to the Hills by Iron Maiden did the honors at first and even without breaking them in I was surprised at how much power the bass had. It is not just music either, movies sound awesome through these, action scenes and even dialogue are crystal clear. The driver and tweeter combo they have used with these speakers is just perfect for bookshelf speakers. Without a doubt, these are some of the finest sub $300 speakers I have had the pleasure to try out.
What Other People Are Saying
There is glowing review after glowing review over at Amazon, but this really caught my eye. “the instruments that are difficult to reproduce well – the diaphanous saxophone, the wide-ranged piano, and the wonder of the voice are all to be heard in their true tonality. This is no small accomplishment.” I agree with this as everything I threw at these sounded great.
We are only two in, but I can tell you right now, we have a real contender here for the winner of my best bookshelf speakers of all-time prize! The three styles are all awesome, they look great in any room and the sound quality is as good if not better than some speakers that are going for as much as double the price!
3. Pioneer SP-BS22-LR Andrew Jones Home Audio Bookshelf Loudspeakers
Pros:
- They have a really smart and classy look
- Slim profile means they are great for even tighter spaces
- They only cost $114!
- Loads of positive reviews for these online
Cons:
- You are looking a longer breaking in time
- That slim design might not be to everyone’s taste
How Pioneer is able to sell these Pioneer SP-BS22-LR Andrew Jones Home Audio Bookshelf Loudspeakers for under 120 bucks is just mind-blowing to me! I have been wanting to get my hands on these for a while so I was super hyped to get the chance. I love the design as they have a rather 80s high-fi kind of style to them which is always a style which I think is really cool. They have been designed quite cleverly in that they can fit into smaller spaces than most other bookshelf speakers.
At this price, you may think these will be horribly underpowered, but the 1-inch tweeter and 4-inch woofer do a great job in rocking the house. The breaking in time to hit that sweet spot is a little higher than you may want, but that just means you get to watch more movies and listen to more music! These really are a very impressive set of speakers and even at their low price have that Pioneer high quality all throughout them.
What Other People Are Saying
There are over 800 positive customer reviews on Amazon and the current rating for these is 4 and a half stars! “The sound became really warm after about 2 weeks and that’s when I knew they were right for me. I listen mainly to reggae and find because the music is bottom heavy they contain the sound really well even at higher volumes.” This is what one review had to say and it captures these speakers very well.
To say that I am blown away with these is a massive understatement. At a glance, you may think a cheap set of speakers like this should not be on the best bookshelf speakers of all time list, but these do everything they do right! I am still amazed that Pioneer was able to put these out at the price they have.
4. Monitor Audio Bronze 2 Bookshelf Speakers
Pros:
- These are very well made
- Awesome old school style
- Sound is great for pretty much everything
- Incredibly high quality
Cons:
- They do take up a bit of real estate
- They can cost close to 500 bucks
If you want a set of speakers that have some real old school charm you need to check out these Monitor Audio Bronze 2 Bookshelf Speakers. What Monitor Audio have done here is take the design of one of their classic sets of speakers and just updated the internals, I think this is really cool. They come in at around 500 bucks so they are not the cheapest as we look for the best bookshelf speakers of all time.
While the outer has an old soul kind of feel. The inside has some brand-new tech powering these. 6 and a half inch drivers along with a new tweeter really give these some impressive power. Music sounds phenomenal through these speakers, the instruments and the vocal clarity, even before they are broken in properly is great stuff indeed. These work very well and I really have little issues with them.
What Other People Are Saying
There is a very in-depth review of these on What-Hi Fi where they break down everything that makes these speakers so great. “This latest generation of Bronze 2 is arguably the best yet. This is a truly complete speaker for the money” is just one of the great things that they have to say about these speakers. These guys really get in deep with the tech so it is a good read if you are interested in these.
I think that the Monitor Audio Bronze 2 Bookshelf Speakers are a great set of speakers. I love how they have a really classic look to them and how they are incredibly solid. However, despite this, they have crammed in there the latest tech to ensure that no matter if it is movies, games or music the sound quality you are getting is great.
5. DALI – Spektor 1
Pros:
- Fantastic asking price
- They look really cool and are well made
- High quality all throughout
- Everything I tried with these sounded great
Cons:
- The other designs are hard to come by
- Size might be an issue for some
These DALI – Spektor 1 speakers really do tick all of the boxes of what makes a great set of speakers. They do come in a couple of variations, but the ones I have used are the black ash version. They have a really smart and elegant look to them and they are a good size to which I like, so you do not exactly need a whole ton of space to have these. They also only cost around the 250 bucks mark which for speakers of this quality is very impressive.
I will not even bore you with all the details here. Just know that even out of the box, without a ton of breaking in that these are going to knock your socks off. It was really the clarity of the vocals that I noticed at first, even at higher volumes there is no distortion. The bass has some real punch to it and I really could not be any more impressed with the sound that these produce. It is very impressive what they have done here, especially at this very wallet-friendly price range.
What Other People Are Saying
Check out this awesome video review if you want to see a closer look at these fantastic speakers. As well as hearing about how good they sound, you can also get a good idea about the size of these things and how they will fit in your room.
These are truly special speakers! I am having a really hard time thinking of a negative thing to say about these. They, first of all, look really cool, but the sound that they offer is truly going to blow you away. You can watch an action movie at full blast and have no vocal distortion, you can even rock a smooth live album and feel like you are there! In short, these are speakers that really can do it all.
6. Klipsch RP-600M Reference Premiere Bookshelf Speakers
Pros:
- They look really classy
- They feel very high quality
- Made to last
- Sound is great no matter what is coming through them
Cons:
- The price might be an issue for some
- Some might not like the color
These bad boys may run at a little over 600 bucks, but they have that typical Klipsch quality all throughout. These have a very cool walnut design to them which gives them a real elegance and style that makes them stand out or blend into a room. They just look cool and these are the RP-600M versions which are the latest version of these speakers, I loved the 500M and these are even better.
Inside here we have a 6.5-inch spun copper ceramatallic woofer along with a high-end tweeter. These produce fantastic sound! I was listening to some Bon Jovi with these and the sound was amazing, they do take a bit of breaking in to get just right, but when they do you are going to be amazed. Movies and video games also sound great and the punchy bass really does give you that cinema kind of feeling which is great.
What Other People Are Saying
Over at Amazon, there are a ton of great customer reviews that praise these speakers. Check this snippet out, “I’ve been listening to these a while now. Mainly vinyl with a smattering of digital and movies/TV. They’ve settled in and gotten comfortable. Truly a great value in budget HiFi” most other reviews are really high on the sound quality of these speakers which is great to read.
I know the price is a bit higher than some of the other speakers we have looked at today, but these are worth it. They have a really cool design and are made so well that as soon as you hold them, you know they are quality. The sound they produce is great, even out of the box. However, once broken in you are going to be really impressed with everything that comes through these.
What Are The Best Bookshelf Speakers Of All Time?
Usually, I will cop out and pick a few different ones, but here I am going to be strict and pick my favorite. For me, the best bookshelf speakers of all time are the DALI – Spektor 1 speakers. These have a phenomenal sound quality and the asking price is amazing, plus they look great. While these are my personal favorite that we have looked at today. I picked all six of these speakers because they are all great so you really cannot go wrong with any of these.
