The Next Frontier for Streaming? Floorstanding Speakers

More audio companies have released floorstanding speakers with built-in amplification and wireless connectivity. Big sound. Easy streaming.

By Tucker Bowe

Published July 3, 2024

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Updated July 3, 2024

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Floorstanding (or “tower”) speakers have been typically reserved for serious audio and home theater enthusiasts. Compared to bookshelf speakers, they’re more expensive and take up more space, but they also deliver bigger, fuller sound.

The thing is, while bookshelf-sized speakers have become more and more versatile over the last several-odd years, with manufacturers having integrated them with amps, preamps, and a host of wireless connectivities for streaming, floorstanding speakers have largely been left behind. Most are still passive, dependent on an external receiver or amplifier for power and playback.

But that seems to be slowly changing as more audio companies are rolling out “powered” and “active” floorstanding speakers.

These are speaker systems that are “plug and play” ready. They have their own built-in amplification and many wired and wireless streaming capabilities. You can hook them up to a hi-fi turntable, CD player or TV. Or you can stream audio to them over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi (depending on the system). They’re easy and versatile.

Fluance Ai81

Fluance Ai81

Specs

Power	Up to 75 watts (per channel)
Frequency Response	30Hz-20kHz
Streaming	Bluetooth

$499.99 at Amazon

The Fluance Ai81 are higher-end versions of the company’s powered Ai61 powered bookshelf speakers. Each speaker stands a little over three feet and has three drivers: a one-inch tweeter and dual 6.5-inch woofers. The system consists of one primary speaker (with an integrated 150-watt amp) and secondary (passive) speaker.

You can stream music right to the speakers via Bluetooth — no receiver required. You can connect an integrated turntable (has to have a built-in preamp) directly to the speakers via its analog inputs. And it has an optical connection so you can connect the speakers directly to your TV.

The Fluance Ai81 floorstanding speakers are available in four finishes: black ash, white walnut, natural walnut, and lucky bamboo.

Q Acoustics M40

Specs

Power	Up to 100 watts (per channel)
Frequency Response	38Hz-22kHz
Streaming	Bluetooth

$799.00 at Amazon

The Q Acoustics M40 are powered “micro tower” speakers — a middle ground between bookshelf-sized and floorstanding speakers. Each speaker features three drivers, a decoupled tweeter that’s positioned above mid-range/bass drivers; the latter are built with the same C3 Continuous Curved Cone driver technology as the company’s higher-end 5000 speaker series.

These M40 consist of a primary and a secondary speaker — all the amplification is integrated into the ‘primary’ speaker — and they feature numerous analog connections; you can connect them to a turntable, music streamer, or even TV. They also support aptX HD for the best possible streaming experience over Bluetooth.

The Q Acoustics M40 are available in three different finishes: black, white or walnut. (Note: The speaker grilles are fixed and cannot be removed. )

Q Acoustics M40 floorstanding speakers — The Q Acoustics M40 are the British hi-fi maker’s entry-level powered floorstanding speakers.

Q Acoustics Q Active 400

Specs

Power	Up to 220 watts (per channel)
Frequency Response	35Hz-20kHz
Streaming	Bluetooth and Wi-Fi

$2,999 at Q Acoustics

The Q Acoustics Q Active 400 is a true active floorstanding speaker speaker system — it’s essentially a larger version of the company’s bookshelf-sized Q Active 200. Each speaker has four drivers (dual 2.25-inch mid/bass drivers and dual 4.5-inch woofers), each of which is individually amplified. Combined, the system has a total of 440 watts of power.

Unlike the previous “powered” speakers, the Q Active 400 is an active speaker system that supports Bluetooth and Wi-Fi streaming. This allows you to stream lossless audio (up to 24bit/96kHz) as well as integrate the speakers into a multi-room system (via AirPlay 2, Alexa or Roon). There’s also HDMI-ARC support, so you easily connect them to your TV and make them your primary home theater speakers.

Note: all the wireless — and wired — connections are built into a separate hub, which you place near the speakers. So, in addition in the two speakers, there’s technically a third (albeit small) component you’ll also have to find a place for.

The Q Acoustics Q Active 400 are available in black or white finishes.

Q Acoustics A Active 400 speakers — The Q Active 400 is a versatile and high-end active speaker system with many wired and wireless connections.

KEF LS60 Wireless

Specs

Power	Up to 700 watts (per channel)
Frequency Response	26Hz–36kHz
Streaming	Bluetooth and Wi-Fi

$5,999.99 at Amazon

The KEF LS60 Wireless are essentially floorstanding versions of its acclaimed LS50 Wireless, which are among the best and most high-end active speakers you can buy. Each speaker features the company’s signature Uni-Q driver array, which places the tweeter in the center of the midrange/woofer and, uniquely, two force-canceling woofers mounted to the sides of each speaker. In total, the LS60 Wireless can demand up to a massive 1,400 watts of power.

As you can imagine, the KEF LS60 Wireless are positioned as the ultimate all-in-one hi-fi package. The system supports basically any type of streaming over Wi-Fi (including AirPlay 2, Chromecast) and are Roon-ready. They support lossless streaming (up to 24bit/96kHz) as well as even higher-resolution audio over an analog connection (up to 24bit/384kHz).

And they have a multitude of wired connections, including HDMI eARC for connecting to your TV, so you can basically use the LS60 Wireless however you deem fit.

The KEF LS60 Wireless come in four different finishes: black, grey, blue or white.