How big a driver for quality bass?

摘要

I am hoping that one of your reviewers can settle an argument between myself and an audiophile chum. He is of the opinion that it is impossible for a loudspeaker to reproduce realistic-sounding bass unless it has a woofer measuring at least 8in in diameter.I beg to disagree. I have a pair of Vienna Acoustics' Beethoven Baby Grand loudspeakers [HFN Aug '08] and each cabinet packs a pair of 6in Spider Cone bass units that are said to be ULF (Ultra Low Frequency) drivers. In short, the bass sounds perfectly realistic to me.Now, I am talking 'quality' bass rather than quantity but my friend is still adamant that it is impossible fora woofer of 6in or less to replicate the sound of, say, a bass drum or timpani when the original sound is produced by an acoustic instrument with a diameter that is far in excess of 6in.