we keep that feedback in mind if we research possibilities
technical i think it could be a path that is doable

if we want less validators because it make network act faster with higher throughput
we could reward people who run double tripple or quadruple masternodes and this way reduce the ammount of total validators

just as a mindgame (by far not a final mechanic yet)

normal validator 10000 collateral earns 1 masternode payout share
double validator (20000 collateral earns 2.2 masternode payout shares) (10% network performance boost)
tripple validator (30000 collateral earns 3.6 masternode payout shares) (20% network performance boost)
quad validator (40000 collateral earns 5 masternode payout shares) (25% network performance boost)

same for governance and validator voting power

this way u have an incentive run bigger collateral masternodes (and this way support network performance)
but its still possible run a normal size 10000 collateral validator

as said before thats not a final mechanic just a way i see how we could satisfy both needs
allow 10000 collateral validators (masternodes) but still have an incentive to run less nodes and this way a higher performance network