Star Trek: Every Starfleet Starship Class Ranked Worst To Best
26. Miranda
The Miranda class of vessel was first introduced in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. This vessel was designed to be instantly different from the Enterprise and, although a design was done with the warp nacelles above the saucer rather than below, this final layout was the winner.
The ship was so well designed that the Miranda class vessel continued to be used well into the mid-24th century, serving as part of the fleets that engaged the Borg and the Dominion, proving that once a design is done well, it does not necessarily need changing.
That is not to say that there weren't any changes along the way. Several variations on the theme appeared in the fleet. The Lantree and the Saratoga both lost the roll bar, with the Saratoga adding sensor pods on either side of the vessel. The USS Antares also featured a changed design, with a sensor pod taking the place of the roll bar.
The USS Bozeman featured a variation on the theme so great that the ship was re-classed as a Soyuz Class vessel, with gun turrets above, below and to the sides of the saucer section.