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Bi-amping Rules

I wasn't sure if this question belongs in the amp or the speaker section but I figured I'll post it here. Those of you who have bi-amped your speakers, what's the general rule for deciding which amplifiers are better for low frequency vs. the high frequency drivers. I recognize an accurate answer will depend on the particular speakers and amp combinations but I'm looking for general rules of thumb from personal experiences and not application specific recommendations. For the sake of the argument, let's assume the amps are different but the gains on both amps can be adjusted if that matters. Thanks.
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kalali OP
1,977 posts
 
Thanks for all the inputs. I have experimented bi-amping my Aerius i  using few different amps, all SS, and could never get it to sound right or better than a single (good) amp.
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kalali OP
1,977 posts
 
At the minimum, you need to be able to control the gain of one of the amps in order to make the bi-amp approach work properly. Even then, the results can be very mixed. My NAD preamp allows for changing the gain on the second pre-out output. Some amps like my Mac MC2200 also have separate gain controls for left and right channels. But gain aside, I still don't quite understand the need for an outboard crossover to control the frequency between the HF and LF sections since both amps are feeding full range and each section of the speaker still operates within its own design frequency range.
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