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.
128x128kalali

Showing 2 responses by pani

In the case of passive biamping, i.e., biamping without an electronic crossover "ahead" of the power amps, it is of course correct that what has to be matched in some manner is the gain of the two amps (gain being the ratio of an amplifier’s output voltage to its input voltage, for a given load impedance), not their maximum power ratings.

In the context of a passive crosover, while it seems as a simple thing to just match the gain of the two "different" amplifiers used in biamping, it is much more than that. Two different amplifiers will never have the same timing and phase response in the music reproduction. So in effect you are feeding two differently timed signals to the two drivers (LF and HF) and also both signals vary in their respective phasi-ness. The final output will be a sound where the drivers do not integrate and sing as one. The HF and LF will be all there but they will sound like individuals. All the work done at the crossover to marry the drivers are nearly lost. The same happens when biwiring with different cables for LF and HF.
If you bring in the tonality aspect it gets even more complex. Imagine the lower notes of the piano coming from one amplifier and the higher notes from another amplifier of a different make (which means different voice)! Ultimately it will also mean the fundamental notes are generated by one amplifier and the higher order harmonics by a totally different amplifier. Will the fundamental and its harmonics now sound like it is coming from the same note ? It is ultimately a "cooked" sound to say the least.