Need more power, Bi-amping does it work or does it just sound wrong

In my experience bi amping made a huge difference, for the better.
I’ve done it with two amps that are similar and on a different set of speakers two amps that were very different. The biggest issue for me with different amps was matching the gain to make sure the mids output matched the output of the bass.
The two amps that were similar were two dynaco st-70s one with an updated driver board the other with the original.
The amps are going to see a different impedance driving mid tweeters than bass drivers anyway so I wouldn’t think an exact match would make that much difference.

Multi-amping is the best, whether bi, tri or more. I prefer active crossovers, but even using a passive crossover, it's a big improvement. I've tried it on many different pairs of speakers with the same positive results. Active crossovers make it easier to match the driver levels and reduces the intermodulation distortion to non-existent.

paulcreed
Need more power, Bi-amping does it work or does it just sound wrong

Do vertical bi-amping if you have identical amps
https://ibb.co/H4t1srH

Or if different and ones a grunter (bass) and the others a sweetie (mids and highs), then horizontal bi-amping, with a passive volume control on the one with more gain so you can equalize the gains, if they aren’t the same. https://ibb.co/vBqs7fm

Never bridge stereo amps, all you get is a **** load more watts, but everything that made the amp sound good the first place in stereo, takes a big hit when it’s bridged.

Cheers George

For the most straightforward methods of getting more bass I suggest you read here:


https://speakermakersjourney.blogspot.com/2020/04/how-to-not-buy-subwoofer.html

A stock version should work fine with your modified HCA-2 in a horizontal bi-amp configuration if both have same output power, and input impedance. I’d put the modified amp on the mids/tweeters, assuming it has better clarity. If the gain doesn’t match, you’ll need a way to balance the two amps.

Vertical vs horizontal bi-amping

I’m running two identical Dyna/VTA 70s in passive vertical bi-amp mode....it gave a nice improvement to soundstage size and depth, mildly improved clarity, and better dynamics. The fact that your amps will be slightly different might lend themselves better to a horizontal bi-amp configuration. In a vertical setup, I suspect one channel would sound different than the other since they’re not quite identical.

I’ll also mention that bi-amping doesn’t add more power per se....you have the same watts per channel, but have more channels. The tweeter amp will have an easy time, with plenty of headroom. The woofer amp will have the same rigorous challenges of driving woofers as a normal stereo amp situation, but without the small drain from the mids/tweeters. It can definitely help dynamics, but the volume levels won’t be notably different.

I’d just get a big brute of an amp. One good stereo amp will do the trick. Getting another amp of the same kind doesn't get you very far. 

If I did buy a brute amp instead of a matching amp to run the low end and choose horizontal biamping how would you put a passive volume control on the amp, I’ve never seen that done? I did modify the crossover with better caps, inductors and resistors and the crossover is outboard for easy access. Could I just add different resistors in the crossover to the low end till I get the out put right or is that a crazy statement? 

In order to properly bi-amp two identical amps are needed.
For several technical reasons mainly to match the sound signature.

I guess I been doing it all wrong, all along..  Identical? Vertical I could see, horizontal I don't think so..

The whole reason to bi amp is to get rid of the tube bloat using tubes as bass amps and use high wattage cooler running SS amps for BASS.

Valves on the other hand, there is no better place for them.. Mids and highs..

Two completely different kinds of amp.. Live and learn ay?

Regards

"...In order to properly bi-amp two identical amps are needed..."

Or a crossover/volume leveling device. 

"...In order to properly bi-amp two identical amps are needed..."

Identical? Vertical I could see, horizontal I don’t think so..

Not really, a nice heavily biased Class-A (or even tube) on the mids and highs and a Class-D for the bass would be nice, with a passive on the one with more gain to match them up once so the gains are the same, and the pre is the master volume.
https://imgbb.com/vBqs7fm

Cheers George

I have always put all the money I [possibly could into an amp. If I had enough money to double my investment I would buy a better amp (in the past they have always been high powered)… so the upgrade was in quality. I just couldn’t take a fantastic amp and hook it up to just the woofer… but neither could I use non-matching amps. So, I could never do it.