Bi-wiring vs single-wiring the spkrs

[simonleemd]

Hi . I am still not quite convinced that bi-wiring would definitely sounding better
than the single wiring.( I mean by using the same brand of good quality spkr
cable ). I really need your opinion and explainations as to what are the sonic
benefits or upgrades of bi-wiring over single wiring ?
I appreciate very much of your inputs and suggesions and thanks in advance
Simon

[This Guy]

bi-wiring is the same thing as using a single lower gauge wire. "higher quality" speaker cable doesn't even sound any different than the cheapo wire from Lowes (oh In my opinion). Forget it don't even bother bi-wiring

[Garrardman]

Whilst i personally am convinced by bi-wiring, i have found the best way to do it is not to use the same cable for the HF and LF but find a good low capacitance cable for the HF and a good low inductance cable for the LF - this will help to optimise the signal running to each driver.

Adam.

[simonleemd]

Thanks Garrardman . BTW, whats the drawback or disadvantages of using the same brand spkr cable for instant Analysis Plus Oval 9 which I am planning to get (I have been using it-single for few yrs and am quite satisfied with it ).
I w'd like to have your further opinion and explaination and thanks
Simon

[Lord_Magnepan]

Some cables have different tonal colors. Some say that cables dont sound, and they do have a point. For me my old Wireworld TerraIII cables had a good bass extesnion while sounding a bit dull in the high frequencys. Now i use a QED Millenium Biwire MKII which is more focused on the hights then the lows. By using different cables for different sectin you can sorta try to get the best of both worlds

Some very good info on Biwire....here click me

[psonic]

FWIW, Dynaudio (among others) disregards bi-wiring stating no there's no sonic advantage to this. IMO, they do not cut corners with their speakers so this tells me something about the advantages of bi-wiring - it's probably nil.

[Lord_Magnepan]

Depends on if you believe Dynaudio or not. Dynaudios sound better with bi-amping too. (active drive the bass and treble section)...so that statment is not all that. Some systems cant show the difference either, on Maggies the different is big.

Cheers

PS: Just try and see what you like better.

[psonic]

"Dynaudios sound better with bi-amping too. (active drive the bass and treble section)"

Explain this setup...do you mean like one amp per speaker? I can't see a single amp running bi-wired doing much good. If you mean Bi-amping a Biwirable speaker so one amp has the bass side and one had the tweeters, yes I could see that improving sound. But sadly the Dyn is not Bi-wirable so I have to wonder...

[Woochifer]

If you buy a spool of bulk cable and have some left over, just try it out for yourself. I'm not a convert on the merits of biwiring (and I use biwiring on part of my setup). When I bought the speaker cable for my mains, I decided to go with biwires to try them out since it didn't cost that much more. I didn't notice any huge difference, some subtle changes maybe, but I didn't do any blind comparisons. No harm in trying it out if you're looking for an answer.

[RGA]

Most dealers will let you take home speaker wires to try out - even future shop will let you take home interconnects. My friend spent $100.00 on some Monster and returned them within 30 days for a full refund.

Some speaker makers prefer you using biwiring some speaker probably makes no difference and some systems may not be able to differentiate them even if they were there. I'm not overly convinced but then I have not really tried all that much so I leave it - to me this is one of those leave it to the last on the upgrade path - kind of a subtle tweak when you've finished the system. If you're buying them to fix sound problems - well you should not have sound problems with cheap wiring = so it's time to look at the speaker room amp and or source before cabling.

[eisforelectronic]

I've heard some differences when bi-amping, but have less experience with bi-wiring. Some one once told me it worked just as well to simply replace the brass jumpers with actual speaker wire. Now this I have tried many times and found it seemed to increase detail and clarity, but also made the bass less pronounced. Anyone have any opinions on this?

[J*E*Cole]

I bi-wired my Infinity Alpha 50's and was instantly convinced of the sonic difference. It was quite noticable. I used the heavy 10ga Monster speaker cables I had always used for the highs and some decent 14ga from Lowe's for the lows. I also tried it vice-versa but it was clearly a better idea to use the larger gauge for the highs and mids. In my humble opinion bi-wiring works and works well. I would never go back now.

[audiobuff]

Here is a link discussing the pros and cons of bi-wiring. http://www.sonicdesign.se/biwire.html

But the truth is that your speakers will sound different when bi-wiring. Here are some reasons why regardless of the points made in the discussion.

1. The jumper that connects your binding posts is not made of the same wire that your speaker cable is made from. This difference is audible. If you're going to single wire and jump, try to find a jumper made of your speaker wire.

2. If a speaker is designed to be bi-wired it's tonal balance is dependent on having it's own cable back to the amplifier. Test this by using your jumper and connecting to the top binding posts, then try it again on the bottom binding posts. You'll hear that the drivers that are connected directly to the amp are louder. Not all speakers that have bi-wire binding post setups are designed to be biwired. If they are not, then using a single run to the midrange and a jumper of the same speaker wire will produce the most coherent sound.

Interms of cost. Many cable manufacturers bi-wire versions are not any more expensive than the single wire versions. Some that come to mind are Nordost and Analysis Plus. But to get the best bi-wire sound, the cost should double due to shotgunning all the conductors and materials. This gives you the best sound if your speaker should be bi-wired and you want the best out of your speakers.

[FLZapped]

Here is a link discussing the pros and cons of bi-wiring. http://www.sonicdesign.se/biwire.html

But the truth is that your speakers will sound different when bi-wiring. Here are some reasons why regardless of the points made in the discussion.

1. The jumper that connects your binding posts is not made of the same wire that your speaker cable is made from. This difference is audible. If you're going to single wire and jump, try to find a jumper made of your speaker wire.

Really? Can you provide a link to the source of this information?

2. If a speaker is designed to be bi-wired it's tonal balance is dependent on having it's own cable back to the amplifier. Test this by using your jumper and connecting to the top binding posts, then try it again on the bottom binding posts. You'll hear that the drivers that are connected directly to the amp are louder. Not all speakers that have bi-wire binding post setups are designed to be biwired. If they are not, then using a single run to the midrange and a jumper of the same speaker wire will produce the most coherent sound.

Again, have a source?

-Bruce

[kexodusc]

2. If a speaker is designed to be bi-wired it's tonal balance is dependent on having it's own cable back to the amplifier. Test this by using your jumper and connecting to the top binding posts, then try it again on the bottom binding posts. You'll hear that the drivers that are connected directly to the amp are louder. Not all speakers that have bi-wire binding post setups are designed to be biwired. If they are not, then using a single run to the midrange and a jumper of the same speaker wire will produce the most coherent sound.

Tried your test...set my SPL meter on my camera tri-pod...played some test tones. No differences in SPL were obtained. Distance set at 1m so room acoustics wouldn't play a part....lowered and raised the tri-pod a few times too, to see if vertical axis response had anything to do with it...nope...
Maybe I'm missing something here?