Monobloc vs bi-amping (and bi-wiring)
Printed From: Graham Slee Hifi System Components
Category: And the rest
Forum Name: Transducers, Speakers, Mics...
Forum Description: Interested in bi-amping, tri-amping, crossovers, speaker design, miking techniques, EQ - the list goes on
URL: https://www.hifisystemcomponents.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=621
Printed Date: 27 Mar 2026 at 2:30am
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Topic: Monobloc vs bi-amping (and bi-wiring)
Posted By: Chivas
Subject: Monobloc vs bi-amping (and bi-wiring)
Date Posted: 17 Sep 2009 at 1:56pm
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If anyone has an opinion on the following simple questions it will be greatly appreciated.
Rgds
Chivas
Question 1
I've heard two explanations for bi-amping:
1. From a handbook: You use 1 stereo amplifier to drive 2 both channels on the same driver of the two speakers, i.e. 1 amp will drive the LF drivers of both speakers and 1 amp drives the tweeters. -> This method seems full of complexities, e.g. are the impedances of the LF and HF drivers the same i.e. will the same amount of power be delivered to both drivers? If not, will this not make the speaker sound dull/bright or varying between the two? etc etc
2. From the manufacturer's user manual: 1 amp drives both drivers on 1 mono channel of one speaker. The two stereo channels become two mono channels, with 1 channel driving LF and the other HF. The other amp will drive the other speaker.
To summarise: In (1) Each amp drives both speakers, but the amps are split between drivers, in (2) you have a dedicated amp for each speaker with the mono channels split between drivers.
Which is the correct definition of bi-amping and which is the preferred way of doing it?
Question 2:
Which is the preferred method between bi-amping and using 2 monoblocs and is there a huge difference?
Question 3:
Does bi-wiring make a huge difference and does the difference pay the £'s spent on double the speaker cable length back?
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Replies:
Posted By: mrarroyo
Date Posted: 17 Sep 2009 at 2:58pm
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bi-amping - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bi-amping
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bi-wiring - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bi-wiring ------------- Miguel |
Posted By: Chivas
Date Posted: 17 Sep 2009 at 9:17pm
It seems like all the answers are on Wikipedia...
Any practical experience Miguel? What works best, does it make a big difference etc?
Chivas
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Posted By: ramsay
Date Posted: 18 Sep 2009 at 1:31am
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look at larger scale live setups - even your local small music venue will most likely use a multi amp system..if you split the signal after amplfication i believe it is more wasteful in enegy terms than if you have the crossover before the amplification stage.. if youre interested have a jaunt down your local library or decent book shop, there are plenty live sound books out there that discuss the subject in detail.. there is one called the sound engineers handbook buy a guy whos second name is ballou .. (greg or glen or something similar) if you're interested in the nitty gritty. plus the guy will give you pro's and cons from a technical and hopefully non BS viewpoint. best to read a few different books though.. this may be helpful although i would run it by GS's Bullpat sensors first.. http://www.termpro.com/articles/xover.html - http://www.termpro.com/articles/xover.html ------------- Monday you're the pigeon, Tuesday you're the statue, Wednesday you're the pile of sick that mysteriously disappears from the pavement overnight.. |
Posted By: Graham Slee
Date Posted: 18 Sep 2009 at 1:57am
Seems all "sweetness and light" to me, but I only skimmed the latter part of it. It leaves out the real and imaginary parts of the math, but I reckon that's a good thing for the layman, but those with a thirst for learning could be left a little confused. Still, I believe it is done with good intention. ------------- That none should be able to park up and enjoy the view without a smartphone and the knowledge in how to use apps |
ramsay wrote:Posted By: Jitter
Date Posted: 17 Apr 2010 at 2:54am
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Using a stereo amp there are those two methods as described in your OP.
The first is known as Horizontal, the second is Vertical Biamping. The theory goes that each channel in vertical is looking after one driver. Consequently there is less interference between frequencies.
In my experience I have not been able to hear many differences between these two schemes. There is a difference between biamping and mono-blocks. Personally I prefer the mono route. ------------- ...... and that's my opinion, take or leave it |
Posted By: mrarroyo
Date Posted: 17 Apr 2010 at 1:31pm
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I am considering going the single driver route! There are some nice offerings by companies like Fritz, Tekton, and Omega. The last is a bit pricey but if you buy used
http://www.fritzspeakers.com/FullRangeSpecs.htm - http://www.fritzspeakers.com/FullRangeSpecs.htm
http://www.tektondesign.com/loudspeakers.htm - http://www.tektondesign.com/loudspeakers.htm
http://www.omegaloudspeakers.com/products/ - http://www.omegaloudspeakers.com/products/ ------------- Miguel |
Posted By: ServerBaboon
Date Posted: 20 Apr 2010 at 11:28am
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I Biamp my Audio Physics speakers with my John Shearne amps (Int + Power) on the with one amp handling the Mid+HF and the other handling the LF and this decision was based the physical limitions of the hardware (and cost). The Biamping certainly opened up the sound however not sure if some of this was merely the fact that the amps are less loaded (they have a an unual output config**) than cross over issues, in fact Audio Physic by default do not offer biwire. Biamping definately better than biwiring, I did biwire with older speakers before I got the power amp but not sure whether this was because I could hear an improvement or was a victim of hype. The mono block route I guess should theoretically sound better as you would assume better channel isolation and (quality?) of components over the hybrid int+power amp route. ** Unusual - The outut stage seems to show some sort of valve amp behaviour in that the amp is 'designed' for 6-8ohm speakers and the output for 4ohm speakers does double but in fact is slightly less than the 8ohm output. Wahoo 100th post......got a gold star, fortunately for me not awarded for the quality of post |