To Bi-Wire or not to Bi-wire. That is the question... (1 Viewer)

[JohnFiorino]

I have a set of PSB 1000i's hooked up as my mains and they are biwireable but I presently do not have them biwired. I am using MIT 3 speaker wire for both.
Should I biwire? If so, can I still use my current MIT cables and simply 'split' the ends so that each connector actually splits into 2 and then connect them to each speaker post?
[Edited last by JohnFiorino on November 07, 2001 at 05:16 PM]

 

[Michael Botvinick]

It is subjective, but I bi-wired my Definitive Tech. recently and I firmly believe that it made a difference! I didn't split the cables, instead I ran seperate cables to the mid and to the high and then used banana cables to connect them to the amps. I noticed an decrease on the load of the amps when turned up. (The begining of Toy Story II really sounded better)
-Michael
[email protected]
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[JohnFiorino]

I know that biwiring is beneficial. What I'd like to know is if my idea of splitting the ends of my MITs will make a difference or if that'll simply mess up the quality that I'm now getting. (I know...'just try it and I'll know').
Just want to hear some opinions before I do try it.

 

[Bob-N]

IMO, that's not how you benefit from biwiring. By splitting the ends of the wire, you're not increasing the conductor carrying capacity. The provided (?) bus bars would do the same thing as what you're proposing.
For what it's worth, I don't bi-wire my speakers as I can't tell much of a difference.

 

[Deane Johnson]

I always get bi-wire and bi-sexual confused.
Deane

 

[Brian OK]

John,
Explanation of bi-wiring
Beginning at the third * asterick:
www.audioasylum.com/audio/tweaks/messages/1582.html
Good Luck,
BOK

 

[KeithH]

There is a lot of controversy as to whether or not biwiring is beneficial. I have been reading up on it and discussing it with people here over the last few days. There seems to be no consensus on this site.
I biwired my floorstanding speakers in both of my stereo systems with Monster MCX-IS biwire cables this week ($85 for a 10-foot pair, plus $37.50 for the Monster Lock banana plugs). I biwired the speakers in my better system first and thought initially that the speaker cables helped the sound immensely. Then I biwired my second system a few days later. For one reason or another, I was not at all pleased with the results in the second system. The Monster biwire cables definitely changed the sound, but I did not feel as though they improved the sound. In going back to my better system, I decided that I was not overwhelmed with the sound with the biwire cables in place. I was initially, but perhaps my negative experience in the second system biased me against the biwire cables in the main system. In any event, I have gone back to my original Monster XP speaker wire in both systems for now.
Earlier this evening, I spoke to someone at BetterCables about biwiring. The gentleman, whose name I did not catch, but who is considered their cable expert, said that he cannot say definitively that biwiring is beneficial. Still, he often recommends biwire speaker cables to customers who have the option of biwiring their speakers in the event that there is some benefit. The idea, in his opinion, is that biwiring can't hurt the performance, but it could help in some subtle way.
As I think about biwiring, I wonder if many people who extoll the virtues of the tweak are really experiencing the benefit of a better speaker cable and not so much the benefit of biwiring. In other words, if the biwire cables are significantly better speaker cables than what were being used before, then maybe the performance benefit has nothing to do with biwiring. This could be operating in some cases. Still, I expected the Monster MCX-IS biwire speaker cables to be much better than the standard Monster wire I was using, but while they sounded different, I don't think they were better, as I said. I just may not have chosen good biwire speaker cables. This notion is causing me to return them.
By the way, I am considering the purchase of a 10-foot pair of BetterCables' Premium Speaker Cables with banana plug terminations for $215 delivered. I'm not sure I want to spend that much on speaker cables right now. The problem is I know that if I buy these cables for the main system and they work out well, I will want them for the second system too. It really never ends.
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My:
HT Pics ; Equipment List ; DVD Collection ; LD Collection
KeithH: Saving the Home Theater World Before Bedtime
[Edited last by KeithH on November 07, 2001 at 08:01 PM]

 

[Norm Strong]

Bi-wiring is very easy to test. Hook it up as bi-wired. You have merely to short out the ends with the supplied bus bar and you're back to mono-wiring. It can be done almost instantaneously.
You will never hear the difference.
If you want to measure the effect, Just measure the voltage difference between the woofer and tweeter high sides. If it's zero, then bi-wiring has no effect.

 

[Henry Carmona]

As Norm suggested, it is very easy to test.
I remember reading about a particular speaker manufacturer, forgot the brand, who said that bi-wiring does not improve the sound of a good pair of speakers due to the high quality of X-overs inside.
I think he was suggesting that when bi-wiring makes a difference it is due to the low quality of x-over inside.
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