Two pairs of side surrounds with Denon (1 Viewer)

[Erich S]

The higher end Denon receivers allow two pairs of side surround speakers (using one amp per side). This allows using dipoles for movies and monopoles for music. My irregular side walls do not allow Paradigm ADP dipoles so I am considering using two Studio 20s on each side, wired out of phase. This allows more flexibility in their placement. Is anyone driving two pairs of side surrounds simultaneously from their Denon receiver? The receiver will also be driving Studio 100 fronts, CC center and a pair of Studio 20 rears. I will switch the fronts to a separate amp eventually, but will the receiver be able to handle driving nine speakers with seven amps. How far down does the impedance of the Studio 20 dip, assuming crossed over at 80Hz and would two of them on one amp cause a problem? Would the 5803 handle this much better than the 4802?

 

[Erich S]

According to Stereophile magazine reviews, the Studio 20 dips down to 4 Ohms at 200 Hz and is below 6 Ohms from 100 to 400Hz.
So two in parallel would give a 2 Ohm minimum. This is less than the current hungry Studio 100s which drop below 6 Ohms in the 50 to 400 Hz range with a 3 Ohm minimum at 90Hz. I might get by with a Denon 5803 for awhile, but looks like I could use a bit of extra power for the sides as well as the fronts :frowning: . Any comments?

 

[MatthewJ S]

Erich, I decided on my AVR 307 (B&K) over the avr5800 because I wanted to run 2 sets of surround (side wide dispersions and rear direct radiators) from discrete amps

while having the flexability to do an either-or-or-both configuration...

I can ALSO run the rears as my EX/ES "MATRIXED MONOS"

THEIR DESIGNATIONS FOR THESE MODES ARE

SURROUND BACK 5

SURROUND SIDE 5

SURROUND 6

SURROUND 7

TO DATE I have not found any other mnfgr doing it this way...

I also didn't want to buy/mount 6 surrounds!

 

[Erich S]

The AVR307 only supports seven speakers and I am looking to drive nine (two monopoles on each side in addition to two rear and three in front). My irregular side walls make the Paradigm ADP dipoles impractical with the drivers at 180 degrees. I could use dipoles from other companies which use 90 degree offset but I prefer to match the Paradigms in the front. Using two monopoles on each side would give me some flexability with their placement. I can even try them facing directly into the room, like theaters, and use only one on each side for music. Once I have things set up, I'll let you know how it sounds.