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Bi-wire Clarification

One of my friends (who posts regularly here) and I have been swapping emails over and over talking about bi-wiring. I think we are getting the general idea after emailing different cable companies, but what I want to know is how it makes a difference (1) and (2) how do external and internal bi-wiring differ.

I'm looking for technical as well as non technical information here. I know there have been many posts on biwiring, but in looking through those, I haven't found my answer. Also, how many people use the idea that a smaller cable should be run to the tweeter and a larger cable should be run to the woofer. (assuming a 2-way set up)

Thanks for all your help.

Seth
s7horton
stehno
1,453 posts
 
I've tried bi-wiring a handful of times in the past without noticing any difference but in each case the system was very different from the previous times I've tried. Most recent (about a year ago) included the Acoustic Zen Satori shotgun dual runs. No difference from what cables had owned previously.

I finally settled for the Harmonic Tech Pro 9 plus internally bi-wired cables but single ended terminations at both ends.

I've been in a tweaking mood so about 6 months ago, I converted the HT Pro 9's to bi-wire termination at the speaker end.

For the first time, I noticed several distinct improvements at the micro level. They include:

1. More open and airy high-end.
2. Greater 3D soundstaging.
3. Better imaging.

I believe the mid/high HT speaker cable is a 14gauge and the woofer speaker cable is a 9 gauge.
And they are internally bi-wired. I appreciate the internally bi-wired at least from a cosmetic perspective.
avnut
153 posts
 
In my experience, which is very limited, separating the speaker cables in a shotgun fashion provided the best results for me. I think another factor which may be at work is the design of the amplifier being used.

My current amp is a dual mono design with four separate posts on the back. It seems more natural, to me, for an amp like this to be able to take full advantage of biwire cables.

Any opinions on my take on this?
hifiman
13 posts
 
Just BiWired Maggies 1.6qr's w/Elco silver on top and AP 9's on the Bass.B/4 had only AP's and jumpers for Mid/Hi.
8 days later: Big improvement in Bass ! Amp:Adcom gfa 555.Definition also clearer and more focused.
BTW,have your hearing checked,you may be surprised at the results. The room acustics still makes the greatest difference after quality spkrs and source equipt.
Seems copper on the bass and silver for the mid/hi
does make a difference.
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