To Bi-Wire or use Jumpers?


Looking for suggestions. I just purchased new speakers the Klipsch Heresy 111 special edition and was wondering if i would benefit from bi wiring or just get jumpers. My gear is,  Primaluna Premium Dialog HP integrated with my source being the Sony HAP1ZES. The speaker cable is Tellurium Q entry level silver which i was using with my previous Dynaudio speakers. Interconnect is DNM. If i bi wire, looking at Audio Quest Castle Rock, Audience Conductor E and maybe ClearDay cables. I would welcome any other suggestions. As far as jumpers, not sure, never used them. Thanks for any feedback.

Brian
brian27b
Hard to say.  Some speakers respond well to biwiring while with others it is better to spend more money on single cable.  I use both since my woofers, midrange and tweeter are all separate.  I use shotgun cable and AQ jumpers between midrange and the tweeter.  They come in silver plated or gold plated copper (I use gold)

https://www.amazon.com/SET-4-GOLD-BIWIRE-JUMPERS/dp/B005A5Z758/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1482853869...

https://www.amazon.com/SET-4-SILVER-BIWIRE-JUMPERS/dp/B0057FK8RS/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=14828541...
A separate run is superior to jumpers. If you're using TQ then buy another pair of equal length. 

Short answer: it depends on your system AND improvements from bi-amping rather than bi-wiring is another different animal entirely.

NORDOST has a good succinct commentary:

http://www.nordost.com/downloads/NorseJumperinstructions.pdf

They also highlight that a shotgunned double run of quality cables with quality jumpers instead of bi-wires may be your best bet.... But take it for a test drive yourself.

CHORD has offered their two-bits worth in the same vein.... CHORD no longer makes dedicated bi-wires and also suggest that quality single runs with matched jumpers may be your better performers.

http://www.chord.co.uk/help-and-information/speaker-cable-guide/bi-wire-or-single-wire/

My own personal experiences:

a shotgunned double-run with matched shotgunned jumpers of high-end cables in the diagonal speaker hookup arrangement suggested by the NORDOST article beat all bi-wired contenders and pretenders in my system....hands down 
using the reverse method but will try the diagonal to see if it offers better sound...
How about thinking about it this way.  For a given $ sum, you can get two runs for bi-wiring or a better single run.  If you get short lengths of the same cable to link the terminals (see Wireworld, for instance), you get better cable and avoid manufacturer-supplied jumpers.

The entire speaker cable hookup scenario is system dependent, and there is no answer to your basic question. The best answer is from another poster on this forum. "Bi-wire may or may not make a difference, and if it makes a difference, it may or may not be better." Whatever you do, IMHO, it is best to keep things simple and consistent. If you bi-wire, then 2 separate runs of identical cable, avoiding a single cable with bi-wire connections. If you single wire, then short jumpers of the same cable as the main run, and try different connections at the speaker. Jumpers in place, then main to bottom, main to top, plus to bottom - negative to top, or plus to top - negative to bottom.

There's no one answer that will be correct for every application and speaker out there, but more often than not, the money spent on a single run and quality jumper will outperform two lesser sets of speaker cables. I'm very much in agreement with the Nordost article linked above.
Thanks for all your suggestions. Buying another pair of Tellurium Q makes sense. My cable has banana's on each end, my next pair would have to have spades on the amp end. Is it ok to use spades and banana's connecting on the amp?
I googled your Klipsch speakers and see that they are bi-wire capable. So, I would imagine that the designers offered it because it would provide an improved sound quality. Personally, I would skip the jumpers. -Even Richard Vandersteen believes bi-wire is the way to go.

I never heard of the Tellurium cables before. The lower end models seem modestly priced, so much so that I may give them a try.
Thanks Bob 
The jumpers add 0.003 ohms to the overall load, so they are not a consideration to decide single vs bi-wire.  It just depends on the speaker.  I would get a pair of starquads from canare or mogami, or audioquest if you have a preference for solid core, and try both ways.
@tls49 , +1.
I believe that the person who you are referring to is the legendary Al (almarg).

As others have said, biwiring may help, and it may not. It all depends on system synergy and personal tastes.
Always prefer bi-wire if gauge and length are the same. With bi-wire all you are doing is doubling the amount of conductor resulting in way lower resistance for the low voltage DC current. Jumper with 12awg cables vs Bi-wired with half thickness cable will give you almost identical results. 
Go for the most amount of copper and high quality plugs where the conductors are joined. Largest amount of contact surface will give least conductive resistance. 
Brian27b, since you asked about the plugs, here what matters is the amount of surface contact area and how tightly they can be connected. There should be no possibility of tiny sparks (almost invisible due to low voltage) at the contact points.
i would go with Monoprice banana or spade. Either way you’ll be fine. What you are looking to do is avoid any weakest links in your setup. Any thin wire or loose connection is a weak link. All you have to do is provide good amount of current flow conductors without interference from strong magnetic fields or loose fittings.
ayonsinha1
.... With bi-wire all you are doing is doubling the amount of conductor resulting in way lower resistance for the low voltage DC current.
Huh? What DC current are you talking about? If you have DC on your speaker cables, you have a problem.
cleeds, looks like ayonsinha1 hasn't taken Audio 101 yet or if he did, then maybe skipped class too many times. Here's another comment he made that jumped at me while reading a different recent thread.

"Only thing that matters is the gauge for analog signals. Its low voltage DC current running through. The fatter the cable easier the flow."

ayonsinha1, it's usually best to have knowledge of a subject before offering advice about it.


@brian27b If you like your Tellurium Q, buy another pair.   From my experience with 3 different speakers, 2 pairs of speaker cables offered the best bi-wiring result.