One more BI-WIRE question


I've read as many of the expert opinions on the bi-wire subject as possible and have done my own research and listening test with different speakers I've owned.The electrical theory as to the advantages make sense to me.The question I pose is this:I just bought a pair of monitors from a well known Italian maker that are equiped for bi-wiring.The dealer and US distributor both claim that these speakers would not sound better bi-wired and indeed were not designed to.The only reason for the bi-wire provision was to satisfy the demand of the European market.Does anyone know if one type of crossover design is considered optimum for bi-wiring.Other than marketing I'm trying to figure the makers logic here.....Thanks
mar00
I think I know what make you are talking about. Moreover, I recently purchased them (probably the same ones), too. This is not a direct answer to your question, but FWIW, according to the hand-made speaker cable vender who volunteered to talk to the distributor on behalf of me for binding post configuration, the bi-wiring feature will be eliminated in the future model. Besides, I would like very much to know why the manufacturer made them bi-wirable in the first place, too.
The vandersteen site quotes r. vandersteen that "the difference is not subtle", re: bi-wire vs. single. Pat Mcginty of Meadowlark says about the same thing. Determining if there is a commonality in the crossovers might put you on the right track.BTW, "not subtle" is certainly true of the Meadowlark Kestrels and I am a believer in people putting in a new component and then playing the system louder than usual "to see what she'll do" and of course there follows a difference.
Rega also does not make provisions for bi-wiring. They state that there is no advantage in it - at least for their designs. One would hope that if a manufacturer is able to design an excellent pair of speakers that it was not by accident, and that if there WAS an advantage they would have explored its potentials in the development. Rega is also a company that relies on its honesty and integrity to sell its products. Who else makes a turntable for a few hundred dollars whose very same tonearm is used by other manufacturers in packages that sell for many times the price. I am personally very skeptical of what many mag's, shops, and manf's pander as the truth.
In order to gain advantages of better sound with bi-wire design speakers, the internal electronic crossover design of speaker must not allow bass signal from amp to travel up speaker cable connected to high frequency pair of mounting posts. If could be your speakers do not have true bi-wire design crossover, and second pair of mounting posts are for cosmetic marketing reasons.....hard to believe that any decent brand of speaker would stoop to this deception. Some high end speaker manf. design more elaborate internal electronic crossovers and do not provide external bi-wire feature, although they are few in number because most recognize the improved sound of external bi-wire feature.