Has Anyone Ever Run TWO Identical Pairs of Speakers ?


I’m considering buying an extra pair of tower speakers identical to the ones I currently own. I would wire them as 4 ohm speakers powered by about 250wpc,

Each set of two speakers would be placed next to each other so there would be 2 identical left channel speakers and 2 identical right channel speakers, with each pair separated by about 1/2.” 
My listening chair chair can be as close as 8’ from the “center” of the speakers to as far back as 20’ from the “center” of the speakers.

And the actual distance between these two seperate pairs of speakers could range from 6’ from each pair to as much as 18’ for each pair. I would of course spend a great deal of time ‘dialing” them in for the best sound.

Has anyone ever tried this, and what were your results?

I’d appreciate your collective informed thoughts.




vinyl_rules
Very bad idea. First of all you will only get an additional 3 dB out of it. Worse, you will permanently damage whatever imaging you have. You can split up woofers that way because the wavelengths they operate at are very long but, you can not do that with midranges and tweeters. At shorter wavelengths the speakers start speaking in two voices instead of one. Tweeters have to be no farther than 1/2 inch apart to speak in one voice up to 20 kHz. When you move them apart like you plan on doing you are listening to a choir instead of a single voice and you smear the image and detail.

Imaging is far better with four speakers than two. If your speakers are using identical technology (martin logan uses ribbon tweeters and both pair of speakers I use are of same impedence and sensitivity - 4 ohm and 92 db) then you are simply adding more speakers without disturbing the manufacturers musical aim/result. It is akin to setting up a for a concert with the need for more speakers and more power to push them because you have the space that will allow for it. You should be cautious about placing two differing  mfg amplifiers in the same system. I researched and found that the NAD 275BEE and the Parasound 2125 vs are pretty close to being identical in nature, especially in output. The Parasound is great for the 35XTi bookshelfs because it comes with a filter that I use to negate any frequency of 40Hz or lower from getting to the bookshelfs as the 35XTi's only go down to 50Hz. All of my speakers are bi-wired with AudioQuest 5 wire.

So, yes, mixing various brands of speakers together with different amps and wires and whatnot, will likely degrade the sound. But if you pay attention to specification detail and only mix like sounding manufacturers, the result will not have any of the negative issues others have brought up in this thread. 
Even with the same brand speakers, you are wrong. I agree with mijostyn on this one, and we don't agree on much. You REALLY need to A/B these configurations with a switch and dB meter. Trust me, you will not go back to multiple drivers spaced apart. It's so much clearer with only one set!
Even with the same brand speakers, you are wrong. I agree with mijostyn on this one, and we don't agree on much. You REALLY need to A/B these configurations with a switch and dB meter. Trust me, you will not go back to multiple drivers spaced apart. It's so much clearer with only one set!
There is zero issues with the sound being lucid. You can hear all the instruments and distinguish them from one another. There is no muddiness or thing that makes you go ..mmm.

Not sure why I would need a dB meter. Both amps are 150 Watts per channel and both amps have gain levels (both L & R) to match the sound level with other amps in your system. 

With that being said, my bookshelf speakers sit approximately 3 feet behind the tower speakers. The Parasound is a bit brighter than the NAD, and that was not an accident. The NAD amp on it's own is a laid back amp, but the Parasound, with the 35Xti's, provides liveliness and excitement. 

It is easy to listen to one pair, then the other pair, and then both pairs together. If you were like everyone else, it is a no-brainer. Four speakers is "clearly" better than two. 
Post removed 
The use of an SPL meter will make the comparison more accurate. Four speakers appear louder, but not as clear. Please try it.