2. cables
  3. 167869-11005

I really could use some help here.....

This is a hopefully finely detailed question that gives the people who are seriously trying to help me all the info they need to answer this question which is about cables, routing and speaker connections. Hopefully I can explain it well enough that someone can tell me what I have done.

The connections are ONLY RCA jacks and banana clips. That's all. Let me describe how I have wired things.

Source signal is from an OPPO Digital BDP-105 running to the CD input on my preamp via RCA jacks. Simple.

The signal leaves my preamp via Preamp Out connectors, also RCA jacks, and runs to my Sunfire SDS-12 subwoofer which has two line level RCA jacks for input so you can make use of the hi pass filter built in. That is the easy part, here is where it gets tricky ( for my understanding anyway...this is where I need your help in understanding the circuit I created  and if it makes any difference at all ).

The signal leaves the Subwoofer via the RCA jacks using the Subwoofer Out connections and goes to my RCA jack inputs on my amplifier ( all this makes sense to me so far, here is where I need help understanding )...the amplifier has banana clips for the connections to the speakers. RIGHT THERE, I change things. I have Monitor Audio speakers that can be bi-wired or bi-amped and when I bought them, the fellow through in a pricey set of cables allowing me to do that ( this is BEFORE I added the subwoofer to the system  ) so the signal finally leaves my amp via 2 banana jacks and arrives and terminates at my speakers in with 4 banana jacks and plugged in using the bi-wire configuration. Am I clear in describing this, Christ I hope so.

If I am, can anyone tell me what that that circuit looks like sonically, what's going on with all the other connections, what the Hell am I hearing? 

In short, I originally had just normal preamp/amplifier connections then bi-wire straight to the speakers.

Now I have introduced that subwoofer pathway into the signal path between preamp and amplifier? I'd love serious explanation on what that did, if anything, to the signal. My hope was that it was going to make the subwoofer and amplifier more in sync than if I'd run a separate connection from my second Preamp Out to the subwoofer. This way it's all in one signal path. So, is this the optimum way to set this up? Or have I screwed this up somewhere and it should be connected a different way?

Thank you so much!

For others, please stop calling my gear "junk" and I should sell it all and by REL. You're not helping any and you're giving a bad reputation to Audiogon people who are seriously trying to help me.

Components
1993 B&K Sonota ST-202+ amplifier fully refurbished
1993 B&K Sonata Pro-10 MC preamp
2008 Monitor Audio Silver RS8 speakers
OPPO Digital BDP-105 Blu ray player
2018 Sunfire SDS-12 subwoofer

I hope I've given enough information for people smarter than me to tell me if I have things connected in the best fashion and I'm hoping someone will take a few moments to answer.

Thank you.

j


Please do not pop in to suggest I spend $6,000 on all new gear while insulting me. This is what I have to work with so that's how it will stay. Thank you.

stereoisomer
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
But, is it really still bi-wired since I put that subwoofer in the path between the preamp and amplifier?

Bi-wire is running two sets of wires from one amp to one speaker. It really is still bi-wired.  
Or did doing that essentially remove the bi-wire effects even though the speaker posts and speakers are still configured like a bi-wire system?

These are different questions. What is the effect of bi-wire? The idea is supposed to be that some frequencies travel better through one wire than another. This by the way is supposed to happen even when the two wires are the same. (It does.) So no you have not "removed" the bi-wire "effect". 

Just as a matter of helping you think things through going forward, how would something done upstream ever possibly be able to remove the effect of something downstream that hasn't even been done yet? 

stereoisomer OP
41 posts
 
You guys are all awesome. Thank you ALL for your answers in this thread. I THOUGHT I knew what was going on, THOUGHT, but it's nice, really nice, to my thought confirmed by so many people who took the time to reply or message me.

This was really starting to bug me a bit...the not knowing for sure part...thanks again to everyone who helped me out!

j
speakermaster
738 posts
 
I have always found the most musical way to hook up a sub is with speaker level connections that way when you dial in the sub level it will change with changes in the volume control i hope that helps.
jjss49's avatar
Ag insider logo xs@2x
jjss49
6,612 posts
 
I have always found the most musical way to hook up a sub is with speaker level connections that way when you dial in the sub level it will change with changes in the volume control i hope that helps.


^^ this ^^
itsjustme
682 posts
 
In general bi-wiring means that you can run independent wires to the tweeter and woofers.  It is different from bi-amping in that no additional filters are added - the entire signal goes to both.  I fail to see the benefit frankly.
Anyhooo.  You have put the signal through a high pass filter int he subwoofer, and the entire HPF'd signal goes through both wires  - split to both the tweeters and woofers.  The signal below (about) 100Hz remains at the subwoofer.
So the only things that changes are:
1. one more filter in the path2. Added subwoofer performance3. Speaker's woofers or woof/mid are relieved of the below-100 Hz (or whatever) material - therefore less stressed and less modulation of midrange on very low, long waves of low bass.
Ought to be good.
A schematic would be some much easier to follow, but i'm not going to figure out how to scan and insert a scetch. :-)

G


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