Need more power, Bi-amping does it work or does it just sound wrong

Multi-amping is the best, whether bi, tri or more. I prefer active crossovers, but even using a passive crossover, it's a big improvement. I've tried it on many different pairs of speakers with the same positive results. Active crossovers make it easier to match the driver levels and reduces the intermodulation distortion to non-existent.

paulcreed
Need more power, Bi-amping does it work or does it just sound wrong

Do vertical bi-amping if you have identical amps
https://ibb.co/H4t1srH

Or if different and ones a grunter (bass) and the others a sweetie (mids and highs), then horizontal bi-amping, with a passive volume control on the one with more gain so you can equalize the gains, if they aren’t the same. https://ibb.co/vBqs7fm

Never bridge stereo amps, all you get is a **** load more watts, but everything that made the amp sound good the first place in stereo, takes a big hit when it’s bridged.

Cheers George

For the most straightforward methods of getting more bass I suggest you read here:


https://speakermakersjourney.blogspot.com/2020/04/how-to-not-buy-subwoofer.html

A stock version should work fine with your modified HCA-2 in a horizontal bi-amp configuration if both have same output power, and input impedance. I’d put the modified amp on the mids/tweeters, assuming it has better clarity. If the gain doesn’t match, you’ll need a way to balance the two amps.

Vertical vs horizontal bi-amping

I’m running two identical Dyna/VTA 70s in passive vertical bi-amp mode....it gave a nice improvement to soundstage size and depth, mildly improved clarity, and better dynamics. The fact that your amps will be slightly different might lend themselves better to a horizontal bi-amp configuration. In a vertical setup, I suspect one channel would sound different than the other since they’re not quite identical.

I’ll also mention that bi-amping doesn’t add more power per se....you have the same watts per channel, but have more channels. The tweeter amp will have an easy time, with plenty of headroom. The woofer amp will have the same rigorous challenges of driving woofers as a normal stereo amp situation, but without the small drain from the mids/tweeters. It can definitely help dynamics, but the volume levels won’t be notably different.

I’d just get a big brute of an amp. One good stereo amp will do the trick. Getting another amp of the same kind doesn't get you very far.