# Explaining bi-wire / bi-amp speakers (idiot’s guide please!)



## david.faik (Apr 14, 2018)

If a speaker has four binding posts for two times the (usual) number of speaker cables, then what does removing the binding posts (linking the two pairs) actually do?

I am not clear if this by-passes the high/ low passive filter in the speaker or not. If it does not do that, I cannot see how running two speaker cables to the speaker will be sonically different to leaving the binding posts in place.

I recently bi-amped some speakers, and so removed the binding posts to great effect (improved the sound very noticeably)

On my other set up, I have a pair of B&W 705 speakers, and will not be getting more amplifiers (space, budget etc). Cannot figure what the benefit of bi-wiring might be, unless the cross over filter is by-passed and perhaps the amp shows the full range to each binding post, taking out any distortion that filter may add. Or maybe bi-wiring is simply buy-more-wiring and does nothing?


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## Kal Rubinson (Aug 3, 2006)

david.faik said:


> If a speaker has four binding posts for two times the (usual) number of speaker cables, then what does removing the binding posts (linking the two pairs) actually do?


You are not, I am guessing, removing any binding post but are removing just the post links that connect the pairs.



> I am not clear if this by-passes the high/ low passive filter in the speaker or not. If it does not do that, I cannot see how running two speaker cables to the speaker will be sonically different to leaving the binding posts in place.


This does not and can not bypass the crossover.



> Or maybe bi-wiring is simply buy-more-wiring and does nothing?


Yup.


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## david.faik (Apr 14, 2018)

Kal Rubinson said:


> You are not, I am guessing, removing any binding post but are removing just the post links that connect the pairs.
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Post links I meant, not the binding posts indeed, so I’m glad now I stated “idiot’s guide” in my post lol




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## david.faik (Apr 14, 2018)

david.faik said:


> Post links I meant, not the binding posts indeed, so I’m glad now I stated “idiot’s guide” in my post lol
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OK, waste of time and money established then regards biwiring.

Still not clear then what the post links are doing. If there is a crossover in the speaker box, why are they needed? My (mis?)understanding is that a crossover will split high frequency one way and low frequency the other. Or does the bass unit see all of the frequency and only the tweeter (on the high frequency binding posts) gets shielded from low frequency that might damage it?

I’m guessing no danger to the speaker in just removing them with my single speaker cables to see what happens. 




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## Littlefoott (Apr 15, 2018)

proper bi wiring requires 2 separate amps and an active crossover between the pre amp and amplifiers

then each amplifier is dedicated to a different freq range, hi/low and uses its full power for just that range.

the crossover in the speaker will not care as long as the freq range delivered is not past its crossover for that set of posts

(eg: signal from the amp designated for lows "should" not get past the in-speaker crossover for the tweeter even if it was hooked to that post)

depending on the speakers there may be a full board with a crossover or just a capacitor unhooking the jumper bar will just disengage the speakers from each other


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## Kal Rubinson (Aug 3, 2006)

Littlefoott said:


> proper bi wiring requires 2 separate amps and an active crossover between the pre amp and amplifiers
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> then each amplifier is dedicated to a different freq range, hi/low and uses its full power for just that range.


That is called bi-amping and not bi-wiring.



> the crossover in the speaker will not care as long as the freq range delivered is not past its crossover for that set of posts


This not a good thing to do. It will result in the active and passive filters both being used and result in an entirely unpredictable response.



> depending on the speakers there may be a full board with a crossover or just a capacitor unhooking the jumper bar will just disengage the speakers from each other


Yes and that is the problem.


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## david.faik (Apr 14, 2018)

Kal Rubinson said:


> That is called bi-amping and not bi-wiring.
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Well thanks for all the tips and advice.

Outcome is that I arranged four 50w mono blocks (musical fidelity x-A50 cylinders) driving some floor standing mission speakers that come with four biding posts (removing the links). So passive bi-amping.
My guess is that the passive x-over still stops any frequency (above or below x value), but removing the speaker links means that when a bass peak draws all the amplifier has for bass, the amplifier for treble doesn’t run out of juice.
Apart from the how it works, the sound quality with bi-amping in this set up is drastically improved. Sounds more like there is one of those big hifi amps you’d need to be a body builder to lift driving things, namely very tight and much more sparkle top end (versus when only two 50w monos were in charge)
I’m best pleased, in my case very worth doing! Can only guess it would be better still with an active x-over, but open heart surgery on my speakers plus finding such an active x-over means I’m never going to do that.


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