X
xenonaut
Guest
I have a question about biamping and hope that someone can offer some insight.
Quick background for context:
I currently have a Musical Fidelity 3.2CR amp driving my SL3s. I tried biamping with my old Adcom 545 on the bottom, and noticed that the MF 3.2 sounded better when driving just the panels than it did driving panels and woofers. I don't feel like the Adcom is up to the level of the MF, so I thought I'd get another 3.2CR and biamp with the matched pair of MF amps.
Assumptions:
My understanding is that the panels are easier to drive than the woofers. When driving both panel and woofer with the same amp/channel (conventional, non-biamp setup), it seems like the woofer would use more of the energy (from the shared signal) than the panel, and the balance between panel and woofer would work out naturally (as designed by M-L, presumably). However, biamping means that the panel and woofer are no longer sharing the same signal (clearly a benefit in some respects, BUT...)
Formulating the actual question:
If I drive the panel and the woofer with identical amps (or with different channels of one stereo amp), do I end up with a top/bottom imbalance because I am feeding exactly the same power to different loads? Are my panels going to be (relatively) louder than my woofers with such a setup? Do I need to feed my panels less power to keep them in line with the woofers?
The Management Summary version:
Does vertical biamping make any sense (for hybrid electrostats), or does it result in too much power at the panel relative to the woofer?
Thanks in advance for any input anyone may have.
Cheers,
Hal
Quick background for context:
I currently have a Musical Fidelity 3.2CR amp driving my SL3s. I tried biamping with my old Adcom 545 on the bottom, and noticed that the MF 3.2 sounded better when driving just the panels than it did driving panels and woofers. I don't feel like the Adcom is up to the level of the MF, so I thought I'd get another 3.2CR and biamp with the matched pair of MF amps.
Assumptions:
My understanding is that the panels are easier to drive than the woofers. When driving both panel and woofer with the same amp/channel (conventional, non-biamp setup), it seems like the woofer would use more of the energy (from the shared signal) than the panel, and the balance between panel and woofer would work out naturally (as designed by M-L, presumably). However, biamping means that the panel and woofer are no longer sharing the same signal (clearly a benefit in some respects, BUT...)
Formulating the actual question:
If I drive the panel and the woofer with identical amps (or with different channels of one stereo amp), do I end up with a top/bottom imbalance because I am feeding exactly the same power to different loads? Are my panels going to be (relatively) louder than my woofers with such a setup? Do I need to feed my panels less power to keep them in line with the woofers?
The Management Summary version:
Does vertical biamping make any sense (for hybrid electrostats), or does it result in too much power at the panel relative to the woofer?
Thanks in advance for any input anyone may have.
Cheers,
Hal
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