Bi-Wire question...

Grimster74

Would bi-wiring my RTi70's and my CSi40 really make that much of a difference. And if so would bi-wiring change the impedance on the speakers or would they stay at 8 ohms.

STUFFMD

Hey Grimster, I have the 800's which of course are the older version of your RT. I found bi-wireing to be one of the most substantial changes in my system...(Personnaly)..not all systems are the same..and not all people hear the same...I don't think I have heard anybody on these threads not have some change in their sound bi-wireing.
The biggest change I found was in volume...I had approx 15% more volume....but also got more imaging and all the goodies.
Stuff

fgr41

I just tried bi-wiring my rt8ooi's and cs400i today. I noticed an improvement but not that great. Then again I am not a true audio-freak, just an avg joe that likes good music/ht.

From what I gathered in doing my reasearch, why not bi-wire. It's not going to hurt anything and 90% of the people on the board say it is better than not doing it.

It all comes down to your personal pref. Myself I am going to stick with it.

Good luck!

---

RT800i
RT600i
CS400i
SONY SA-WM40
Sony STR-DE985

mantis

Bi wiring if the speaker can be wired that way I say go for it.I have found Bi wiring is the way to go.

Using high quality wire is also the way to go.Looks like you use all monstercable so allow me to make a suggestion.

Monstercable MCX Bi wires Spades on the speaker side and Banana on the amp side or all bananas

Higher end would be and really maxed out for your level of speakers

Monstercable M1.4s biwires configured the same as above

Inpedence stays the same as the amp still sees the load.

TroyD

Before going out and spending a wad of cash on biwire cables, I'd suggest just running another run of whatever cable you are using from the receiver rather than going out and buying biwire cables just yet.

See if it yields a difference. It's my experience from a midline receiver, I don't detect that much difference that just replacing the stock jumper with a wire jumper.

BDT

Grimster74

Just a follow up to my bi-wiring question. This past weekend I went out and purchased a set of Monster M-series bi-wires for my RTi70's. The store I purchased them at (Tweeter) did not have a center channel bi-wiring kit (which is on order) so I made my own out of some left over monster cable speaker wire I had. I must say, I noticed a difference right from the start. The first test was The Dark Side of the Moon by P.F. on S.A.C.D. All I could do was just sit back and enjoy the ride. Damn near listened to the whole CD and was floored by the difference. The mide bass on the 70's was so much more refined, and the highs were amazing. The biggest thing I noticed was there seemed to be 15% to 20% more volume then before. As far as DTS on movies, things seemed to flow so much better across the front stage. So, I guess what I'm trying to say is for all the people out there that are non beleivers like myself (until know) If you can bi-wire your speakers, GO FOR IT... Thanks for everyone's input, it was greatly appreciated.

fgr41

Great to hear you had such a good experience with the bi-wire. I bi-wired with 16g speaker wire last week and noticed a change as well although not as dramatic. I am wondering if droping some cash for the monster bi-wire cables would make a big difference. I know the bigger the better as far as wires go but will it make that big of a change? Also what is a good price for the cable?

Grimster74

Fgr41, as most people will tell you in the forum everyone's setup is different so for me to tell you it will make that much of a difference in your HT setup, I can not say. As for mine it was a BIG difference. I roughly went up 6 gauges in wire size so that may be why it made such a big difference in my HT setup. As far as pricing, The M-series bi-wire kit came with two 10' runs which were $85 for the kit. Then with the M-series the ends of the cables are universal, meaning, you have to then buy the type of ends you want, spades, banana plugs etc. I went with the banana plugs because they are so much easier to connect. The ends come with two pair per pack at $12.50/ea. and you need 3 packs. The center channel runs is $50 for a 10' run and same situation with the ends. So all in all I spent somewhere around $200 for the who setup with tax. Hope this helps.

BeginnersLuck

Bi-wiring provided no difference in my setup, no matter how hard I tried to pretend it did...

Oh well, bi-wiring is not for everyone...

-BL

GuitarheadCA

Yes, I also Gave Bi-Wiring a fair chance- bought some Z2 BiWires. I listened instensly and noticed no difference in volume, tone or imagaing. The flipside is, I was using high quality moster cable before, and I think some people swap out from lower end cable which attributes for some of the difference.

Dr. Spec

Grim:

I switched to the M1.4 bi-wire and yes, it sounded better than the Lowe's homemade bi-wire I was using.

I think the difference you are hearing comes from using a much better cable, not necessarily from bi-wiring.

As far as a volume increase goes, there was absolutely none on my system switching wires and running white noise test tones - the dB rating was identical. Pink noise might have shown a difference, I don't know.

Yes, I did notice a considerable mid-bass difference - it was clearly more emphasized with the M1.4s in the loop. This was only noticeable with the mains on full range. If they are high passed to the subwoofer at 80 Hz, it is not noticeable at all.

I noticed better detail, better imaging, a more solid soundstage with greater width and depth, and a more focused and dynamic nature on transients and crescendo's.

Doc