Bridging of 2 Rotel RB-1070 Amps

[Phredd47]

Hello, writing is not a strong point so I hope I don't wander/confuse too much.

My question is about am I hurting My system soundwise by amps being bridged? Sometimes I think not, then other times it does seem I can notice a difference, more so in the high frequency area. Bass is definitely more pronounced. Have had numerous people listen to it and come away very impressed by it in bridged mode, with one being a member of a rock n' roll band fwiw. He plays bass, and seems able to really pick out the fine details.

Obviously I'm using 2 Rotel RB-1070's connected to a pair of Klipsch RF-83's. It's the ohm numbers I'm wondering about. The Rotel's say not to use speakers below 8 ohms. Based on review I read from Sound & Vision, 11/06, it said the 83's dip as low as 2.8 ohms at 180 hz. The dealer I purchased through got with Rotel tech dept. and said I'd be okay, figure they must know somewhat what they are talking about. Also, I've read and been told many many speakers have dips below 8 ohms at the lower freq's. So I guess I was hoping someone knowledgable here might agree or not.

I only bridged because I needed more power, so it seemed, like when I usually was around 105db on spl meter. The normal one amp was 130wpc @ 8ohm, bridging brought it up to 330 wpc @ 8ohm.

I wish it were just a switch on back of amp to change the bridge mode, then I'd be able to compare the difference easier.

Well, that's about it. Hope I made sense.

Fred

[Guest " "]

My opinion

transients can be a problem.

you are bridging an already bridged amp (most amps are push/pull which means their output stage is bridged).

it's not realistic that these push/pull output stages would be balanced by happenstance.

if you want optimal transient response, bi-amp your system using an active crossover.

[artto]

For what its worth, most people don't realize that when they bridge a stereo amplifier's outputs, they also sum the noise and distortion of both channels together, effectively increasing distortion and noise which may or may not be a big deal. So unless you really, really need the extra power, less is more IMO.

And keep in mind that doubling power will only provide a 3dB increase in sound level. You need 10 times the power to sound twice as loud.