jeffgeorge Posted August 31, 2001 Share Posted August 31, 2001 I will soon be receiving a new 150 watt power amp (onkyo), and was thinking about bi-amping either my RF-3's, or RB-5's. The dillema I have is that I will use either of my A/V receivers as the amp for the tweeter section and my power amp for the mid/low frequency. There will be a difference of power between the two, of 80 watts for the receiver and 150 for the power amp. Can I expect any problems with this configuration? I realize that this is only a difference in appox. 3db at max. power, but are there any pitfalls in this set-up? ------------------ RF-3's : mains RC-3 : center RS-3's : surrounds KSW-12: subwoofer Receiver: Denon 2801 DVD: Panasonic DVD-A120 CD: Yamaha CDC-765 Cables: Tributaries Sat Receiver: Hughes Direct-TV DD5.1 ------------------------- Family room: RB-5's (Mahogony) Receiver: Denon AVR-2000 (2ch.) CD Player: old Sony (vintage 1986 - needs replaced) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdm56 Posted August 31, 2001 Share Posted August 31, 2001 I can't see any problem with that hook-up. You certainly ought to have enough juice! ------------------ JDMcCall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBrennan Posted August 31, 2001 Share Posted August 31, 2001 Jeff--The tweeter is far more efficient than the woofer and needs far less power. I bi-amp with 125 watts to my basshorns and 12 watts to my compression drivers. You should be able to adjust the level of the tweeter with the controls on your electronic crossover. How is the crossover going to drive the power amp of the receiver, does the receiver have seperate power amp inputs? What electronic crossover are you using? Be aware that if the passive crossover you're bypassing provides EQ for the drivers you will probably change the speaker's frequency response and "voice" by bi-amping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffgeorge Posted August 31, 2001 Author Share Posted August 31, 2001 tBrennen, That's what I was afraid of. My plan was to drive the tweeters with the receiver's output and run the woofer with the new amp's output. It sounds like I need an external crossover... true? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBrennan Posted September 1, 2001 Share Posted September 1, 2001 Jeff---Yes, you need an external electronic crossover (also called an active or low-level crossover) to bi-amp. It works like this; the signal goes from the pre-amp to the electronic crossover which splits the signal into 2 signals at the chosen crossover point, let's say 500hz. The low frequency signal is only from 500hz down and drives one amplifier, this amp is hooked directly to the woofer. The high frequency signal is only from 500hz up and drives the other amp which is connected directly to the high frequency driver. If the speaker had a passive crossover inside it is bypassed. Bi-amping is best left to DIY speaker builders or for use with speakers that originally had very simple passive crossovers that don't employ EQ. To see a bi-amped system check out my website. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheEAR Posted September 14, 2001 Share Posted September 14, 2001 Biamping the dilema If you use the reciever to drive the upper range you better make sure it does not shound harsh.Most reciever amps sound harsh,most blame Klipsch speakers for harshness.Its not the Klipsch defect,the Klipsch simply takes what signal is fed and amplifies it! A good power amp should take care of the highs and the lows.If you buy asy a ATI 1505 or a Rotel RMB-1075 power amp you DONT NEED TO BIAMPING!You will compromise the overall sound by using a much inferior amp to power the highs.And the same goes for using the reciever amp to power the lower section,reciever amps have pathetic damping and the bass control is so so at best. Again a ATI 1505 or Rotal RMB-1075 will bring the best out of almost any speakers and not empty the bank. Did you know High-End speakers like the Dynes and Wilsons dont need biamping to perform.Just high quality amplification and good speaker wires. TheEAR(s) Now theears Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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