After hearing the benefits of active bi-amping in several powered speakers, I was wondering if any speaker manufacturers make passive speakers that can be actively bi-amped out of the box (active crossover > amp > speaker)? I would imagine this would require the ability to bypass the internal crossover, or for the speaker manufacturer to leave out the crossover entirely. Anyone know of a company that does this?
Does anyone make speakers that are made to be actively bi-amped?
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Arkay
Lunatic Member
Actually, more than you'd think. A lot of the speakers with removable "jumpers" can be actively bi-amped, simply by removing the jumper and connecting the amps separately. The crossover remains inside, but it shouldn't do much if you're already crossing over before the power amp, anyway.
Infinity RS 2.5s came with a built-in provision for bi-amping.
Infinity RS 2.5s came with a built-in provision for bi-amping.
Paradigm floor-standing towers. http://www.paradigm.com/products/type=tower
uriah Heep
Active Member
My ADS 1230's can be biamped.
wingman0121
Active Member
I have a pair of Bertagni SM300s that can be bi amped.
A huge percentage of pro speakers are sold with a switchable active biamp connection, or no passive crossover whatsoever. They generally expect you to be using more advanced methods than just setting an LR4 at some frequency and calling it a day, though (delay, EQ and/or DSP response shaping, CD compensation, etc.). This is becoming more rare in a hurry, though, because everything is starting to come out as active speakers, which are active (often DSP) crossovers with 2-3 amps per speaker, but all built in.
No, the active crossover and passive crossover would make a mess of each other. These speakers are intended to be passively bi-amped.
Indeed, but you are supposed to do it with a purpose-made active xover. You'd have to know what you're doing to pull it off well without that.
Not sure which ones you two are talking about, but I'm pretty sure neither are intended for active xovers.
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BMWCCA
Addicted Member
Though they're no longer produced, the JBL L7 were intended do both bi-wire and bi-amp. For true bi-amp with an active crossover there's a jumper wire on the passive crossover that needs to be moved. There's a section in the owner's manual supplement for the L7 that describes what's needed.
Coytee
Super Member
I've got a pair of EV's (Interface D) that are (active) biamp capable. There is a plug that needs to be switched with another plug on their bottoms. Then, you put an active crossover before them, cross around 500hz and you are actively biamping with a passive in (I presume) the midrange/tweeter section.
Klipsch also makes speakers that can be out of the box, actively biamped. Some of them are 2-way and would be biamped in a traditional way. Others are maybe 3-way and have a small passive between their midrange/tweeter but would be actively biamped between the woofer and the upper sections.
Nice thing about getting speakers from someone who's building them from the git-go to be biamped, you don't have to get into the game of figuring out what slopes to use, what PEQ's to use, delay....or anything like that. You can get the speakers, get the amps/active crossover and plug in the factory settings for the active and be done.
It doesn't have to be complicated.
Right now, I've taken my 2-way, actively biamped horn speakers apart... Pulling the top horn off and replaced it with a midrange by EV (VMR) and a tweeter by EV (St-350B).
Given that I'm also using subs, I now have a 4-way actively "quad-amped" system.
Although I know the recommended crossover points for the VMR & ST, I don't know the correct delay nor any PEQ's (if any are recommended)
Sounds 'good' but I'd imagine that it could be made to sound even better if someone with proper tools analyzed it and tweaked the crossover.
So you can get listenable sound by your ears....but.... I personally appreciate that my Klipsch speakers came provided with all the active information I needed to simply plug & play.
Klipsch also makes speakers that can be out of the box, actively biamped. Some of them are 2-way and would be biamped in a traditional way. Others are maybe 3-way and have a small passive between their midrange/tweeter but would be actively biamped between the woofer and the upper sections.
Nice thing about getting speakers from someone who's building them from the git-go to be biamped, you don't have to get into the game of figuring out what slopes to use, what PEQ's to use, delay....or anything like that. You can get the speakers, get the amps/active crossover and plug in the factory settings for the active and be done.
It doesn't have to be complicated.
Right now, I've taken my 2-way, actively biamped horn speakers apart... Pulling the top horn off and replaced it with a midrange by EV (VMR) and a tweeter by EV (St-350B).
Given that I'm also using subs, I now have a 4-way actively "quad-amped" system.
Although I know the recommended crossover points for the VMR & ST, I don't know the correct delay nor any PEQ's (if any are recommended)
Sounds 'good' but I'd imagine that it could be made to sound even better if someone with proper tools analyzed it and tweaked the crossover.
So you can get listenable sound by your ears....but.... I personally appreciate that my Klipsch speakers came provided with all the active information I needed to simply plug & play.