Bi-Wire for 804's or Not? How noticable with Silver Centauri?

[Britchie]

I have a pair of 804's and an HTM1 that are connected to a Rotel RMB-1095 and RSP-1098. The speaker wire I use today is Doug's Famous Quantum Silver Centauri with WBT connectors.

The cables I own today are 10feet long. Doug can cut them and reconfigure them for bi-wire but the length becomes 5 ft. I need 4 feet for each speaker with my current arrangement which probably won't change and definatley won't if I cut these cable. I must commend Dougs excellent customer service. I've had these wires over one year and he has been very helpful and patient in pointing out the pros and cons with each option. I'm just looking for some other opinions.

I know B&W recommends bi-wire. my question to you all is this...How noticable do you thing the bi-wire improvement will be? Should I spend $300 elsewhere and get more bang for the buck? What about using Dougs Interconnects instead of Prism 5500i's that the dealer gave me at N/C? Is this a better place to spend my money?

BTW...I'm not sure how much this matters but I do NOT own a sub woofer. I undestand the bottom speaker posts are for low frequencies many of which would be handles by a sub if I had one. Should I buy a good sub instead of bi-wire?

Thanks,
Brad

Brad

[sikoniko]

It has been so long since i didn't use bi-wire, that I don't really remember, but I will say that from memory, bi-wire offered more seperation if that makes sense.

Also, do both, sub and bi-wire. If you can only do one or the other, bi-wire first, then get a sub later. That is just my opinion. But know you will NEED/WANT a sub.

[DrBoom]

Take it from me that bi-wiring makes a substantial difference with the 804.
I tried several cables before buying, and the bi-wire cables were always better than the single-wire ones.
I feel that bi-wiring gives you more separation between instruments and voices, it adds realism to the music by keeping everthing separate instead of the music pouring out like 1 big stream

Bi-wiring and sub aren't in the same ballpark however, one has little to do with the other.
If you feel you're missing a serious amount of bass, get the sub first.
If not, bi-wire first.

the bottom speaker posts are for low frequencies many of which would be handles by a sub if I had one.

The bottom speaker posts are indeed for the 2 woofers only, but they are filtered at 350 Hz, so you can't just not use them and use a sub instead if that's what you were getting at

[jlee]

I'll chip in my 2 cents since I own the N804. I currently use the Harmonic Tech Pro-11 mono cable (Stereophile recommended component :T ). I have tried biwiring with the Pro-12 for highs and Pro-11 for lows. Overall, I prefer the Pro-11 by itself so far. Yes, you do get better separation and slightly better high frequency detail, but you do lose a bit of cohesiveness/togetherness.

You will have to decide what you like better by listening... there will be pros and cons... for some people, losing the togetherness is not noticeable and therefore not a con... in which case biwiring is a no brainer.

I will add that a good MONO cable will almost always beat out a lesser cable bi-wired. I used to have some entry level Straight Wire cable and sounded awful compared to the Pro-11 whether it was biwired or monowired.

Also, on the N804, they come with good jumpers. Most speakers come with the gold plated copper plates that jump the terminals. With the B&W 700 series, I found that Bi-wiring made a bigger difference so I have those Bi-wired (I have 705's in my office)... but kept my 804 mono wired for now (maybe I will upgrade to the Pro-9 biwire later). Another thing people can consider instead of biwiring is getting better jumper cables. Most of the gain in biwiring is in getting rid of that crappy jumper.

I also tested banana vs. spades... and there is actually a MARKED improvement in high frequency detail and volume with spades that are tightened down compared to worn out banana plugs. If the bananas are new and really tight, I don't think there would be a difference... but bottom line, I have spades everywhere now... bananas are more suited for dealers who have to change cables very often... for home users, spades are the way to go.

[Mark_C.]

I've used biwires for years on my 804s, but only because B&W recommends biwiring. Whether the biwires are an improvement over single connectors, who knows? I certainly can't tell a difference.

[htsteve]

Britchie,

I also have N804's powered by Rotel. I will agree with the other posts here. I have bi-wired for quite a while and I definitely liked improvement. Also, have you considered shotgunning the 804's (two physical cable runs to the speakers, one for high and one for low). I did this my system and the improvement was noticeable, especially in the bass area. I know this solution costs more money, but since you don't have long cables or a sub, it might be worth looking into. With respect to a sub, that's a good dilemma. A lot will depend on your listening habits (2 channel vs HT). If you are tilted towards HT, a sub would be a good item to get. A really good sub will do both music and HT, but they tend to cost more than a new wiring setup. At the end of the day, I would do wiring now and save for a sub later. HTH

[ekkoville]

Britchie, the listening habits(HT vs. 2ch) should dictate somewhat, but the media you listen to in 2 ch. is a bigger concern to me. What kind of music do you listen to. Something with low end like organ pipes or heavy dance vibes can be greatly enhanced with an accurate sub. Movies will benefit from it as well, but if you listen to a lot of Diana Krall or Pavaroti, the biwire may seem more beneficial. I have listened to 804's at the dealer, and it seemed while they are very accurate and an overall fantastic sound, a sub makes the whole experience more full.

[Rags]

Given that he has an HTM1 movies are also important to Brad. I have 804's and movies with my ASW850 switched off are not in the same ballpark. Also a good sub when set up correctly also significantly enhances stereo reproduction unless you have truly full range speakers which most of us dont.

Having recently moved from single Kimber cable to Wireworld biwire I do think the sound has improved a slightly (so small that it my even be psychological). However given a choice of getting rid of either my biwire or the sub the biwire would be out like a flash !! No contest - put the money towards a good sub first.

[HTguy]

Does B&W provide any technical reason for bi-wiring

thanks,

CN

I've used biwires for years on my 804s, but only because B&W recommends biwiring. Whether the biwires are an improvement over single connectors, who knows? I certainly can't tell a difference.

[Fife]

I believe B&W's are meant to be bi-wired.

B&W Bi-wiring