Stereo vs Bypass

[roscoe5250]

I'm noticing a pretty big difference between the 2 modes on my rsp 1068, but I just want to make sure this sounds right. I have a pair of av123 rocket 550s, which are rated to go down to about 60 hz. In stereo mode, I have the crossover set to 80 hz and use the sub.

When I listen to music in stereo mode, everything sounds cleaner and there's a little more separation, and the vocals especially, sound more up front. In bypass mode, everything just sounds a little bit softer and a little more congested. The louder the volume, the more noticeable it is, and it's also easier to notice on music with a lot of deep bass. It's not that it sounds bad in bypass mode, it actually still sounds really good, it just seems to have more life in stereo mode.

Is what I'm hearing normal for most speakers that aren't truly full range? I was expecting stereo mode just to add a little more bottom end.

Thanks!

[Kevin D]

Well in bypass mode everything goes to the front speakers. With no crossover, the amplifier is trying to reproduce every sound. You're probably wasting a lot of the amplifier power to try and reproduce sounds the speaker is not going to make. The low drivers moving to reproduce the lower frequency sounds it can make could also color the sound.

Kevin D.