Single-wire biwire versus single-wire plus jumper


My speakers have separate tweeter and mid-bass connectors, like so many do. I assume that shotgunning separate single-wire runs from amp to upper and lower is best (although this may be controversial). But I don't want to pay for double runs of this expensive cable and anyway it would look a bit messy.

I had been planning to run single wire to the mid-bass drivers and then jumper to treble.

This speaker manufacture offers the option of having a Single-wire run terminate in bi-wire at the speaker side. This eliminates the need for a jumper, but it means that the gauge of wire that arrives at the mid-woofer will be smaller than a pure single wire run with jumper.

What do you think? No audible difference? Huge difference? Ever tried both and compared?
Thanks,
Art
artmaltman
I have done both, using mono-block amps with short biwire and single wire with jumpers. Like you I don't want to pay for two lengths of Cardas GR. It is arguable which is better anyway, depends on your system. I would suggest running your speaker wire to the TREBIL rather than the mid-bass. Counter intuitive but after doing it the other way for some time I saw this suggested on several forums and found it works better for me also. Costs nothing to try.
Single wire to the highs, then jumper to the bass was suggested to me a number of years ago by Stuart Marcus of Vampire Wire. I've since seen it illustrated that way in the hookup diagrams for Tannoy speakers. I've suggested it to others ever since.
Have you contacted the MFGR or a dealer of those speakers and see if they have a preference? It may depend on amplification or some other variable. I like to question the designer if available for such queries. Let us know what you find out.
I used to run positive to the tweeter and negative to the woofer (or vise versa - try both) and use jumpers as normal.

It balances the sound out for a single run.

per Bob Neill @ Amherst Audio
"I had been planning to run single wire to the mid-bass drivers and then jumper to treble."

I get the most coherent, satisfying sound using this approach.
I run the single wire up through the bass terminals to treble. Hate jumpers and extra expense of shotgun.
Celtic66, you use the SAME wire and you just make a long length of it bare, is that correct?
I try with astronomical price cable to make jumbers, but the advantages of the biwiring are unequaled.
Next step was to skip the binding posts and directly solder the x-over outputs with the separate cables.
Finaly I put the x-overs before the power amps.
I'm wondering why some manufactures have returning backwards to only 2 binding posts?
Today after a long lasting love with 3 Cardas models, I decide to settle to a fairly uncolored cable 'cause in many critical decisions that I've had, those lovely Cardas were cheaters and so my conclusions were faulty.
My present ref. cable is: VDH "Inspiration". It is fairly cheap ( 120 euro/m ) and inside the tube it has 2 blue & 2 red runs and although it is recommended to strip the 2 pairs together, you can use them temporarily as biwire until your budget allows for a second pair.
Also I strongly suggest you to skip the binding posts & hardwire direct with silver solder. At the amplifier side you can enhance the connection with Walker Audio E-SST.
Another point of concern is the internal wiring (mostly low level). There you must proceed with the same cable idealy.

George