VSA VR-4: problem with midrange drivers

VSA manual does suggest that they will sound better bi-wired or bi-amped.
Also, I am not clear as to how to vertically bi-amp. My speaker cables are not identical, I'm using MIT on the bottom end and Synergistic on the top.

I called VSA when I bought my VR4s - Albert answered the phone personally on the second ring! I asked him about biamping or using a single high powered amp (I was considering having my Eagle 4's converted to Eagle 11 mono blocks. He said they're best when biamped. I've since tried them with several different amps and none best Eagle 4s in vertical biamp config.

Vertical biamping is easy - but you need identical amps. One stereo amp goes to one speaker, the second to the other. Connect one channel of each amp to the mid/hi, one channel to the bass. You can use different cables for mid/high if you like. There is a biamping thread in the archives where Steve McCormack describes at length why vertical biamping preferred when you're passively biamping. It's worth a read Here.. he also discusses using different cables . . .

Got it...I think. What about my preamp. Do I need to reconfig my interconnects? Sending only left info to the left and right info to the right? My interconnects (2 pair) and not identical, I am running audio horizons to my amp that powers the lows and purist audio to the amp for the highs.
Thanks for the help.
paul

My concern was that perhaps the drivers in the top module weren't capable of handling that much power alone.

To clarify my previous comments a little further, the mid/hi speaker drivers will see exactly the same amount of power when bi-amped as when the speakers are single-amped, assuming identical volume levels.

The voltage at the output of the amp channel driving the mid/hi section will be the same as at the output of the amp channel driving the low frequency section (at least in the case of a typical solid state amp having low output impedance), and will also be the same as for a single-amp configuration.

The current flowing into the mid/hi section as a result of that voltage will be limited by the speaker's crossover so as to correspond only to the mid/hi frequency content of the music, just as would occur in single-amp configuration. Therefore the power delivered by the amp to the mid/hi section, being proportional to voltage x current, will not change as a result of bi-amping.

The bi-amp configuration will, of course, make life somewhat easier for the amps, by reducing the amount of current and power that must be supplied by each amp channel (since each channel will only be powering one section of a speaker rather than both).

Re your last post, yes for vertical bi-amping the left channel output of the preamp should go to both channels of the left power amp, and the right channel output of the preamp should go to both channels of the right power amp.

Regards,
-- Al

Thanks,Al. I have rewired and am now in vertical bi-amping mode. I'm about to sit down and listen. So...if there is a problem with one of my amps ( the clipping previously noted) I should now only experience it from the channel that that amp is driving.
I guess that I'm hoping that if I still have that issue, it's an easier fix than anything else. It seems to me, that these speakers ( drivers ) should be able to handle the volume that I'm throwing at them. My pre is a Audio Research LS3b and again, the clipping/distortion occurs when I have the gain control up around the 11:00 position. My previous speakers were B&W 704's which were also biamped, and while they didn't sound entirely great at that volume, I never noticed a similar issue...
Paul

as for interconnects - you can run one IC to each amp and use a Y splitter at the amp, or you can use the Y splitter at the preamp (or if your pre has 2 outputs use those) and run 2 IC's to each amp. My IC's are long so I do the former using some good quality Audioquest splitters. I have my amps sitting next to my speakers so I can have short speaker cables

If you're brave, you can also open up your amp and solder a short jumper between the + terminals of the 2 RCA connectors, but then you need to be careful to remove it before you use the amp for stereo again. This may have an advantage technically over splitters and double IC's. This isn't something I was comfortable with though.

I'm not sure how loud the VR's will play and have never put a db meter on mine, but mine will play louder than I'm comfortable listening at . . . this I know.