Are there any reasons not to bridge a four channel amp the a set of component speakers? Does bridging the 4 channel to 2 channels effect the SQ on the comps?
That's the way I have mine. I went from a 100x2 amp to a 50x4 amp bridged for ~200x2. Works great. THD increases but it's still well below audibility. I'll take the benefit of a lot of headroom over the drawback of .1% THD hands down.
Just make sure you keep your L's and R's straight so you still get stereo sound.
nothing wrong with bridging a 4 channel amp for comps. just think of a 4 channel amp like two stereo amps in a single case (which is what they actually are) when you bridge a 4 channel amp, it's usually stable to 4 ohms instead of 2, which is fine for components.. but remember it's like running any bridged amplifier.. so it'd be like running in 4 channels at 2 ohms. slightly higher THD, more heat, and a bit worse with SNR, damping, etc.. but nothing really audible in most cases. Just factors that come from the power supply working harder, or closer to it's limits.
2 channel amp at 4 ohms would be "cleaner" but if you'd actually hear any difference is another matter.